RGDavis Interview - Segment #3

Commentary on Segment #3 The original aim of this interview was to discuss Saul Landau's creative work with the San Francisco Mime Troupe from 1963-1966 - where did he come from, what did he do in Madison (University of Wisconsin) and in Havana, and once in SF what did he work on in the early 60s with young innovative artists of all persuasions, including: 1963--Text improvement on Ubu King, he gave Davis copies of IF Stone's Weekly, and Monthly Review. With Alvin Duskin Landau organized the SF New School (non-party Marxists and others) classes from economists and political folks. Songs for Tartuffe, Nina Landau co-directed with R.G. Davis. Landau arranged for Studies on the Left 1964 article by Davis pre- Guerrilla Theatre Essay. With Robert Nelson, Landau curated underground Saturday Night Movies by Jack Smith, Bruce Baillie, Ron Rice, Bruce Conner, Stan Brakhage and others -- films from Canyon Cinema. Big break -- arrest of Genet's film Chant d'amour (and projector) from the Mime Troupe theatre, leading to other presentations and an ACLU case up to the Supreme Court. In 1964 we began exploring a Minstrel Show on racism culminating in 1965 with the most prescient and timely "The Minstrel Show or Civil Rights in a Cracker Barrel." He wrote half, I the other half plus directed the whole event. It ran for three years and elevated the Mime Troupe off the little parks onto the continent of North America. This interview was intended as an appreciation for Saul Landau's contribution to the radicalization, of me personally, and the SFMT's programming in the 60s connecting it to the extensive left radical movement. Since then, most all of the Mime Troupe's artistic bounce and political critiques of that decade have been twisted and reversed settling into liberal protest complaints. Landau continued on to larger projects, (see his books and films on Fidel, Allende, Marcos and others), not PBS "balanced documentaries," rather intelligent examinations, lessons for all. ~ RG Davis, Jan. 2014