Is Dolly Levi a communist?

I think it's pretty clear that she is. She wants to seize Mr. Vandergelder's wealth and distribute it amongst the masses. She also prevents the capitalistic entrepreneurship of Cornelius opening his own store but she ensures he gets a higher source of income from Mr. Vandergelder.

I can't see any reason why this is relevant or important.

Communism is just a red herring.

Definitely.

I think you have not yet quite mastered the definitions of "communism" and "capitalism."

Dolly is a textbook capitalist - she doesn't want to redistribute capital, she wants to invest it to "encourage little things to grow." As she tells us at the very beginning of the show, she arranges things "for the pleasure and the profit they derive."

Growth and profit are the cornerstones of capitalism.

But then, Americans have never been particularly savvy on economic theory...

It takes a Commie, according to Feds,

to brainwash Abe Burrows and Lucy to Reds

She clearly is. It's disgusting, really. All of you should be offended and should boycott the show. If you've already purchased a ticket, give it to me and I'll make sure it's, uh, disposed of properly.

kaykordeath said: "Communism is just a red herring."

Thank you for this.

...**FLAMES** on the side of my face...

I hope so, communism owns.

What difference would it make whether she is or not? I highly doubt that the OP understands the very nuanced implications of the term.