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Creator
De Mille, Agnes
Call number
*MGZEB 21-0017
Physical description
5.88 linear feet (16 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Agnes de Mille photographs, *MGZEB 21-0017. Jerome Robbins Dance Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Repository
Jerome Robbins Dance Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.

The Agnes de Mille photographs, dating from the 1860s to the 1980s, chronicle her professional career as a dancer, choreographer, director, writer, and arts advocate. The photographs also recount de Mille's personal life and the members of the de Mille, George, Prude, and Foy families.

Biographical/historical information

Agnes de Mille Prude (born Agnes George de Mille; 1905, New York City) was a dancer, choreographer, director, and writer. She was the daughter of William Churchill de Mille (1878-1955), a playwright and film director, and Anna George de Mille (1878-1947). She had a younger sister, Margaret George de Mille (1908-1978), who was a silent film actress. Her uncle was the film producer and director Cecil B. de Mille (1881-1959).

Agnes de Mille attended the Hollywood School for Girls in California, graduating in 1922. In 1926, she graduated with a degree in English from the University of California, Los Angeles. In 1932, de Mille moved to England to study dance with Dame Marie Rambert, joined Ballet Rambert, and choreographed and performed her own work.

In 1939, de Mille began her association with Ballet Theatre (American Ballet Theatre) choreographing pieces for their first season. She also met her future husband, Walter Foy Prude (1909-1988), through Martha Graham, who was under Prude's management. They were married in 1943. Their son, Jonathan de Mille Prude, was born in 1946 in New York City.

In 1942, Agnes de Mille created Rodeo, a ballet staged for the Ballet Russe de Monte Carlo, which brought her critical acclaim and popularity. The next year, she gained more commendations when she choreographed the Broadway musical Oklahoma! (1943). She went on to choreograph over a dozen musicals, as well as the film adaptation of Oklahoma! (1954). Aside from musicals, De Mille created over twenty-one ballets, mostly for Ballet Theatre and Royal Winnipeg Ballet. She was also an outspoken advocate for dance in America, speaking to Congress three times.

In 1953, de Mille formed the Agnes de Mille Dance Theatre (Heritage Dance Theatre) which performed actively from 1953 to 1954 and 1973 to 1975. In 1975, on the eve of a performance of Conversations About the Dance de Mille had a stroke. In 1977, she returned to the stage to realize the performance of Conversations About the Dance though she remained partially paralyzed on her right side from the stroke.

De Mille was a prolific writer, publishing books about her family; dance; Martha Graham; and her experience having, and recovering from, a stroke. She was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame in 1973, and received many awards and honorary degrees for her work.

Agnes de Mille Prude died in New York, New York in 1993.

Scope and arrangement

The Agnes de Mille photographs date from the 1860s to the 1980s, and illuminate her professional work, personal life, and her and Walter Prude's maternal and paternal ancestors. The collection is composed primarily of negatives, slides, prints, contact sheets, and scrapbook pages; it also contains some postcards, lists of the collection's photographic content, holiday greeting cards, three glass plate negatives, and an ambrotype. Most of the photographs date from the 1910s to the 1960s, and recall de Mille's work on various musical, ballet, and television productions as a choreographer, dancer, and director; as well as members of de Mille's immediate family, and uncle, Cecil B. de Mille. A small portion of the collection features candid photographs of de Mille receiving honorary diplomas, awards, and recognitions; as well as speaking as an advocate for the performing arts.

The Dance Companies, Productions, Rehearsals, and Performances grouping spans from the 1910s to the 1980s, and reveals de Mille's professional work as a choreographer, dancer, director, and film extra. The photographs range from de Mille's work as an extra on her father and uncle's silent film sets to her choreographic work with the company of American Ballet Theatre and the original Broadway company of Oklahoma! (1943). While the grouping gives a detailed account of her work mostly on musicals and ballets, there are some photographs of the film and television productions that she worked on, including Seven Lively Arts (1958) and Omnibus (1956). Of note are photographs of de Mille performing Tally Ho, or the Frail Quarry (1944) and Three Virgins and a Devil (1941); studio photographs of Agnes de Mille Dance Theatre; and photographs of de Mille performing Conversations About the Dance (1974) both before and after her stroke.

The Personal and Family grouping dates from the 1860s to the 1980s, and documents individuals from de Mille's personal life; as well as the members of the de Mille, George, Prude, and Foy families. The de Mille family file, the largest of the grouping, is mainly made up of Agnes de Mille's immediate family members: Margaret, William, and Anna; and includes a photograph of the de Mille family tree. Along with photographs of Henry George, the George family file also consists of three glass plate negatives of Annie Fox George, Anna George de Mille's mother, and an ambrotype. Present are personal candid photographs from de Mille's childhood, youth, marriage, travels, homes in New York City and Merriewold, New York, and twenty-fifth wedding anniversary. Also featured are holiday greeting cards from de Mille's family and friends; and photographs of Jonathan Prude as an infant, child, and young adult. Of note photographs of Anna George de Mille with members of the Tolstoy family; and prints of Agnes de Mille's first professional performance in New York City.

The Accolades and Advocacy grouping spans from the 1930s to the 1980s, and covers de Mille's performing arts advocacy efforts, as well as the honors and recognition that she received over the course of her life. Photographs from de Mille's book projects and prints from her television interviews are well represented. Of note are photographs of de Mille meeting President Lyndon Johnson and President Ronald Regan.

Arrangement

This collection is arranged alphabetically in the following three groupings: Dance Companies, Productions, Rehearsals, and Performances; Personal and Family; and Accolades and Advocacy.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Bequest from the Estate of Agnes de Mille in 1994.

Processing information

Processed by Amy Lau in 2021.

Using the collection

Location

Jerome Robbins Dance Division
New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center
40 Lincoln Center Plaza, New York, NY 10023-7498
Third Floor