Scope and arrangement
The Hugh Laing Papers, c.1943-1988, contain almost nothing written by Laing himself, except for two brief undated notes to his mother (in her folder #10) and a letter to Isabel Brown (in her folder #12). The strength of the collection lies in the documentation of the Skinner family and Laing's birth and baptism, 18 letters from his father and mother (1956-1970), and in the outpouring of letters and notes to Laing from friends on the occasion of Antony Tudor's death in April 1987. (These letters include ones from Anne S. Palmer and Mollie Cook, relatives of Tudor). There are also examples of Laing's preliminary sketches for set and costume designs for Tudor ballets, including Gala Performance, Judgment of Parisand Pillar of Fire.
In the individual correspondence folders, correspondence is mainly from the person listed, although letters to, from and about the correspondent listed may be included.
The Index of Correspondents lists alphabetically by name only those correspondents in the chronological folders and gives the folder number where the letter is located. If a surname could not be ascertained, the name is given as signed, i.e. Merle & Sidney, Honor. This index does not include correspondents in the individual folders, or those in the Cards/Notes or Christmas Cards categories.
Photographs in the collection, under the heading Miscellaneous, include snapshots of Laing and Tudor at an airport and 1986 snapshots of Laing and Tudor footprints in concrete. There are also autographed photographs of "Mitch" and Irene Dunne.
Information to clarify entries on the Folder List is given in brackets after the entry.
The Hugh Laing papers are arranged in five series:
-
15 items
-
9 items
-
33 items