Found 83 collections related to Manuscripts -- Collections

The Lucia Chase papers span the years ca. 1899 to 1982 and are divided into two main series: personal correspondence, diaries, financial records, and miscellany; and business correspondence, company and financial records, and miscellany. less

American Ballet Theatre was founded in 1939 with the intention of creating an American company of international stature, a museum of the dance, “which would preserve the best of the classic tradition of Europe and at the same time lay the foundation for a new tradition, American in concept and spirit.” Its guiding principle was to encourage collaboration between artists with no single choreographer taking precedence. The records of the company attest to the pursuit of these goals. less

The correspondence and writings of Agnes de Mille cover the period of 1871-1993 and were in the possession of Agnes de Mille at the time of her death. They relate to de Mille's life and career, and that of her family (including husband, William Prude, mother, Anna George de Mille, father, William de Mille, sister, Margaret de Mille, grandfather, Henry George and son, Jonathan Prude). less

The Pauline Lawrence Limón Collection mainly documents the early years of the José Limón Dance Company and the years immediately preceding the company's inception. There is almost no information beyond 1958. The material is arranged into five major categories: Personal Correspondence, Professional Correspondence, Professional Life, Private Life, and Banking Records. less

The major part of this collection consists of correspondence to and from Irving Deakin primarily in relation to his association with Hurok Attractions and as General Manager of the San Francisco Civic Ballet in 1947-48 and in relation to his personal and professional associations with Adolf Bolm, Anton Dolin, and Antal Dorati. The collection falls into a natural chronological arrangement that gives a broad view of Deakin's associations with the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, the Original Ballet Russe, the beginnings of Ballet Theatre, the WQXR Music and balletradio program, the San Francisco Civic Ballet, and the first American tour of the Sadler's Wells Ballet. less

Irving Deakin was born in Great Britain and studied at Eastbourne College and the Royal College of Music. A free-lance ballet and music critic, he came to the United States in the 1920's and worked as a publicity person for the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, Sadler's Wells Theater Ballet, and Ballet Theatre. From 1937 to 1943 he hosted a radio program entitled Music and Balletfor station WQXR, New York, and in 1947-48, was general manager for the San Francisco Civic Ballet Association. A lecturer and writer, his publications include To the Ballet(1935), Ballet Profile(1936), and At the Ballet(1956). He died, age 64, December 26, 1959, in New Milford, Connecticut. A collection of miscellaneous manuscripts, including short stories, essays, and lectures; holograph and typescript of an unpublished book called, variously, Appreciation of Ballet, Behind the Ballet, The Enjoyment of Ballet,and Ballet Appreciation;holograph and typescript At the Ballet(published 1956); holograph, mss., and typescript of the unfinished, unpublished Ballet Theatre: its Artistic and Private Life,written with Anton Dolin (see also (S)*MGZMB-Res. 73-824); and three typescript versions of an unpublished novel titled World of Strangers. less

The Fred Berk Papers primarily document Berk's involvement in Jewish folk dance in the United States. Berk wrote extensively on the subject. He also made instructional notes on the folk dances and kept address lists of people involved in his teaching seminars and organizations throughout the years. less

The papers of Felia Doubrovska cover the period from c.1919 to the year of her death, 1981, and pertain to both her family and personal life and her professional career. The bulk of the collection consists of correspondence: approximately 43 letters and notes from Doubrovska, and 266 letters, cards, notes, telegrams to Doubrovska, with a small part of the correspondence to her mother (Valentina Dlouzhnevska) and to Vladimiroff. Of interest are 42 letters or notes from Mathilde Kshessinska and her husband the Grand Duke André, and 12 letters from Iurii (Yuri) Bakhrushin. less

Manuel Alum was born in Puerto Rico, but his dance training and his career as a modern dancer, teacher, choreographer and director took place mainly in the United States. He was a leading dancer and assistant director of the Paul Sanasardo Dance Company, and then founder and director of the Manuel Alum Dance Company. He also performed solo works and concerts, and choreographed for other companies. The most important materials in this collection pertain to works choreographed by Manuel Alum: 2 notebooks and some additional pages which contain choreographic notes and corrections, background material, a few music notes and costume sketches, and some personal notes or memos. Also included in the collection are biographical materials and lists of works choreographed by Alum, and a few items of correspondence and a contract. less

Maria Bonfanti (1847-1921), an Italian born and trained ballerina, toured the United States and Europe with great success between 1869 and 1894. She also danced as prima ballerina of the Metropolitan Opera, New York, from 1885-1886 and maintained a ballet school in New York following her retirement. This collection, a gift of Miss Bonfanti's granddaughter, Gwendolyn Ruddel, consists primarily of personal and business correspondence, contracts, programs, playbills and sheet music (hand-written copies, specially compiled and arranged for Miss Bonfanti's performances). It also includes posters for performances featuring Miss Bonfanti; a photo scrapbook (*MGZEB-Res, Bonfanti, Maria); and a clippings scrapbook (*MGZRS-Res, Bonfanti, Maria). These items span nearly all of Miss Bonfanti's active career and document her impact on American dance and American theatre. less

Georges de Cuevas (1886-1961) was born in Santiago, Chile. He was working in Paris in the fashion industry in 1927 when he met and married Margaret Strong, a grand-daughter of John D. Rockefeller, Sr. (His title was a Spanish one and was possibly purchased after his marriage.) He became a U.S. citizen in 1940, and founded Ballet International in New York in 1944. His company was known for a period as the Grand Ballet de Monte Carlo, after 1950 as the Grand Ballet du Marquis de Cuevas which was based in Paris, and after 1958 as the International Ballet of the Marquis de Cuevas. The company was disbanded in 1962, shortly after the death of de Cuevas. This collection consists of letters from Georges, Marquis de Cuevas, to his friend Sophie (Sofia, Zosia) Kochanski, wife of the violinist Paul Kochanski. The letters describe his friendship with Sophia, his feelings about his life and himself as he ages, his wife and his health. A 9-25-43 letter mentions his desire to create a ballet company, and letters of 7-31-48 and 3-20-49 discuss his ballet company. less

Mary Wigman, German modern dancer and choreographer, was born Mary Wiegmann, November 13, 1886 in Hanover. She trained first with Emile Jaques-Dalcroze in Hellerau and Dresden and later with Rudolf von Laban in Anscona, Switzerland and in Munich. Her debut as a concert dancer and choreographer occurred in 1919. Successful performances encouraged her to open her own school in Dresden, where among her first students were Yvonne Georgi, Gert Palucca, and Harald Kreutzberg. By 1925, her students included Ruth Abrahamowitsch, Hanya Holm, and Tilly Losch. Her students performed as a company, touring Western Europe throughout the 1930's. Wigman performed at the Berlin Olympics of 1936, but the National Socialists closed her school, and she became a teacher at the Leipzig Music Academy. After World War II, she returned to Berlin, re-opening her school in 1948, which became the center for the German modern dance movement. She choreographed over one hundred dances for herself and her dancers but also worked in various German opera houses, staging productions of Gluck in Leipzig and Mannheim and a famous joint performance of Carl Orff's Carmina Buranaand Catulli Carminain 1955. She died in Berlin September 18, 1973. A collection of letters written by [UNK] Wigman to Margaret Erlanger, Supervisor of the Dance Division at the University of Illinois. Also included are two letters to a Mr. Potter in 1932 and a number of letters to Margaret Erlanger from other correspondents concerning events honoring Mary Wigman, ca. 1956-66. less

A collection of letters written by Mary Wigman, in German, to Walter Sorell, translator of her book Die Sprache des Tanzes.Also included are: letters to Mr. Sorell from other correspondents including Hanya Holm, John Martin, Juana de Laban and Margherita Wallmann discussing Mary Wigman, her book and Mr. Sorell's projected biography of Hanya Holm; a letter to Mary Wigman from Frederica T. Gibbon; an essay by Mary Wigman, “Dance pedagogy: letter to a young dancer,” in English. less

The Mura Dehn Collection documents Mura Dehn's professional life as dancer, choreographer, scholar and filmmaker, and to a lesser degree, her personal life through notebooks, poetry and correspondence. Most important are the research notes and drafts of her many scholarly writings on the development of Afro-American social dance in this country. less

The Ted Shawn Collection documents Ted Shawn's personal life as well as his career as a dancer, choreographer, and writer from 1903 to 1971. Although the bulk of the material dates from 1960 to 1971, there is a significant amount for the years 1920 through 1959. There is very little material prior to 1920. The collection is divided into nine major sections: Correspondence; Ted Shawn's Annual Newsletters; Unpublished Manuscript of Ted Shawn's Autobiography; Written Works by Ted Shawn; Written Works about Ted Shawn; Notes for Ted Shawn's Thirty-Three Years of American Dance;Denishawn Dancers and Ted Shawn and his Men Dancers; Delsarte System of Expression; Miscellaneous. less

The Toscanini/Ebreo materials consist of correspondence and research pertaining to the Ebreo manuscript and the Jewish dancing masters. The correspondence is mainly between Walter Toscanini and scholars of Ebreo. The research materials vary from articles with Toscanini's annotations to Toscanini's own compilation of data. Photocopies of dancing master's treatises are included with annotations by Toscanini. less

Anthony A. Bliss, a lawyer and patron of the arts, was elected chairman of the board of directors of the Foundation for American Dance, the parent organization of the City Center Joffrey Ballet, in 1970. The Foundation for the Joffrey Ballet was later formed, and Bliss served as chairman of its board. He resigned from the Joffrey board in May, 1990. This collection consists of the papers of Anthony Bliss which relate to his work for the Joffrey Ballet and cover the period 1969-1990. The bulk of the material is correspondence to or from Bliss which pertains to fundraising. Also included is correspondence pertaining to other board business such as a contract for Gerald Arpino, by-laws, minutes of board and committee meetings, lists of board members, agreements, proposed contracts, and some touring and financial information. less

The records of the Royal Academy of Dancing document that organization and much of its work from its beginnings in 1920 as the Association of Operatic Dancing through 1960 (bulk dates 1933-1955). Most of the material consists of correspondence, minutes of meetings, documents, drafts of speeches and reports, schedules of classes and events, and some financial information. The correspondence and documents relating to the application and granting of the Royal Charter are extensive. Correspondence to and from Adeline Genée, the founder-president (known also as “Madame,” “Nina,” or “Mrs. Isitt”), is important and is found throughout the collection. Of interest are the accounts of life in London during World War II in correspondence for the years 1940-1941 in the following series or subseries: II. Correspondence - Genée; VI. Examination Tours - Australasia; and VII. Scholarships. less

For the most part the Royes Fernandez Papers (ca. 1945-1980) comprise correspondence. This series (784 items), dating from 1945 until shortly before his death in 1980, is predominantly letters written to Fernandez from personal and professional friends and audience members. They include birthday and holiday greeting cards. less

Ruth Page, American dancer, choreographer, and director of ballet companies, was born in 1899, the daughter of a physician in Indiana. Her dance studies began with local teachers in Indianapolis. Like many a young girl, she was inspired by seeing Anna Pavlova perform, and actually did perform with the legendary dancer's troupe during a tour to South America in 1918. Her training continued in Chicago with Adolph Bolm who created The Birthday of the Infantafor her, dancing the role with Bolm's Ballet Intime at the London Coliseum in 1920. Her varied performing career included being premiere danseuse with Chicago Allied Arts from 1924-1927, Irving Berlin's Music Box Revue, a brief time with Diaghilev's Ballets Russes, touring the Orient and Moscow in the late 1920's, solo tours throughout the United States, touring with Harald Kreutzberg 1932-1933, and premiere danseuse with the Chicago Grand Opera Company from 1934-1937. Chicago was her base, having married the successful lawyer Thomas Hart Fisher, who also managed her dance career affairs. With her partner Bentley Stone, she formed Page-Stone Ballet Company in Chicago in 1938. Page was one of the first to tackle American themes in her dances including the ballad of Frankie and Johnny(choreographed with Stone), Poe's poem The Bells,and the story of a revivalist preacher Billy Sunday.She worked with the Chicago Lyric Opera and toured a Chicago Opera Ballet company, introducing many great dancers to the American public, including Rudolf Nureyev's New York City debut in March, 1962. With the resources of a successful husband, she commissioned scores from Aaron Copland, Darius Milahud and others, designs from Isamu Noguchi, Pavel Tchelitchev, and André Delfau, whom she married in 1983, many years after the death of Thomas Fisher. She wrote two books, Page by Pageand Class.The recipient of the Dance Magazine Award (1990), the Illinois Gubernatorial Award (1985) and several honorary degrees, she died in Chicago April 7, 1991. A collection of items, mostly correspondence, relating to publicity and public relations for tours of Ruth Page's Chicago Opera Ballet (later called Ruth Page's International Ballet). The correspondence is chiefly between Thomas Hart Fisher, representing Miss Page and the Chicago Opera Ballet, and representatives of Columbia Artists Management, Inc. Chief subjects include the compilation of press and souvenir books, the engagement of guest artists (including Kirsten Simone and Henning Kronstam), and tour publicity. Other items include sections of pressbooks, articles by Page, and copies of public testimonial to Ruth Page's cultural accomplishments. less

Documents Ruth St. Denis' personal life and professional career. Divided into eight sections; autobiographical material, including St. Denis' personal journal, history letters, and miscellaneous items (246 folders); writings, including addresses, essays, lectures, and poetry written by St. Denis and others (83 folders); information on the Denishawn era, including choreographic notes, Denishawn technique, and Denishawn schools (54 folders); St. Denis' post-Denishawn choreographic projects, including choreographic notes, descriptions of ballets, and production arrangements (l0 folders); music scores, primarily for the choreographic works of St. Denis and Ted Shawn (17 folders); business records, including professional materials (bookings, publicity, program drafts), financial materials (budgets, bank statements, contracts), and miscellaneous (51 folders); St. Denis' projects and organizations, including information on her Creative Arts Colony, Society of Spiritual Arts, Ruth St. Denis Foundation, film projects, etc. (47 folders); and miscellany. less

Dance Perspectiveswas published quarterly from 1959-1976, a total of 66 issues plus a 1962 Annual which was a bonus for subscribers. Selma Jeanne Cohen's records of Dance Perspectivescover this period, but there is no material for issues #1, #2, #4, #5, #6, #7, #8, #9, #15, #20, #23, #25, and #29. The amount of material on each issue varies considerably; there is only one letter pertaining to issue #3. less

Selma Jeanne Cohen is an author, editor, lecturer, and teacher, and the records of several of her teaching projects comprise the bulk of this collection. From 1965-1969, at the Connecticut College School of Dance, (which became the American Dance Festival in 1969), she taught or lectured on dance history or writing on dance, classes which were open to all students at the summer school. The Critics' Conferences, 1970-1972, funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and held during the Connecticut College - American Dance Festivals, were for a select group of professional critics, to train them in “the skills of describing and evaluating dance.” The National Critics Institutes were sponsored by the O'Neill Foundation, to provide “intensive on-the-job training for young critics,” and Cohen taught there during the summers of 1969, 1971 and 1972. less