ABSTRACT
In the spring of 1973 a woman involved in a mixed media group was looking for a theatre to host a series of events; in the course of her search she discovered that the Almost Free Theatre, run by the community arts venture, Inter-Action, was free the following autumn. After a series of meetings with other women (both professionals and non-professionals) interested in theatre, the idea of setting up a Women’s Theatre Festival was conceived. During that summer over a hundred women came to workshops, readings and discussions, and eventually a ten-week programme of lunch-time plays was planned. There was difficulty over the choice of plays, not only from within the group, but because Ed Berman, artistic director of the theatre, insisted on having a final say on selection, even though he was in all other respects prepared to hand over the season to the group, with skeletal (if invaluable) help from Inter-Action staff.
