ABSTRACT
Zelda works closely with playwright Howard Sackler on his epic play The Great White Hope and produces the world premiere of it, directed by resident director Ed Sherin. The production, which stars rising African American actor James Earl Jones and company member Jane Alexander, is a phenomenal success. It moves to Broadway, taking most of the Arena acting company with it. But Arena is given no acknowledgement by the playwright or the commercial producer, and the theater is cut out of the substantial profit the production makes, leaving Zelda with a deep sense of betrayal. Having been exhilarated by the presence of African American actors and audiences in her theater during The Great White Hope, she brings in eight Black actors to join Arena’s predominantly white acting company for a repertory of three classic plays. She embarks on this pioneering initiative with high hopes, but for a variety of reasons this “failed experiment” lasts only one season. Narrators include Jane Alexander, James Earl Jones, and John Conklin.
