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Creator
Roberts, Hyla (1917-2001)
Call number
(S) *MGZMD 485
Physical description
0.21 linear feet (1 container)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Hyla Roberts collection, (S) *MGZMD 485. 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.

Hyla Roberts (1917-2001) was an American modern dancer who performed with noted modern dance choreographer Doris Humphrey from 1930 to 1934. The Hyla Roberts collection documents Roberts's brief dance career through correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings, and programs.

Biographical/historical information

Hyla Roberts was born Hyla Rubin on January 31, 1917 in Hartford, Connecticut. In 1930, at just 13 years old, she moved to New York City, to perform under the stage name Hyla Roberts with Doris Humphrey and Charles Weidman. She studied and danced with their modern dance troupe until 1934. Her credits include The Dream of Sganarelle (1933) and Revenge with Music (1934). She left the dance world to marry Victor Samrock with whom she raised two children, Carl and Ellen Samrock. She died in New York City on October 19, 2001.

Scope and arrangement

The Hyla Roberts collection documents Roberts's brief dance career through correspondence, photographs, newspaper clippings, programs, and a work contract. The correspondence file includes a letter and a postcard from Doris Humphrey; letters between Roberts and Eleanor King, a fellow dancer of the era, who, in the 1970s, wrote a memoir about her time performing with the Humphrey/Weidman group; as well as a postcard from her daughter Ellen, dated 2000. The photographs file includes a set of publicity portraits of Roberts taken in 1930 and two headshots dated 1951. Newspaper clippings chiefly consist of reviews of Doris Humphrey group performances. The collection also includes Roberts's work contract for Revenge with Music and a few programs.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Donated by Hyla Roberts's son, Carl Samrock in 2018.

Processing information

Processed by Heather Halliday, 2018.

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