Scope and arrangement
The bulk of the Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center records dates from 1976 to 2019, tracing over four decades of performance at THPAC while chronicling much of the history of late 20th Century Black dance and performance by artists of color. THPAC counts among its roster both emerging and established Black dancers and has helped launch the careers of hundreds of Black dancers and choreographers over the decades. Notable performers, choreographers, and dance companies appearing within the collection include Loretta Abbott, Alvin Ailey, Camille A. Brown, Ronald K. Brown, Chuck Davis, Katherine Dunham, George Faison, Cissy Houston, Louis Johnson, Marlies Yearby, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Urban Bush Women, and Forces of Nature. The collection elucidates the history of THPAC through administrative records, performance video, photographs, promotional material, and awards files.
The Thelma Hill Performing Arts Center records are arranged in five series:
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1950s-2019 [bulk 1977-2019]
The Administrative Records Series reflects both routine business functions and broader strategic planning of THPAC.
Of particular note are the Board of Directors files; Box Office Data; Executives and Staff files; Fundraising and Financial records; and Organizational History files. Board of Directors files include meeting agendas, meeting minutes, and sporadic annual reports. The Box Office Data section holds ticket sales tabulations, as well as information on THPAC's ticket subsidy program. The Executives and Staff section contains files on THPAC's three executive directors and other administrative officers. As a non-profit organization, THPAC relies heavily on funding from grants and donations, a process that is extensively represented in the Fundraising section of this Series. The Organizational History section consists of mission statements, fact sheets, narratives, and timelines, which were frequently used in donor appeals and as supporting material in grant applications.
The few files of Production Logistical and Technical Details included here constitute the only scant, fragmentary references to performance event planning in the entire collection. Public Relations files in this series primarily consist of correspondence with public relations consultants. Files of Reference Material hold general magazine and newspaper articles about the dance world or non-profit fundraising.
The Administrative Series also holds minimal files of correspondence; contracts; mailing lists; surveys; performance venues; visual art exhibitions held in conjunction with performances; and workshops offered by THPAC.
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1988-2017
The Performance Video Series contains footage of selected live performances staged by THPAC dating from 1988 to 2017. Many live performances by individual dancers, as well as festival program footage is present. A few promotional videos of individual dancers are also included. The section called "Documentary Project" consists of both performance footage and interviews of THPAC administrators gathered for a documentary film that was not completed.
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1920s-2019 [bulk 1970s-2019]
The Photographs Series includes many black-and-white prints, some color prints, numerous color digital image files, as well as a few contact sheets, slides, and negatives. The majority of prints are publicity portraits and headshots of performers and choreographers, while the digital images primarily depict live performances produced by THPAC. Individuals are generally identified by handwritten notes on the back of prints or by file names of digital images. A few photographs predating THPAC, documenting Black dance history, which were collected by THPAC founder Larry Phillips and other THPAC administrators over the years, are present in the folder titled "History." A file of candid personal photos of Phillips is also included.
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1976-2019, 1940s
The Promotional Materials Series contains a significant quantity of Brochures and Fliers. This section of the series comprises a nearly complete chronological run of THPAC's brochures, fliers, event programs and invitations. Another large section, Events, holds files of promotional material on recurring themed performance programs from the 1970s through the 2000s as well as annual seasonal programming from 2002 through 2018. Mixed Press files hold partially sorted press releases, news clippings, fliers, and invitations, most of which were originally gathered together in binders. The Performers and Choreographers section contains files of promotional materials and press kits, often not produced by THPAC, relating to individual dancers, dance troupes, choreographers, and musicians. Also included in this series are posters, playbills, newsletters, original graphics, logo art, and blank letterheads.
This series does not hold any records pertaining to the planning and execution of performance events; researchers are directed instead to Series I: Administrative Records: Production and Logistical Files for the scant existing such records.
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1980-2018
The Awards Series contains files relating to awards bestowed upon THPAC, including City of New York and Borough of Brooklyn proclamations; THPAC's involvement in the Bessie Awards; and THPAC's own dance awards granted to notable performers and choreographers.