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Jordan (Glenn) Collection of Light Opera Scores and Scripts
MS.2015.011
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Contributing Institution:
Special Collections and Archives
Title: Glenn Jordan Collection of Light Opera Scores and Scripts
Identifier/Call Number: MS.2015.011
Physical Description:
22.91 Linear Feet
Date (inclusive): 1907-1986
Abstract: Glenn Jordan was the executive director of the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera from 1971 until his death in 1976. He directed
and/or produced as many as 250 productions throughout his long career in theatre. After receiving degrees from the University
of Wisconsin and the University of Minnesota, Jordan began work in the theatre business. He directed musicals for the tent
theatre in Lambertville, New Jersey and from there went on to establish more tent theatres around the country before becoming
a producer and director for the St. Paul Civic Opera. He went on to bring his directing and producing talents to the Kansas
City Starlight Theatre and the St. Louis Municipal Theatre before coming to Los Angeles. Jordan's wife, Lucy Finney Jordan,
was a ballerina when they met, and she went on to be the associate producer for the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera while her
husband was executive director. From 1986 to 1992 Lucy Jordan was a field representative for the Western Region of the Actor's
Equity Association. Following her death in 1992 the association named an annual award after her.
Language of Material:
English
.
The Glenn Jordan Collection of Light Opera Scores and Scripts is the
physical property of California State University, Los Angeles, John F. Kennedy
Memorial Library, Special Collections and Archives.
Folder title, Series, Box number, Collection title, followed by
Special Collections and Archives, John F. Kennedy Memorial Library, California
State University, Los Angeles
The collection is organized into five series: I. Production Materials
and Programs; II. Scripts; III. Photographic Materials; IV. Newspaper/Magazine
Clippings; and V. Musical Scores. Two of the five series consist of subseries.
Series I. Production Materials and Programs is organized into two subseries: a.
Production Materials and Programs and b. Oversized Production Materials and
Programs. Series II. Scripts is organized into two subseries: a. Musical Scripts
and b: Non-Musical Scripts.
Glenn Jordan was the executive director of the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera
from 1971 until his death in 1976. He directed and/or produced as many as 250
productions throughout his long career in theatre. After receiving degrees from
the University of Wisconsin and the University of Minnesota, Jordan began work
in the theatre business. He directed musicals for the tent theatre in Lambertville,
New Jersey and from there went on to establish more tent theatres around the
country before becoming a producer and director for the St. Paul Civic Opera. He
went on to bring his directing and producing talents to the Kansas City Starlight
Theatre and the St. Louis Municipal Theatre before coming to Los Angeles.
Jordan's wife, Lucy Finney Jordan, was a ballerina when they met, and she went
on to be the associate producer for the Los Angeles Civic Light Opera while her
husband was executive director. From 1986 to 1992 Lucy Jordan was a field
representative for the Western Region of the Actor's Equity Association.
Following her death in 1992 the association named an annual award after her.
The materials in this collection were created from 1907-1986 and were collected
by theatre director and producer, Glenn Jordan and his wife Lucy Jordan. The
bulk of the collection are theatre production materials and programs, but it also
includes scripts, photographic materials, and newspaper/magazine clippings. The
production materials are mostly related to Jordan's interest in the theatre and to
the productions that he directed and produced for the St. Paul Civic Opera, the
Kansas City Starlight Theatre, the St. Louis Municipal Theatre, and the Los
Angeles Civic Light Opera. Some of the programs in Series I: Production
Materials and Programs was originally in the Arthur M. Applebaum Collection of
Theater Plays.
Series I: Production Materials and Programs
Inclusive Dates: 1951-1986
Arrangement: Alphabetical and there under chronological
This large series consists of two subseries: a. Production Materials and
Programs, 1951-1986 and b. Oversized Production Materials and Programs,
1959-1971. The series includes theatre production materials like stage maps,
costume information, and prop lists. It also includes programs for many notable
plays such as Bye Bye Birdie, Damn Yankees, and Fiddler on the Roof. Some of
the items included are oversized costume illustrations for Kismet and programs
for productions starring famous performers such as Angela Lansbury, Dick Van
Dyke, and Florence Henderson. Some of the programs in the series were added
from the Arthur M. Applebaum Collection of Theater Plays.
Series II: Scripts
Inclusive Dates: 1941-1980
Arrangement: Alphabetical and there under chronological
This large series consists of two subseries: a. Musical Scripts, 1941-1976 and b.
Non-Musical Scripts, 1980. Many of the scripts include handwritten notes. Some
of the noteworthy scripts in the collection are The Music Man, The Sound of
Music, and Noel Coward's Hay Fever.
Series III: Photographic Materials
Inclusive Dates: 1959-1969
Arrangement: Alphabetical and there under chronological
This small series includes photographic materials related to theatre productions
from 1959-1969. There are black and white and color photographs of productions
of plays such as Carousel, The King and I, and a stage musical adaptation of
Disney's Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. The series also includes production
reference shots of stage settings and actors in full makeup and costume for plays
like Snow White and Flower Drum Song. The photographic materials included
directly relate to scripts and production materials included in Series I: Production
Materials and Programs and Series II: Scripts.
Series IV: Newspaper/Magazine Clippings
Inclusive Dates: 1951-1975
Arrangement: Alphabetical and there under chronological
This small series includes newspaper and magazine clippings collected by Glenn
Jordan through the years of 1951-1975. These clippings are related to the plays
and programs included in Series I: Production Materials and Programs and
Series II: Scripts. Many of the articles are reviews of productions directed by
Glenn Jordan and many include pictures of Jordan and the actors.
Series V: Musical Scores
Inclusive Dates: 1907-1973
Arrangement: Alphabetical and there under chronological
This small series includes complete musical scores and separate sheet music
created from 1907-1973. Many of the items are directly related to scripts,
production materials, and programs included in Series I: Production Materials
and Programs and Series II: Scripts. Some notable items are the scores for the
stage adaptation of Gone with the Wind, The Merry Widow, and sheet music for
The Wizard of Oz.