Theatre Archive Project

Long description:

Recordings in this collection can be played by anyone.

The Theatre Archive Project is a collaboration between the British Library and De Montfort University. The project aims to reinvestigate British theatre history 1945-1968, from the perspectives of both the theatregoer and the practitioner.

Interviews

Since the project began in November 2003, the team has conducted over 300 interviews with those visiting or working in the theatre in the period 1945-1968. Almost all of those audio recordings and transcripts are available here on this site. More are still being added.

Theatre archives

The project has also focused on the investigation of the following post-war theatre archives in the British Library collections:

• John Gielgud Archive, Add MS 81306-81590
• Cedric Hardwicke Papers, Add MS 80801-80837
• Ralph Richardson Archive, Add MS 82038-82369
• Michel Saint-Denis Archive, Add MS 81091-81276

Catalogues for these archives can now be found on the British Library Archives and Manuscripts Catalogue. The original sorting lists compiled by members of the project team can be obtained on request from mss@bl.uk.

Scripts

A third strand of the project sought to recover scripts of plays performed after the abolition of censorship in 1968. A list of the recovered plays deposited at the British Library between October 2004 and July 2005 is to be found at the end of Kate Dorney’s report:

• 'Following the Script: Towards a Methodology of Identifying and Locating Scripts Performed Since 1968' (PDF format)

These plays now form part of the British Library’s Modern Playscripts Collection. To search the entire Modern Playscripts Collection (from 1968 till the present) see the Archives and Manuscripts catalogue.

The 1968 Theatres Act stipulates that scripts for all new plays publicly performed in Great Britain should be deposited at the British Library within one month of the date of first performance. Scripts should be sent to: Lisa Donnelly, Manuscripts Cataloguing Support Team, The British Library, 96 Euston Road, London NW1 2DB, or emailed to lisa.donnelly@bl.uk.

Project outcomes

The project has given rise to the following publications:

• John Osborne: Before Anger, ed. Jamie Andrews, Oberon, 2009
• The Lord Chamberlain Regrets... A History of Stage Censorship, ed. Dominic Shellard, British Library Publications, 2004
• Kenneth Tynan: Theatre Writings, ed. Dominic Shellard, Nick Hern Books, 2007
• The Golden Generation: New Light on Post-War British Theatre, ed. Dominic Shellard, British Library Publications, 2008

Other outcomes include two PhD studentships, events on the Royal Court (2006), Theatre Workshop (2007), impresarios (2009), Variety (2010) and backstage life (2011), as well as 'The Golden Generation: British theatre 1945-1968', an exhibition and international conference held at the British Library in 2008.

The project leaders are Professor Dominic Shellard, Vice-Chancellor of De Montfort University and Jamie Andrews, Head of English and Drama at the British Library. Enquiries should be directed to Zoë Wilcox, Curator of Modern Literary and Theatrical Manuscripts at the British Library, zoe.wilcox@bl.uk, T +44 (0)20 7412 7518.

The project was previously supported by the University of Sheffield and the Arts and Humanities Research Council, together with the British Library.

Guides

For more information on how to conduct and transcribe research interviews, see Dr Alec Patton’s guides developed especially for the Theatre Archive Project:

• Interview guidelines (PDF format)
• Transcription style guide (PDF format)

Useful links

• V&A Theatre and Performance Collections
• University of Bristol Theatre Collection
• BBC Archive
• Archive of 20th Century Theatrical Scenery by Brunskill & Loveday Ltd
• National Fairground Archive
• The Stage Archive
• Theatre Record Archive
• Harry Ransom Humanities Research Center – Performing Arts Collections
• The Society for Theatre Research
• American Society for Theatre Research
• International Federation for Theatre Research
• Society of London Theatre
• British Music Hall Society
• Theatres Trust

All recordings on this site are governed by licence agreements.