Are You Now or Have You Ever Been?

by Eric Bentley, René Auberjonois (Narrator), Ed Asner (Narrator)

In the mid-1950s, the House Un-American Activities Committee began investigating the communist influence in the entertainment industry. This searing docudrama from actual transcripts of the hearings reveals how decent people were persuaded to name names, and the steep price paid by those who refused.

Genres: Plays, Politics, Drama, History, Biography, Audiobook, Nonfiction

Audible Audio

First published January 1, 1972

About the author

Eric Russell Bentley was a British-born American theater critic, playwright, singer, editor, and translator whose work shaped twentieth-century theatrical discourse. Educated at University College, Oxford, and Yale University, where he earned his doctorate, he later taught at Black Mountain College and Columbia University and served as theatre critic for The New Republic. Known for his incisive and uncompromising criticism, he became one of the foremost English-language authorities on Bertolt Brecht, translating, editing, and performing Brecht’s work and recording landmark albums of Brecht songs. Bentley was also an accomplished playwright, with Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been, drawn from Un-American Activities Committee hearings, becoming his most produced play. He appeared for decades as a cabaret performer and was inducted into the American Theatre Hall of Fame. An advocate for artistic and political freedom, he publicly opposed the Vietnam War and later spoke openly about his homosexuality and its influence on his work.

Reviews

[Gil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Are You Now or Have You Ever Been?
By: Eric Bentley
Narrated by: René Auberjonois, Edward Asner, Bonnie Bedelia, Richard Dreyfuss, James Earl Jones, James Whitmore, Michael York
Length: 1 hr and 27 mins
Published January 25th 2016 by L.A. Theatre Works (first published 1972)

Politics. Am I right? Who needs 'em. I've always hated political anythings. As we have found here in the last part of the year 2020, politics can make enemies out of good people. That's pretty much what is told in this story. Back during the red scar of the mid 50s people were reporting their neighbors for stuff that may or may not have had anything to do with communism, but it didn't matter the government was on the scent and would not break off the hunt.

The worst of this was seen in the treatment of Hollywood. Many folks in the biz never recovered from this witch hunt and careers were ended. This play focuses specifically on the Hollywood aspect of the red scare. Just name names an you will be off the government's list, but that means that you may turn others against you.

I would like to think in this day and age that a person simply curious about how communism runs or doesn't run would be safe to seek out that info. But alas, we have not learned our lesson and at the mere mention of anything social (social medicine, social healthcare, social education, social security) the screaming words of the other side calling another side communist still happens today. I'm not sure why or how but religion and politics are the two subjects / fields that you have to believe like everyone else or be prepared to have your head on a pike. I would also like to say give this play a listen / watch / read and learn, but humanity never learns.

On the positive side, the performances in this L.A. Theatre works production are once again stellar. Ed Asner steals the show for me he just makes the performance real. As usual with LATW productions the production quality is superb. So, at least enjoy a brief and entertaining history lesson. It may not change the world, but we can always hope.

[Zac Stojcevski · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Powerful stuff, had me engrossed from start to finish in a single sitting. So many lives disfigured or lost unnecessarily. The hypocrisy of democracy. The absolute disfigurement of the constitution and free speech by a (long) standing committee with winners and losers creates a tension more than 8 decades later as torso bracing as if it was today … wait, today Manduro was brought in to the US in bondage. Paul Robeson brings it In beautifully at the end.

[Relena_reads · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a review of the LA Theatreworks audio staging of "Are You Now...", not the rest of the anthology. Several of the portions of the play are just brilliant. Arthur Miller, Robeson, several of the informers, but others felt uneven in comparison. This play is still maddeningly important in our current moment, as we find ourselves at our most fascist-leaning since McCarthy.

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow...change the word "communist" to "globalist" and change the Congressional members to Fox/OAN/NewsMax anchors and this play fits perfectly into today's world. FACTS MATTER AND FINGER POINTING TO GAIN POWER SUCKS!

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

The audio book has an amazing cast. So many powerful responses to McCarthy’s committee. This focuses on Hollywood’s response, so the “Have you no decency?” Response is missing.

[Peter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty scary that it lasted as long as it had. A lesson for our democracy that should never be forgotten. Speak truth to power. Support journalism. Keep the powerful in check.