We’re proud to share with you our latest oral history with East Village playwright Barbara Kahn. Barabara has been a vital voice in the world of theater in New York and beyond for decades, with a special focus on New York and downtown history, particularly as experienced through the lens of marginalized or often overlooked groups, especially women and the LGBTQ community. 

The oral history covers Barbara’s upbringing in South Jersey and her early attraction to and interactions with giants of the theater world. It follows her move to New York and her deep immersion over the years in the downtown creative scene, inventing her own unique brand of storytelling. 

Barbara’s is one of more than 60 oral histories conducted by Village Preservation with local leaders in the fields of preservation, architecture, the arts, activism, small business, and civic life. Prior subjects include Jane Jacobs, Merce Cunningham, Marlis Momber, Jonas Mekas, and so many more.