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Guide to the Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective Collection
1999-44
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Title: Guide to the Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective Collection
Dates: 1976-1999
Collection number: 1999-44
Creator:
Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective
Collection Size:
6 linear feet
11 boxes, 1 oversize folder
Repository:
Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society
San Francisco, California 94105
Abstract: The Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective collection is composed of scripts, "Extra
Pieces" (writing not included in scripts), newsletters, flyers, administrative files,
photographs, and various audio-visual materials that reflect the activities of this women's
theater group that began in 1976, and were still active when they donated the collection in 1999.
Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective performed to promote feminist education and addressed such
topics as women's roles in society, lesbianism, motherhood, and religion.
Physical location: Stored at the Archives of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society of San Francisco, California
Languages:
Languages represented in the collection:
English
Collection open for research.
Mothertongue retains copyright on all scripts, GLBTHS holds copyright on the balance of the collection.
[Identification of item], [Name of Series], Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective Collection, 1999-44, The Gay, Lesbian,
Bisexual, Transgender Historical Society.
Ida VSW Red and Corinne Sue Wick donated the Mothertongue collection to the GLBTHS in July of 1999.
Biography / Administrative History
The Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective began out of the Women's Speaker's Bureau (now the Women's Speaker's Network).
Lani Silver of the WSB spoke at a WSB-sponsored Women and Violence Conference in the fall of 1976; four other women performed
a reader's theatre script at the event. Here, the women met and shared material; after the conference they began to develop
other scripts to perform independently at women's coffee houses. The goals of the group (originally called Mothertongue Reader's
Theatre) were feminist education and consciousness-raising. The group addressed such topics as sex roles, body image, lesbianism,
motherhood, and spirituality. Over the next decade, the theater group grew, taking on public speaking engagements and performing
at benefits. Despite the growing size of the collective (75 members by the mid-eighties), the group still remained non-hierarchical,
developing scripts collectively and administrating through consensus. Disagreements were worked out through conflict resolution;
the group was consistently committed to equality between members as opposed to hierarchical rank. A complete history of Mothertongue
is included in the collection: "Me, You, Them," by Judy Sanders, is a 200 page text documenting the collective from its inception
in 1976 through the late eighties, when the text was written (file 5/4). It includes detailed history and political goals
of the group, as well as extensive interviews with group members. Mothertongue Feminist Theater Collective was still meeting
and performing when the founding members donated this collection in 1999.
Scope and Content of Collection
The Mothertongue collection has 2 main parts. The first section in boxes 1 through 4 is comprised of original scripts; the
scripts are compilations of short pieces, poems, monologues, and dialogues written both by women in the collective and by
non-members in the community. The scripts document the personal lives and concerns of the writers, especially as relating
to 1970s feminist politics; many pieces are deeply emotional, reflecting anger and personal pain, while others are humorous
or erotic. Most scripts contain handwritten production notes. The scripts are filed in alphabetical order, with the date
of production noted. Also included are "Extra Pieces," drafts of writing not included in any script. These pieces are organized
alphabetically by the first word of the piece, although they are not alphabetized within each letter.
The remainder of the collection is comprised of the Mothertongue administrative files, flyers and newsletters, photographs
of shows, and videotapes. The administrative files include contracts and funding sources, records of specific performance
venues, and correspondence relating to the group. The correspondence section contains mostly business letters, but also letters
from the community responding to Mothertongue's politics; the files contain both positive feedback and disapproval over lesbian
content performed in public places. Also of interest in the administrative files is the detailed record of a conflict resolution
meeting in 1990; as part of its commitment to non-hierarchy, the group hired a professional mediator to resolve a dispute
between members. Because Ida VSW RED had already organized the collection before donating it to GLHS, the collection remains
in nearly the same order as when donated; file headings and titles have been kept.
The collection also contains one oversize box of posters and paper props, as well as five display boards decorated with a
collage of photographs, programs, and colorful flyers documenting the group's production history. There is one t-shirt with
Mothertongue logo in the t-shirt collection.
This collection is organized in 11 series:
- Series 1. Scripts
- Series 2. Extra Pieces
- Series 3. Newsletters and Flyers
- Series 4. Notes
- Series 5. Administrative Files
- Series 6. Performance
- Series 7. Other Political/Theater Groups
- Series 8. Audio-Visual Items
- Series 9. Photographs
- Series 10. Posters (Oversize Materials
- Series 11. Artifacts
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Theater
Feminism
Lesbians
Oral History of Ida VSW Red: 95-041
The San Francisco Women's Building Collection (1995-15)