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Creator
Hould-Ward, Ann
Call number
*T-Vim 2019-011
Physical description
11.02 linear feet (36 boxes, 7 oversize folders). 19.23 gigabytes (10,126 computer files). 8 audio recordings. 9 moving image recordings
Language
English
Preferred Citation
Ann Hould-Ward designs, *T-Vim 2019-011. 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
Portions of this collection have been digitized and are available online.

Ann Hould-Ward is an American costume designer known for her work in Broadway and Off-Broadway theater, ballet, and opera. This collection consists of show and costume bibles, sketches, reference materials, press materials, programs, and photographs related to various productions.

Biographical/historical information

Ann Hould-Ward (born April 8, 1954 in Glasgow, Montana) is an American costume designer known for her work in Broadway and Off-Broadway theater, ballet, and opera. A graduate of Mills College, the University of Virginia, and The Arts Student League of New York, Hould-Ward began her career as an assistant to Rouben Ter-Arutunian and Patricia Zipprodt. She co-designed with Zipprodt the original production of Sunday in the Park with George (1984) for which she received her first Tony nomination. She later worked on the Broadway shows Into the Woods (1987), Falsettos (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1994), the 2006 revival of Company, A Catered Affair (2008), A Free Man of Color (2010), The Visit (2015), and the 2015 revival of The Color Purple. She won a Tony Award for her work on Beauty and the Beast.

In addition to her Broadway designs, she also worked on regional and Off-Broadway productions, including work for the La Jolla Playhouse, The Old Globe Theatre (San Diego), and Arena Stage (Washington, D.C.), as well as the U.S. National Tour of Dr. Dolittle (2005), the Nashville premiere of The Nutty Professor (2012), and the West End production of The Prince of Egypt (2020). Her Off-Broadway work included designs for Playwrights Horizons' Lobster Alice (2000) and the Second Stage Theatre's Let Me Down Easy (2009), as well as the Shakespeare in the Park production of A Midsummer Night's Dream (2007) and the Classic Stage Company's production of As You Like It(2017).

Her dance costuming included designs for the American Ballet Theatre, the White Oak Dance Project, the Alvin Ailey Dance Company, and the Ballet Hispánico, and her opera costuming included designs for the Metropolitan Opera, the New York City Opera, and the Los Angeles Opera.

In addition to this work, starting in 2001 she designed costumes for the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, and in 2014 she redesigned the costume of the McDonald's mascot Ronald McDonald.

In 2001, Hould-Ward received the inaugural Patricia Zipprodt Award for Innovative Costume Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT).

Scope and arrangement

Collection consists of show and costume bibles, sketches, reference materials, press materials, programs, and photographs related to Hould-Ward's career as a costume designer for Broadway, Off-Broadway, regional theater, opera, and ballet. The collection covers both produced and canceled productions. Personal materials are minimal.

The Ann Hould-Ward designs are arranged in five series:

  • Series I: Costume and Show Bibles
    1983-2018
    5.25 linear feet (13 boxes); 701.54 megabytes (153 computer files)

    Costume and show bibles refers to the disassembled production binders that consist of actor's measurements, reference photographs, sketches, fabric swatches, color pallets, lighting information, rehearsal schedules, receipts, related correspondence, and notes related to the costuming of the various productions.

  • Series II: Sketches
    1987-2019
    4.52 linear feet (20 boxes, 7 oversize folders); 4.54 gigabytes (586 computer files)

    Series consists of costume sketches by Ann Hould-Ward, both copies and originals; some include fabric swatches and color pallets. 

  • Series III: Photographs
    1980-2019
    1.92 linear feet (5 boxes); 14 gigabytes (9,379 computer files)

    Series consists of photographs, slides, and negatives from productions, unlabeled portfolios, and reference photographs that were not part of show and costume bibles.

  • Series IV: Press and Programs
    1985-2013
    1.08 linear feet (3 boxes); 284.49 kilobytes (8 computer files)

    Consists of clippings, articles, and correspondence related to productions Hould-Ward worked on as well as her career in general. Also consists of programs for various productions and Hould-Ward's resumes.

  • Series V: Audio and Moving Image
    1968-2012

    Consists of audio and video recordings of productions as well as research material related to Imagine This.

Administrative information

Source of acquisition

Collection was donated by Ann Hould-Ward in 2019.

Processing information

Processed by Stacey Ference in 2021.

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. Electronic records are currently unavailable.