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Lester Horton Dance Theater collection, 1918-1996
approximately 11,600 items. 55 containers. 30.75 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
The Lester Horton Dance Theater was a modern dance company and school in Los Angeles in the 1940s and 1950s. Founded by dancer and choreographer Lester Horton (1906-1953), the company served as an incubator for the careers of a generation of dancers, including Alvin Ailey, Carmen de Lavallade, Bella Lewitzky, James Mitchell, Joyce Trisler, and James Truitte. The collection documents Horton's early life and career and the Dance Theater's activities under the management of Frank Eng after Horton's death. Materials include clippings, correspondence, costume and set designs, course descriptions, drawings, financial documents, music, photographs, programs, promotional materials, writings, and typed choreographic scenarios.
Please note:
Access restrictions apply.
Pola Nirenska collection, 1910-1992
10,408 items. 30 containers. 38 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Correspondence, choreographic notes, music manuscripts, poetry, personal papers, biographical materials, including interviews, articles, reviews, and newspaper clippings, programs, publicity materials, such as flyers and posters, scrapbooks, art work, including costume designs, photographic material, memorabilia, books, and other papers relating chiefly to Nirenska's career as a dancer, choreographer, and educator in the United States. The bulk of the collection consists of photographic material. Choreographic notes include those for The Four Horsemen of the Apocalpyse and art work is from Nirenska's early career in Europe and includes costume designs, drawings, and paintings. Correspondents include Evelyn de la Tour, Martha Graham, Louis Horst, Doris Humphrey, Kurt Jooss, Harald Kreutzberg, Rudolf von Laban, Phyllis Legters, Liz Lerman, Dorothy Gifford Madden, Beth Osgood (Chanock), Nicole Pierson, Naima Prevots, Ronald Reagan, Rona Sande, Walter Sorell, Erika Thimey, Jan Tievsky, Jan Veen, Mary Wigman, and Sharon Wyrrick.
Martha Graham collection, 1896-2003
350,100 items. 398 containers. 590 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Martha Graham was an American modern dancer, choreographer, teacher and company director. The Martha Graham Collection is comprised of materials that document her career and trace the history of the development of her company, Martha Graham Dance Company, which became the Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance, and school, Martha Graham School, later to be called the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance.
Harriet Hoctor collection, 1868-1977
1,700 items. 8 containers. 4.5 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
American dancer and choreographer Harriet Hoctor (1905-1977) began performing on the vaudeville stage in the early 1920s. By the mid-1930s, she was a featured dancer on Broadway and in motion pictures. The collection documents Hoctor's professional life including items related to her early dance training at the Louis H. Chalif Normal School of Dancing in New York and her later career leading the Harriet Hoctor School of Ballet in Boston. Materials include choreographic notes, clippings, costume sketches, music, photographs, personal papers, programs, and correspondence from family members, former students, and notables such as Mary Pickford, Walter Winchell, and Florenz Ziegfeld.
Daniel Nagrin collection, circa 1920-2006
22,525 items. 80 containers. 41 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Daniel Nagrin (1917-2008) was an American dancer, choreographer, teacher, and writer. The collection contains materials relating to his life and career, and includes holograph and published scores, choreographic and dance technique notes, photographs, correspondence, marketing and fundraising materials, clippings, programs, teaching and administrative materials, production elements, articles by Nagrin and others, drafts of his books, business papers, and personal and biographical files. In addition, there are significant materials related to Nagrin's first wife, dancer and choreographer, Helen Tamiris.
Miriam Cole papers, 1923-1997
1,430 items . 5 containers . 2.5 linear feet . -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Miriam "Mimi" Cole (1926-2012) was an American dancer and choreographer who performed solo as well as with the Martha Graham Dance Company and other contemporaries. The Miriam Cole Papers consists primarily of programs; clippings, articles, and scrapbook pages; photographs; music for her choreography; and contracts. Much of the material relates to Cole's association with the Graham company: photographs, programs, articles, and other items documenting the Graham European tour in 1954 are especially plentiful.
Pearl Lang papers, 1908-2008
13,077 items . 59 containers. 29 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Pearl Lang (née Pearl Lack) was an American dancer, choreographer, and teacher. The collection includes clippings and articles, programs and publicity, correspondence, choreographic and teaching notes, photographs, interviews and lectures, business papers, posters, music scores, moving images, and other materials relating to Lang’s career in dance primarily as a choreographer for her own company, Pearl Lang Dance Theatre, and as solo performer with the Martha Graham Dance Company. A significant amount of material documents her interest in Yiddish and Jewish culture.
Katherine Dunham collection, 1920-2006
5,184 items plus digital materials. 33 containers. 15 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Katherine Dunham (1909-2006) was an American dancer, choreographer, teacher, dance anthropologist, and writer. The collection contains correspondence, awards and honors, writings by and about Dunham, business papers, photographs and videotapes, clippings and reviews, programs, promotional materials, and materials related to the Library of Congress Katherine Dunham Legacy Project.
Sophie Maslow papers, 1918-1997
1,216 items . 18 containers. 8 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
Sophie Maslow (1911-2006) was an American modern dancer, choreographer, and teacher. The collection consists of photographs, programs, promotional materials, clippings, articles, correspondence, writings, music scores, and other documents pertaining to Maslow’s career. The material includes documentation of her time as a performer with the Martha Graham Dance Company, and primarily features her work with the New Dance Group, the Dudley-Maslow-Bales Trio, and the Sophie Maslow Dance Company. The collection illustrates her interest in American folk, Jewish, populist, and communist themes.
American Ballet Theatre archive, 1940-2014
6,333 items . 54 containers. 22 linear feet. -- Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Summary:
American Ballet Theatre (ABT), established in 1940 as Ballet Theatre, is recognized as one of the world's largest and most distinguished dance companies. By act of Congress on April 27, 2006, ABT became America's National Ballet Company. The archive includes music scores, choreographic notes and Benesh dance notation scores, correspondence, business papers, scrapbooks, programs, clippings, photographs, posters, video recordings and films, and prints and drawings, including set and costume designs. Note: the 54 boxes of processed photographs and dance notation described in this partial finding aid represent less than a quarter of the materials in the collection. An inventory of the entire collection is available in the Music Division's Performing Arts Reading Room.