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Call number
*MGZEB 19-562
Physical description
0.84 linear feet (2 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Frederick Melton photographs, *MGZEB 19-562. 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.
Portions of this collection have been digitized and are available online.

Atlanta-born photographer Frederick Melton (1918-1992) came to Manhattan in 1939, where he worked in a variety of creative media. He was eventually introduced to George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins of the New York City Ballet, where he photographed nearly every facet of the company from the late 1940s through the 1950s. The Frederick Melton photographs collection of negatives and contact prints capture some of the company's most well-known productions, including intimate backstage moments, and set and costume designs. Many notable principal dancers are represented, including Tanaquil Le Clercq and Maria Tallchief, as well as co-founders Jerome Robbins and George Balanchine. Melton also focused on the School of American Ballet, the associate school founded by George Balanchine, where he photographed classrooms, students, and faculty.

Biographical/historical information

Born in Atlanta in 1918, Frederick Melton came to Manhattan in 1939 where he worked in a variety of creative media, the most successful being silk-screen printing. In the late 1940s, Melton became acquainted with New York City Ballet co-founders Lincoln Kirstein and George Balanchine through personal connections at informal salons he hosted with his then partner Wilbur "Billy" Pippin. This led Kirstein and Balanchine to invite him to photograph early productions including The Cage, Swan Lake, and The Nutcracker, among many more. Melton continued to photograph New York City Ballet until the mid-1950s. In the early 1960s, Melton permanently departed from the New York City art world; he then spent time living in Puerto Rico and Florida until his death in 1992.

Scope and arrangement

The Frederick Melton photographs date from 1949 to 1954 and are comprised of negatives and contact prints. The series are arranged into sections, the first by Productions; Individuals; and Designs. The second series is arranged by Classroom and Action Shots; and Faculty. The files are arranged alphabetically. Melton photographed nearly every facet of the New York City Ballet` including its most well-known productions, intimate backstage moments, and artists who designed costumes and sets for several ballets. He also focused on the School of American Ballet, the associate school of New York City Ballet, where he photographed classrooms, students, faculty. The collection is arranged into two series, New York City Ballet and School of American Ballet.

The Frederick Melton photographs are arranged in two series:

  • Series I: New York City Ballet
    1949-1954
    46 folders

    The New York City Ballet series is comprised of photographs of ballet productions, individual dancers, and set and costume designs. There are several files dedicated to George Balanchine's The Nutcracker. These files include numerous studio portraits of principal dancers in costume, including Robert Barnett as Candy Cane, Diane Adams as the Sugar Plum Fairy, and Pat Wilde as the titular Nutcracker. Melton also set up the nutcracker object and prop in the studio for its own portrait session.

    Of the many individuals photographed, there is an emphasis on New York City Ballet co-founders George Balanchine and Jerome Robbins. Balanchine and Robbins were photographed in studio portraiture, backstage meetings, and rehearsals. Melton also captured star principal dancers of New York City Ballet, including Todd Bolender, André Eglevsky, Melissa Hayden, Tanaquil LeClercq, and Maria Tallchief.

    Several notable surrealist artists contributed designs to the New York City Ballet. The collection includes photographs of Dorothea Tanning's costumes for Bayou, and multiple set designs by painter Esteban Francés, including Tyl Ulenspiegel. Additionally, there are photographs of Cecil Beaton's costume designs for both Swan Lake and Picnic at Tintagel.

  • Series II: School of American Ballet
    1953
    2 folders

    The School of American Ballet series is comprised of photographs of classroom shots and faculty portraits including the instructors Felia Doubrovska, Pierre Vladimiroff, and Muriel Stuart.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Gift of Frederick Melton, 1961.

Processing information

Processed by Tara D. Strongosky in 2019.

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