Artistic Freedom and Censorship

in Theatre
 Freedom of Speech and the Arts
Congress shall make no law respecting an
establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free
exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of
speech, or of the press; or the right of the
people peaceably to assemble, and to petition
the Government for a redress of grievances.
 Exceptions to Freedom of Speech
• Defamation – can not state publicly or publish alleged facts
that are false and can harm the reputation of another.

• Sedition and Incitement to Crime – if one’s words incite

another to commit a crime, you may be in violation of the First
Amendment.
• Separation of Church and State.
• Government can’t endorse any religion
• Freedom of speech can be suppressed if it causes physical or economic
injury, but not for spiritual injury

• Obscenity is not protected.

 Exceptions to Freedom of Speech
• Breach of the Peace

Some people hearing

Orson Wells’ War of the
Worlds radio drama
thought the alien
invasion of earth was
real, and panicked.

Betmann/Corbis
 You Can’t Say That!
 Censorship – the altering, restricting, or suppressing of
information, images, or words.
 Licensing Act of 1737 – placed the review and censoring of
plays in England under the purview of the Lord
Chamberlain.

Donald Cooper/Photostage Ltd.

 You Can’t Say That!

Photofest
 To Bowdlerize – to remove possible vulgar, obscene, or otherwise
objectionable material before publication.
 Comstock Act of 1873 – used to censor mail in the United States.
 Hays Code – used to censor movies from the 1930s to the 1960s.
 Curtain Call

“[I]f theatre is free conversation, free dialogue,

among free people about the mysteries of the
world, then it is precisely what will show
humankind the way toward tolerance, mutual
respect, and respect for the miracle of Being.”
Vaclav Havel, playwright and former President of Czechoslovakia