414 stories from The New York Public Library
Archival collections can harbor surprises — which makes the job of processing them fun! The personal archives of artists not only document their careers and personal lives, but o…
The exhibition, The Great American Revue, focuses on Broadway revue series, 1907–1938. But they were not the only shows on Broadway. During those three decades, dozens of musical comed…
Join us on Tuesday afternoon for a screening of King of Jazz (Universal, 1930) at LPA. Hollywood's Rave Revues is a film series programmed by John Calhoun in conjunction with the exhibition …
A guest blog by project co-director, Professor William Everett
The Pink Lady (1911) is one of those delightful gems from a century ago with a title that suggests something eminently enjoyabl…
The topical revues of 1907 – 1938 satirized performance, society and politics. Everything happening in and around New York was fair game. So, it should not be surprising that Noël…
This blog channel is inspired by the current exhibition at the Library for the Performing Arts, The Great American Revue: How Florenz Ziegfeld, George White and their Rivals Remade Broadway,…
For 25 years the Helen Bernstein Book Award for Excellence in Journalism has highlighted in-depth, investigative reporting. It was established in 1987, through a gift from Joseph Bernstein …
There will probably be more written about the RMS Titanic this month than in the past 100 years. This blog entry is my contribution to the literature of the steamship and its connectio…
Unless you’re a classic film buff, you’ve probably never heard of Frank McHugh, and most of the hundred odd movies he appeared in during the 1930s, 1940s and 1950s have fallen in…
The first of our Spring Oral History Project interviews was just recorded and it was a true breath of fresh air. On March 19 and 26, 2012, Eva Yaa Asantewaa sat down to interview Marya Warsh…
150 years after her birth in Fullersburg, Illinois on January 15, 1862, Marie Louise "Loïe" Fuller is less well known than her peers. Yet her work, flowing and abstract and fr…
A Guest Post by Project Co-Director, Professor William Everett
Noël Coward's Bitter Sweet is in many ways an ode to the world of romantic operetta. In 1929, when the show first appeared…
Beginning March 21, the American Brahms Society, in conjunction with the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, will be presenting Brahms in the New Century. This three-day con…
March is Women's History Month. This year the theme of Women's History Month is Women's Education - Women's Empowerment. This blog post will explore how one can conduct research in women's a…
STAR TREK. The Musical! OK, not really, but even Mr. Spock would find fascinating what we dug up in the Billy Rose Theatre Division about the original Star Trek actors before they went …
The successful casting of non-singing stars (or at least stars not known for singing) such as Rosalind Russell in Wonderful Town, Rex Harrison in My Fair Lady and Richard Burton in…
The Jerome Robbins Dance Division Oral History Archive is home to unique and rare dance related audio recordings that capture the voices of dancers, choreographers, composers, ligh…
The headlines about her death called her the first African American ballerina of the Metropolitan Opera, but Janet Collins was much more than that. A new biography, Night’s Dancer: The…
A guest post & edition by Brian D. Valencia
When Shuffle Along opened at the 63rd Street Music Hall on May 23, 1921, it marked the return of all-black musical shows to Broadway after n…
As the centennial year of The New York Public Library's Stephen A. Schwarzman Building comes to a close and the next 100 years begin, it's a good opportunity to journey through the history, …
A Guest Blog on Victor Herbert's Birthday by Professor William EverettVictor Herbert’s Babes in Toyland is typical of turn-of-the-century musical theater in that it encompasses various…
A Guest Blog by Larry Moore
In the NYPL Rare Books Division, among the Townsend Walsh correspondence, there is an undated 1902 letter from director Julian Mitchell to his publicist/busine…
Wonderland isn’t technically lost — it was never made, but I found a rare script for this would-be film musical in the Betty Comden Papers. Betty Comden and Adolph Green, were th…
It was with sad news that we heard of the passing of Walfredo Toscanni, who died on December 31, 2011. An architect who was based in New York City, he was the grandson of conductor Art…
Happy New Year!
Just as a new chick emerges from its shell, so does the new year come upon us. This polka was composed by Francis H. Brown (1818-1891), one of numerous and forgotten 19th-ce…
