Scope and Content Note
The Research Materials on Martha Graham date from 1928 to 2023, with the bulk of materials spanning from 1985 to 2001. The core of this artificial collection developed from the programming and events arranged to coincide with the Library's acquisition of Martha Graham's personal and professional papers from Ron Protas in 1998. The funding for these programs and performances was provided by a 1998 grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation (DDCF). Grant activities included an extensive set of sound and video recordings of interviews with principal dancers from the early days of the Graham company, and photographic and video documentation of coaching rehearsals and performances of Graham repertory in the Coolidge Auditorium at the Library of Congress.
The celebration of the Library's acquisition of the Martha Graham papers drew additional gifts of photographs, correspondence, performance programs, and other materials from former dancers and other creative associates. These and other Graham-related items, such as some archival materials related to the commissioning of a work by choreographer Susan Stroman for the Graham company in 1998, are included in this collection. The collection also contains transcripts of interviews, photographs, performance and event programs, clippings and publications, correspondence, and other materials related to her and the company.