Tom Walker: Archivist
Listen to our conversation with Tom Walker, Living legend and company archivist, as we talk to him about what it's like to work and live with the material legacy of The Living Theatre
Tom Walker has been a company member with The Living Theatre for over 50 years - in addition to being one of the longest living company members, he has undertaken the sacred task of continuing Judith Malina and Julian Beck’s extensive efforts to “keep track” of the company history as official archivist for The Living Theatre.
Currently, The Living Theatre is in Seoul, South Korea working on the premiere of a new play, “Rosetta,” by Yossef K. Junghan. Emma Sue Harris sat down with Tom in their rented apartment in Mapo-gu to talk about what it’s like to work and live with the material legacy of the company.
@Tom Your candid recounting of both history and personal experience brought back for me all the good—and, of course, the bad—times of working in the Living Theatre. I suppose that once you are a Living Theatre person, you are always a Living Theatre person. And despite any trials and tribulations of the imperfect nature of the experiment of working as a quasi-collective entity, the overall feeling I am left with is that it was and is worth it.
I am convinced there are few who could describe the dynamics and the impact of the decades and decades of artistic and political work in a more eloquent and more honest fashion than you. I hope your current work opens new vistas for exploration.
I share LLoonin's hope that you get your own work into print. It is more than worthy and deserves exposure to the outside world. Having been present for several of your readings, I can attest to the impact of your words, and the musical color and cadences they evoke.
@Tom. I was touched by your honesty and came to feel how overworked you've been all your life. Concluding with your relief that you escaped the "crisis" because of the insular nature of the Living was most touching and revealing. I hope you get all of this off to Yale or "Naples" and get your own work in print. You very much deserve such a reward for such dedicated service.