Scope and arrangement
The collection documents the dance careers of Fibich and Berg, and Fibich's additional work as an actor and instructor. The collection contains articles about Fibich, correspondence, programs and news clippings, photographs, and production materials. There is a small amount of personal material that consists of citizenship papers of both Fibich and Berg, a two-part biographical account Fibich wrote about Berg, condolence letters regarding Berg's death, and resumes. The citizenship papers denote the official change of Fibich's name from Fajwel Goldblat as part of the naturalization process, though he had been using Fibich throughout his entire professional career.
The articles about Fibich consist of published articles and typescripts of articles that the authors sent to Fibich for review. Correspondence include invitations and holiday cards, and letters of commendation and recommendation regarding Fibich's dance instruction. There is a small amount of letters from Berg, though most are illegible due to her decline from Alzheimer's disease.
Photographs in the collection document Fibich and Berg's dance performances, and also include publicity shots and snapshots. The photographs span from 1946 to 1997 and document the couple's career from Poland to the United States. A homemade flip book for Lamp Unto My Feet was created by fastening small photographs together. Also included are snapshots from vacations; of family, friends, and former students; and Fibich instructing dance workshops at Klezkamp. Fibich's acting career is documented by photographs from the sets of XXL, The Chosen, and the Public Theater production of Café Crown.
The programs and news clippings include productions that Fibich choreographed, danced, or acted in, as well as productions he attended. The latter are heavily annotated with his observations of the performances. The Folkshiene Yiddish Theatre and the Jewish Repertory Theater are particularly well represented. The programs also include screenings of The Dybbuk, a 1937 film that Berg choreographed which was restored and rereleased in 1989. Production material includes production files for XXL, scripts for Planet Lulu and Solomon and Ashmedai, and drafts of a script for East Side Story, an unproduced play that Fibich was writing on the lives of Lower East Side immigrants.
Teaching materials consist of lectures, including a lecture Fibich gave at the Jewish Culture Festival in Krakow on his experience returning to Poland after World War II. Also present are a lecture and planning documents from Klezkamp.
The majority of the collection is in English with materials in French, German, Polish, and Yiddish.
Arrangement
The collection is arranged by document type.