Pakistan, July 30 -- Punjab Information and Culture Minister Azma Bokhari's latest announcement has given a date, a venue and a name to an undertaking that Punjab has repeatedly approached through slogans. The first show of Alhamra's family theatre revival initiative "Friends of '70s" will run every evening during Independence Day week, bringing senior performers and younger actors together, while the minister seeks Cabinet clearance for further changes to the rules governing theatre, including artist registration and stricter standard operating procedures.

That is more concrete than another ceremonial pledge to restore Lahore's cultural glory. It also raises a reasonable question: why does a sector placed under a new regulatory framewor...