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Creator
Witcover, Walt
Call number
*T-Mss 2014-178
Physical description
34.21 linear feet (84 boxes)
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Walt Witcover papers, *T-Mss 2014-178. Billy Rose Theatre Division, The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts
Repository
Billy Rose Theatre Division
Access to materials
Request an in-person research appointment.Restrictions apply

Walt Witcover (1924-2013) was a director and acting teacher who worked primarily in New York City. He founded the Masterworks Laboratory Theatre (MLT) company in 1969 after staging a modern revival of La Traviata (Act I) with the Actors Studio in 1968. The collection, dated from 1926 to 2011, illustrates Witcover's fifty-year theatre career via correspondence, scripts, director's notes, class outlines, published and unpublished writings, and photography.

Biographical/historical information

Walt Witcover was born Walter Scheinman in New York City on August 24, 1924, and was raised in Kew Gardens, Queens. He briefly attended Cornell University before enlisting in the United States Army and serving as a combat Field Artilleryman during World War II. Witcover received three service stars before returning to Cornell in order to complete his undergraduate and Master's degrees in 1944 and 1947, respectively. After graduation, he moved to New York City to pursue a career in acting.

During the late 1940s and early 1950s, Witcover performed on stage with the Equity Library Theatre (ELT). He also appeared in Broadway and off-Broadway productions. In 1951, he took an opportunity to serve as the Theatrical/Entertainment Specialist at the Landsberg Air Base in Germany. He returned to New York City after a year at the base. Beginning in the early 1960s, Witcover gradually shifted his focus to directing and teaching. While directing with ELT, Witcover won two Obie Awards for Signs Along the Cynic Route in 1961, and The Exhaustion of Our Son's Love in 1965.

Witcover first taught at HB Studios for over twenty-five years with Herbert Berghof and Uta Hagen, then successively at the Actors Studio, State University of New York at Purchase (SUNY Purchase), and the University of Maryland. His staging of Verdi's La Traviata at the Actors Studio in 1968 led to his forming the Masterworks Laboratory Theatre (MLT) in 1969. For over forty years, MLT staged opera classics, such as Don Giovanni and Rigoletto, using modern acting techniques. Witcover also developed smaller one-act plays, including Four Parlor Programs, for performances at schools and retirement communities. His longtime partner, Richard Hughes, worked as a coordinator and director for MLT until the early 1990s.

Witcover's most prominent students and collaborators include Jerry Stiller, Anne Meara, Pat Carroll, Barbara Barrie, Dominic Chianese, Tony Musante, and Robert Clohessy. He was childhood friends with Richard Avedon, and worked closely with photographer George Joseph throughout his career. Witcover also wrote two books: Living on Stage: Acting from the Inside Out: A Practical Process (2004), and My Road, Less Traveled: Becoming an Actor, a Director, a Teacher (2011). He also wrote multiple articles and essays about stagecraft.

Witcover died in New York City on November 15, 2013, at the age of 89.

Scope and arrangement

The Walt Witcover papers date from 1926 to 2011, and trace Witcover's evolution from actor to acting teacher and theatre company director. The collection is arranged by topic into six series which include production and administrative files relating to Masterworks Laboratory Theatre (MLT); general correspondence; production files from Witcover's work with other studios and companies; his teaching files; writings by Witcover; and personal files.

MLT materials, which comprise the bulk of the collection, are held in Series I in order to provide context for materials within the following series. MLT is referenced frequently throughout the collection. The collection holds production files, financial materials, correspondence, photographs, clippings, programs, posters, notated scripts, director's notebooks, memoir drafts, and audio and moving image recordings. Some negatives and slides also accompany the photographs, the bulk of which were taken by George Joseph.

Given the nature of Witcover's career, materials related to theatrical productions are present in every series. He staged several productions, including La Traviata, Mädchen in Uniform, and The Glass Menagerie, numerous times for separate companies or groups. These appear in varied locations throughout the collection and are organized based on the producing company or group. Production scripts, stage photography, scores, and directors' notebooks are common throughout the collection.

Witcover frequently used short stories and poetry as the basis for original productions. He made multiple photocopies of the originals, which he heavily annotated with stage directions, acting cues, and highlighting relevant scene or prop information. The short stories of Frank O'Connor served as the basis for the MLT production Domestic Relations, and Anton Chekhov's work served as the foundation for From Chekhov's Orchard. Witcover also used poetry in his classes for student monologues. Many of these annotated stories and poems are present in the collection.

Audio and moving image recordings are primarily of theatrical productions, production sound rolls, and interviews with Witcover and his students throughout the years. Paper inserts separated from recordings, which include tracklists, notes, and letters, are held in Box 1.

The Walt Witcover papers are arranged in six series:

  • Series I: Masterworks Laboratory Theatre Files
    1926-2007

    Series I contains scripts, stage photography, financial records, event programs and brochures, audio and video recordings, and acting class syllabi related to Masterworks Laboratory Theatre (MLT). It is arranged by subject into three subseries: Productions; Administrative Files; and Course Materials.

    Production files make up more than half of the series, and demonstrate Witcover's focus as the primary director and sole course instructor at his company. Administrative files are primarily financial records and materials related to events hosted by MLT.

  • Series II: Correspondence
    1954-2011

    Series II, dating from 1954 to 2011, contains social and personal letters with colleagues, students, and friends. Correspondence is arranged alphabetically by last name. Many of Witcover's correspondents were also active in theatre, and sent updates on their theatrical endeavors. Carol Hebald, Lisa Mayo, Enid Rudd, and Jo Ann Wahl sent Witcover scripts they had written for feedback and comments. Hebald also sent Witcover recordings of her poetry being performed on a local radio show. Holiday cards are common throughout the series. Invitations to birthday parties, anniversary celebrations, and theatre openings are also present. Of particular note is correspondence from Pat Carroll, writing to Witcover about her experience as the voice of Ursula in Disney's 1989 The Little Mermaid.

  • Series III: Other Studios and Companies
    1939-2008

    Files in Series III are arranged alphabetically and include materials from Witcover's theatrical experience with companies and studios other than Masterworks Laboratory Theatre. In addition to materials related to his directorial career, this series contains scripts, stage photography, performance recordings, and programs related to Witcover's acting experience. Files are also present from one of Witcover's first productions, a 1939 summer camp production of Pirates of Penzance in which he played Sergeant.

    Equity Library Theatre (ELT) is well represented in this series. Witcover both acted and directed for the company from 1948 to 1955, though materials related to his directing efforts are much more prevalent than those related to his acting. Programs, reviews, and stage photography for productions in which Witcover acted, including Finian's Rainbow, The Merchant of Venice, and Peer Gynt, are held here.

    Witcover directed The Hasty Heart in 1954 and Mädchen in Uniform in 1955 for ELT. Mädchen, starring Anne Meara and Barbara Barrie, represents the bulk of the ELT files, with programs, correspondence, audition cards and notes, director's notebook, and reviews.

  • Series IV: Instruction Files
    1958-2001

    Series IV contains materials from Witcover's work as a theatre instructor. The series is arranged by subject into HB Studios, the Actors Studio, and other guest lectureship tenures.

    The series holds scripts used for company performances, programs for staff events, class notebooks, syllabi, company brochures, and student meeting notes. Files are arranged by subject into HB Studios, the Actors Studio, and other guest lectureship tenures.

    In addition to scripts used for company performances, programs for staff events, class notebooks, syllabi, company brochures, audio and video recordings, and student meeting notes are present.

  • Series V: Writing
    1946-2011

    Series V is dated from 1946 to 2011, and holds original writings by Witcover. Files are further organized into two subseries: Books; and Articles and Essays. This series includes a broad sampling of Witcover's writing projects, from college essays on the history of theatre to full-length books detailing his acting methods. Galleys, outlines, drafts, and correspondence with editors and publishers are present.

  • Series VI: Biographical Files
    1942-2003

    Among Witcover's papers is a small assortment of his personal files and ephemera, which are held in Series VI. Files are arranged by subject into education files, materials related to his military service, and subject files. Included here are a stageplay Witcover wrote while at Cornell; his application for Theatrical/Entertainment Specialist at Landsberg Air Base; and a series of recorded interviews conducted by Regina Kessler of Witcover's former students for an unrealized biographical project.

    Subject files contain headshots and resumes from Witcover's entire career; clippings; personal scrapbooks; letters of recommendation; and awards.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Donated by Michael Stebbins and Douglas Kremer in 2014.

Processing information

Processed by Em Longan in 2023.

Using the collection

Location

Billy Rose Theatre 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

Access restrictions

Inquiries regarding audio and moving image materials in the collection may be directed to the Billy Rose Theatre Division (theatre@nypl.org). Audio and moving image materials may be subject to preservation evaluation and migration prior to access.