Finding Aid for the Gordon Anthony Ballet and Theatrical Photograph Albums, 1935-1946

Processed by UCLA Library Special Collections staff; machine-readable finding aid created by Genie Guerard and Caroline Cubé
UCLA Library Special Collections
UCLA Library Special Collections staff
Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
Box 951575
Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
© 2000
The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.

Note


Finding Aid for the Gordon Anthony Ballet and Theatrical Photograph Albums, 1935-1946

Collection number: 884

UCLA Library Special Collections

UCLA Library Special Collections staff



Los Angeles, CA

Contact Information

  • UCLA Library Special Collections staff
  • UCLA Library Special Collections
  • Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
  • Box 951575
  • Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
  • Telephone: 310/825-4988 (10:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m., Pacific Time)
  • Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu
  • URL: http://www.library.ucla.edu/libraries/special/scweb/
Processed by:
UCLA Library Special Collections staff
Encoded by:
Genie Guerard and Caroline Cubé
Online finding aid edited by:
Josh Fiala, May 2002
© 2000 The Regents of the University of California. All rights reserved.

Descriptive Summary

Title: Gordon Anthony Ballet and Theatrical Photograph Albums,
Date (inclusive): 1935-1946
Collection number: 884
Creator: Anthony, Gordon
Extent: 8 oversize boxes
Repository: University of California, Los Angeles. Library Special Collections.
Los Angeles, California 90095-1575
Abstract: Gordon Anthony was born James Gordon Dawson Stannus (1902-1989) in Wicklow, Ireland. His photographs during the ballet revival in England in the 1930s helped the Royal Ballet obtain international prominence. His books include Margot Fonteyn (1950), Alicia Markova (1951) and A Camera at the Ballet: Pioneer Dancers of the Royal Ballet (1975). The collection consists of 8 large albums of photographs and clippings of British ballet and stage by Gordon Anthony as well as 400 original photographic prints.
Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library Special Collections Reference Desk for paging information.
Language: English.

Administrative Information

Restrictions on Use and Reproduction

Property rights to the physical object belong to the UCLA Library Special Collections. Literary rights, including copyright, are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.

Restrictions on Access

COLLECTION STORED OFF-SITE AT SRLF: Advance notice required for access.

Additional Physical Form Available

A copy of the original version of this online finding aid is available at the UCLA Library Special Collections for in-house consultation and may be obtained for a fee. Please contact:
  • Public Services Division
  • UCLA Library Special Collections
  • Room A1713, Charles E. Young Research Library
  • Box 951575
  • Los Angeles, CA 90095-1575
  • Telephone: 310/825-4988 (10:00 a.m. - 4:45 p.m., Pacific Time)
  • Email: spec-coll@library.ucla.edu

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Gordon Anthony Ballet and Theatrical Photograph Albums (Collection 884). UCLA Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library.

UCLA Catalog Record ID

UCLA Catalog Record ID: 462205 

Biography

Born James Gordon Dawson Stannus, December 23, 1902 in Wicklow, Ireland; better known as Gordon Anthony, a theatrical photographer whose work revolved primarily around dance; his sister, Ninette de Valois, danced for Diaghilev and directed the Sadler's Wells and Covent Garden Ballets; his photographs during the ballet revival in England in the 1930s helped the Royal Ballet obtain international prominence; began his career in 1926, photographing students at his sister's ballet school in London; appointed official portrait photographer of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre in Stratford, 1933; books include Margot Fonteyn (1950), Alicia Markova (1951), and A Camera at the Ballet: Pioneer Dancers of the Royal Ballet (1975); his 1948 publication, Studies of Dancers, was the first book of color photography in Great Britain; died July 21, 1989.

Scope and Content

Collection consists of 8 large albums of photographs and clippings of British ballet and stage photographer Gordon Anthony. 400 original photographic prints include images of Alicia Markova, Margo Fonteyn, Robert Helpmann, Terence Rattigan, Mrs. Sacheverell Sitwell, and John Gielgud. Collection also includes letters of appreciation from Gielgud and others.

Organization and Arrangement

Arranged in the following series:
  1. Original photographic prints of dancers (Boxes 1-2).
  2. Original photographic prints of dancers and actors (Box 3).
  3. Reproductions of photographs from the press depicting ballets and plays (Boxes 4-8).

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Anthony, Gordon--Archives.
Photographers--England--Archival resources.
Ballet dancers--Photographs.
Actors--Photographs.
Photograph albums.


Box 1

Album containing 58 original photographic prints, all (but two) signed by both photographer and dancers, many with inscriptions or greetings.

Physical Description: 12 × 9 Oblong album, upper joint broken, perfect condition within.

Scope and Content Note

Dancers included are:
  • Markova
  • Princess Romanovsky-Krasinsky
  • Leonide Massine
  • Riabouchinska
  • Margot Fonteyn
  • Tamara Toumanova
  • Baronova
  • Vera Nemchinova
  • Colonel De Basil
  • Lubov Tchernicheva
  • Yurek Shabelevsky
  • Danilova
  • Pamela May
  • Robert Helpmann
  • Anton Dolin
  • June Brae
  • Mary Honer
  • Harold Turner
Box 2

Album containing 61 original photographic prints, all of dancers.

Physical Description: Oblong album, metal intials G.A. on upper cover.

Scope and Content Note

Dancers included are:
  • Margot Fonteyn
  • Robert Helpmann
  • Fraser
  • Pamela May
  • Markova
  • Brae
  • Toumanova
Box 2

26 postcards of dancers from photographs by Gordon Anthony.

Physical Description: Oblong album, metal intials G.A. on upper cover.
Box 3

Album containing 20 original photographic prints.

Physical Description: 9.5 × 7.5.

Scope and Content Note

Photographic prints include:
  • Terence Rattigan
  • John Lehman
  • Lord Woolton
  • Lord Templewood
  • Mrs. Sacheverall Sitwell
Box 3

290 original photographic prints, mostly of dancers or players.

Physical Description: 5 × 3.5 Oblong album, metal initials G.A. on upper cover.
Boxes 4-8

5 albums, indexed.

 

Reproductions of photographs by Gordon Anthony, cut from the illustrated press, depicting ballet and many plays.

 

Letters of appreciation from Grahame-Browne, Marie Tempest, L. Greanin of the Ballet Jooss, John Gielgud, Rene Blum, N. Sergueff.

 

Ticket and De Luxe Programme, Covent Garden, State Visit of President Lebrun, March 22, 1939 (Box 7).

 

Special Programme, Lilian Bayliss Memorial Fund, In the Presence of H.M. The Queen, May 10, 1938.