Guide to the Elizabeth Selden Dance Collection
Processed by Joanna Lamb;machine-readable finding aid created by Joanna Lamb
Special Collections and Archives
The UCI Libraries
P.O. Box 19557
University of California, Irvine
Irvine, California 92623-9557
Phone: (949) 824-3947
Fax: (949) 824-2472
Email: spcoll@uci.edu
URL: http://special.lib.uci.edu
© 2009
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.
Descriptive Summary
Title: Elizabeth Selden dance collection
Date: 1923-1930 and undated,
Collection Number: MS-P022
Creator: Selden, Elizabeth S., 1888, collector.
Extent:
.4 linear feet,
(1 box)
Languages: The collection is in English.
Repository:
University of California, Irvine. Library. Special Collections and Archives.
Irvine, California 92623-9557
Abstract: This collection includes materials collected by modern dance choreographer, theorist, and critic Elizabeth Selden.
Important Information for Researchers
Access
The collection is open for research.
Publication Rights
Property rights reside with the University of California. For permissions to reproduce or to publish, please contact the Head
of Special Collections and Archives.
Preferred Citation
Elizabeth Selden dance collection. MS-P022. Special Collections and Archives, The UC Irvine Libraries, Irvine, California.
Acquisition Information
Gift of Sunni Bloland and Nancy Lee Ruyter, 1995.
Custodial History
This collection was created by Elizabeth Selden and held by Sunni Bloland, a friend and colleague of Selden's. Sunni Bloland
transferred the records to UC Irvine dance faculty member Nancy Ruyter, who in turn donated them to the UC Irvine Special
Collections Department.
Processing History
Processed by Joanna Lamb, 2009.
Historical Background
Elizabeth Selden was a dance choreographer, theorist, and critic with a modern dance focus. She published two works related
to dance theory and criticism in the 1930s.
Collection Scope and Content Summary
This collection includes materials collected by modern dance choreographer, theorist, and critic Elizabeth Selden. The collection
comprises primarily undated dance photographs and clippings of dancers from various unknown sources. The photographs and clippings
include a number of notable images and dances from choreographers such as Martha Graham, Margaret Gage, Ruth St. Denis, as
well as Selden's own work. Additionally, the collection contains loose plates from Selden's book,
The Dancer's Quest: Essays on the Aesthetic of Contemporary Dance, sketches, two dance programs, a performance flyer, and one
Dance Observer newsletter from 1930.
Collection Arrangement
This collection is arranged in alphabetical order by material type.
Related Collections
Related materials can be found in the Ruth Clark Lert Dance Library and Archive.
Indexing Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Subjects
Dance -- Archives
Genres and Formats of Materials
Photographic prints
Collection Contents
Box : Folder 1 : 1-3
Clippings
1923,
1929-1930,
and undated
Box : Folder 1 : 9
Photographs
1929,
1930,
and undated
