Blog
Consultant’s Plans to Southbank Landmark: the TPC Archive at the National Theatre
Posted: Thursday, March 12th, 2020
In our second blog of 2020, Max Hopkinson, Assistant Archivist at the National Theatre Archive tells us about the newly catalogued Theatre Project Consultants (TPC) Archive which charts the story of the now iconic National Theatre building. It is nearly six decades since the National Theatre Company under Sir Laurence Olivier gave their first-ever performance […]
Historical Dance in the World of Digital Resources
Posted: Thursday, August 29th, 2019
Our August blog comes from Sharon Butler, Secretary of the Early Dance Centre, who tells us about the CULTURE MOVES Project in collaboration with the Centre for Dance Research (C-DaRE) at Coventry University & Europeana to create a MOOC about early dance history. Historical dance is embedded in European art and history. The mission of the Early […]
Albert Speaks! Capturing 150 Years of Performance
Posted: Tuesday, June 18th, 2019
Our June blog comes from Alex Duthie, Project Officer for the Albert Speaks! Oral History Project at the Royal Albert Hall Archive. Here Alex shares the aims of the project and some of the many memories of performance at the Hall he has captured. In 2017 the Royal Albert Hall Archive launched a unique oral […]
WESTMINSTER REFERENCE LIBRARY: A PROFUSION OF PERFORMING ARTS RESOURCES
Posted: Thursday, April 25th, 2019
This month’s blog comes from Isaak Lewis-Smith, who describes the plethora of performing arts resources available to access for free remotely and in the heart of London courtesy of APAC member, Westminster Reference Library. It is 6pm on a chilly Thursday evening, and I am at a loose end. I have just finished my day at Westminster […]
Exploring the Value of Programme Collections at the Britten-Pears Foundation
Posted: Thursday, January 17th, 2019
Our first blog for 2019 is inspired by the recent discussions around programme collections on the APAC jiscmail list (www.jiscmail.ac.uk/apac). Dr. Christopher Hilton, Head of Archive and Library, at the Britten-Pears Foundation, explains how programmes, either individually or as a collection, can inform research in a variety of ways. The Britten-Pears Foundation is based at […]
Mikron Theatre Company Archive
Posted: Wednesday, December 19th, 2018
For our December blog we consider theatre with a difference and learn how the archives of a small professional performance company can offer wide ranging research potential, not only in relation to the operational history of the company itself but also in the social history themes and issues that have been the subject of the […]
The Contribution of the Popular Entertainment Sector to the First World War
Posted: Tuesday, November 20th, 2018
To commemorate the 100th anniversary of the end of World War I, the National Fairground and Circus Archive, at the University of Sheffield, have mounted an exhibition on the role of popular entertainment during the Great War. Arantza Barrutia, Collections Manager, tells us more in this month’s blog… In 1914 escalating political tensions and power […]
Teamwork at the Kings Theatre Archives
Posted: Thursday, August 16th, 2018
This month we put volunteers in the spotlight as Christopher Grant, volunteer archivist, explains how the dedication and achievements of the Kings Theatre archive team were recognised in the recent ‘Portsmouth Inspiring Volunteer Awards, 2018’. Back in 2010 many unsorted boxes of paperwork concerning the Kings Theatre in Southsea were moved from a small room […]
Rambert Performance Database
Posted: Wednesday, July 18th, 2018
This month we hear from Chris Jones, the Rambert Archive’s project manager, who shares with us an overview of the dance company’s new online database recording 92 years of performance history. Launched on 15 June 2018, the Rambert Performance Database provides access to nine decades of performance history, drawing together a wealth of information about […]
200 Years of The Old Vic in London
Posted: Monday, May 21st, 2018
May 2018 marks the 200th anniversary of The Old Vic in London. The National Theatre and University of Bristol Theatre Collection are both marking this anniversary with exhibitions. Erin Lee – Head of Archives at the National Theatre, and Jill Sullivan – Archives Assistant at the University of Bristol Theatre Collection tell us more. The […]