Essential Facts

1. One of Brecht’s famous plays, The Threepenny Opera, was based on a ballad opera written 200 years earlier.
2. Brecht’s work was enormously collaborative, bearing the influence of his wife, Helene Weigel, and his troupe, The Berliner Ensemble.
3. Another of Brecht’s key theatrical tactics was “historicization,” which used events from the past to create parallels to contemporary issues. His important play Mother Courage and Her Children is considered a quintessential example of this technique.
4. Brecht was singled out by the House Un-American Activities Committee for his socialist leanings and was blacklisted in Hollywood.
5. Brecht’s plays continue to be produced in numerous versions and languages around the world. The Threepenny Opera was revived on Broadway in 2007, starring Alan Cumming and pop singer Cyndi Lauper.