NEW PLAYS

I am sick and tired of statements like Lawrence Christon’s (Stage Week, Jan. 19), who said that what makes a good theater is its “attention to playwrights and new plays” (I think there are a hundred better reasons).

In the self-serving circles of Equity Waiver theater and the nonprofits, we hear this a lot. The reason is to apply for and get big-money grants, most of which is wasted. The Mark Taper Forum spent $400,000 to put on a series of “non-plays” (works in progress) and charged good ticket prices to the public.

With all this emphasis on new plays, it seems strange that these theaters have failed to discover any great actors, stars, directors; failed to bring us Shakespeare of any significance (from L.A.). These theaters tend to be cliquey, elitist and mediocre.

It seems that they should worry less about new plays than first succeeding with the golden great ones. This may be the highest test of any theater company.

GREGORY LANSING

Hollywood

Lansing is creative director of the Royal Hollywood Shakespeare Co.