Finding Aid for the Edith Craig Papers, ca. 1884-1939, Bulk 1932-1939

Processed by Charlotte Payne; machine-readable finding aid created by Alight Tsai

UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections

Manuscripts Division

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/

Note

Finding Aid for the Edith Craig Papers, ca. 1884-1939, Bulk 1932-1939

Collection number: 1003

UCLA Library, Department of Special Collections

Manuscripts Division

Los Angeles, CA

Contact Information

Manuscripts Division
UCLA Library, Department of 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:: Charlotte Payne, March 1976
Additions by:: Charlotte Payne, May 1976
Encoded by:: Alight Tsai
Encoding supervision by:: Caroline Cubé
Text converted and initial container list EAD tagging by:: Apex Data Services
Online finding aid edited by:: Josh Fiala, April 2002

Descriptive Summary

Title: Edith Craig Papers,

Date (inclusive): ca. 1884-1939, Bulk 1932-1939

Collection number: 1003

Creator: Craig, Edith, 1869-1947

Extent: 2 boxes (1 linear ft.)

Repository: University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Department of Special Collections.

Los Angeles, California 90095-1575

Abstract: Edith Craig (1869-1947) was a member of the Lyceum Theatre Company for many years, working with her mother and brother, Edward Gordon Craig, under the direction of Henry Irving. She designed and made costumes for many London productions, but in later years became engaged in stage management and play productions. In 1929, she converted an Elizabethan barn adjacent to her mother's house at Small Hythe, Tenterden, Kent into a memorial theatre and directed yearly Shakespearean drama until 1939. The collection consists of 260 letters, most dated between 1932-39, during Craig's organization of the festivals and programs for the Barn Theatre, Small Hythe, Tenterden, Kent.

Physical location: Stored off-site at SRLF. Advance notice is required for access to the collection. Please contact the UCLA Library, Department of 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, Department of 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 Department of Special Collections for in-house consultation and may be obtained for a fee. Please contact:

Public Services Division
UCLA Library, Department of 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

Provenance/Source of Acquisition

Hamill and Barker, purchase, 1962.
Stevens and Brown, purchase, 1968.

Preferred Citation

[Identification of item], Edith Craig Papers (Collection 1003). Department of Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library, University of California, Los Angeles.

UCLA Catalog Record ID

UCLA Catalog Record ID: 4232915

Biography

Edith Craig was born in Hertfordshire, England, December 9, 1869; the daughter of actress Ellen Terry, she made her first stage appearance at the Court Theater in 1878 during a run of Olivia; was a member of Lyceum Theatre Company for many years, working with her mother and brother, Edward Gordon Craig, under the direction of Henry Irving; at one time designed and made costumes for many London productions, but in later years became engaged in stage management and play productions; as stage director of the Pioneer Players from 1911-21, she produced over 150 plays; in 1929, she converted an Elizabethan barn adjacent to her mother's house at Small Hythe, Tenterden, Kent into a memorial theatre and directed yearly Shakespearean drama until 1939; formed the Barn Theatre Society, which attracted leading actors from the London stage; died in 1947.

Biographical Narrative

Edith Craig was born in Hertsfordshire, England, the daughter of the famous Shakespearean actress, Ellen Terry, and the sister of Edward Gordon Craig. For many years, she was a member of the Lyceum Theatre Company under the direction of Henry Irving, working with her mother and brother. In later years she became involved with stage management and production in the Little Theatre movement, founding and directing the Pioneer Players in over 150 productions between 1911 and 1921. After Ellen Terry's death in 1928, Edith Craig converted the Elizabethan barn adjacent to Ellen Terry's house at Small Hythe into a memorial theatre where she directed yearly performances of Shakespearean drama in commeration of the anniversary of Ellen Terry's death. In addition, she formed the Barn Theatre Society, producing plays utilizing the talents of many of London's most prestigious stage performers. The bulk of the correspondence in the collection is dated from 1932 to 1939 and relates to this period of Edith Craig's organization of the festivals and programs for the Barn Theatre, Small Hythe, Kent.

Charlotte Payne

May 1976

Scope and Content

Collection consists of 260 letters, most dated between 1932-39, during Craig's organization of the festivals and programs for the Barn Theatre, Small Hythe, Tenterden, Kent. Correspondents include: Dame Peggy Ashcroft, Dame Edith Evans, Elsa Lanchester, Sir Michael Redgrave, and Vita Sackville-West. Also contains Craig's guestbook, a sketchbook, prompt books of Upton Sinclair's Singing Jailbirds, George Bernard Shaw's Back to Methuselah, and a presentation copy of Annancy stories by Pamela Colman Smith. Also includes a book written for Craig, The Golden Book With Prose, Verse and Quotations.

Organization and Arrangement

Arranged in the following series:

Correspondence (Box 1).
Manuscript materials, prompt books, sketchbook, presentation copy (Box 2).

Indexing Terms

The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.

Craig, Edith, 1869-1947--Archives.

Stage managers--Great Britain--Archival resources.

Women theatrical producers and directors--Great Britain--Archival resources.

Correspondence

Scope and Content Note

The bulk of the correspondence is dated 1932-1939, the period of Edith Craig's organization of the festivals and programs for the Barn Theatre, Small Hythe, Kent. Prominent correspondents listed.

Box 1, Folder 1

- A -

Physical Description: 18 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 1

Albery, Sir Bronson, 1881- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 1

Armstrong, William, 1882-1952.

Physical Description: 5 items.

Box 1, Folder 1

Aschroft, Dame Peggy, 1907- .

Physical Description: 3 items.

Box 1, Folder 1

Ashwell, Lena, 1871-1957.

Physical Description: 3 items.

Box 1, Folder 2

- B -

Physical Description: 11 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 2

Baddeley, Angela Clinton-, 1904-1976.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 2

Baddeley, Hermione, 1906- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 2

Bishop, George Walter, 1886-1965.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 3

- C -

Physical Description: 17 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 3

Cochran, Sir Charles Blake, 1872-1951.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 3

Collins, Arthur Pelham, 1863-1932.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 4

- D -

Physical Description: 20 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 4

Davies, Gwen Ffrangcon-, 1896- .

Physical Description: 4 items.

Box 1, Folder 4

Disher, Maurice Willson, 1893-1969.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 4

Drinkwater, John, 1882-1937.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 4

Du Maurier, Sir Gerald, 1873-1934.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 5

- E-F -

Physical Description: 18 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 5

Evans, Dame Edith, 1888- .

Physical Description: 10 items.

Box 1, Folder 5

Forbes-Robertson, Jean, 1905-1962.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 5

Fraser, Claud Lovat, 1890-1921.

Physical Description: 4 items.

Box 1, Folder 6

- G -

Physical Description: 8 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 6

Greet, Sir Philip (Ben), 1857-1936.

Physical Description: 4 items.

Box 1, Folder 7

- H -

Physical Description: 17 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 7

Hamilton, Cicely, 1872-1952.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 7

Harraden, Beatrice, 1864-1936.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 7

Harvey, Sir John Martin-, 1863-1944.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 7

Hicks, Sir Edward Seymour, 1871-1949.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 7

Hudd, Walter, 1898-1963.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 7

Hunt, Martita, 1900-1969.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 8

- I-K -

Physical Description: 13 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 8

Jackson, Sir Barry Vincent, 1879-1961.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 8

Kaye-Smith, Sheila, 1887-1956.

Physical Description: 3 items.

Box 1, Folder 8

Kelly, Francis Michael, 1879-1945.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 9

- L -

Physical Description: 9 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 9

Lanchester, Elsa, 1902- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 9

Lonsdale, Frederick, 1881-1954.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 9

Lucas, Edward Verrall, 1868-1938.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 10

- M -

Physical Description: 16 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 10

McCarthy, Lillah, 1875-1960.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 10

MacColl, Dugald Sutherland, 1859-1948.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 10

MacKaye, Percy Wallace, 1875-1956.

Physical Description: 2 items.

Box 1, Folder 10

Moira, Gerald, -1959.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 10

Monck, Walter Nugent, 1878-1958.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 10

Moore, Gerald, 1899- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 11

- N-P -

Physical Description: 12 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 11

Nicolson, Lionel Benedict, 1914- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 11

Novello, Ivor, 1893-1951.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 11

Pearson, Hesketh, 1887-1964.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 11

Playfair, Sir Nigel Ross, 1874-1934.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 12

- Q-R -

Physical Description: 11 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 12

Redgrave, Sir Michael, 1908- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 12

Robson, Dame Flora, 1902- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 12

Rothenstein, Sir William, 1872-1945.

Physical Description: 3 items.

Box 1, Folder 13

- S -

Physical Description: 26 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 13

Sackville-West, Hon. Victoria Mary, 1892-1962.

Physical Description: 11 items.

Box 1, Folder 13

Shaw, George Bernard, 1856-1948.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 13

Smith, Edward Percy, 1891-1968.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 13

Speaight, Robert William, 1904- .

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 14

- T -

Physical Description: 31 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 14

Tempest, Dame Marie Susan, 1866-1942.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 14

Terry, Julia (Neilson), 1869-1957.

Physical Description: 4 items.

Scope and Content Note

(Mrs. Fred Terry)

Box 1, Folder 15

- U-V -

Physical Description: 13 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 15

Vanbrugh, Dame Irene, 1872-1949.

Physical Description: 6 items.

Box 1, Folder 15

Vanbrugh, Violet, 1867-1942.

Physical Description: 6 items.

Box 1, Folder 16

- W-Z -

Physical Description: 20 items, total.

Box 1, Folder 16

Wynyard, Diana, 1906-1964.

Physical Description: 1 item.

Box 1, Folder 17

Correspondent unidentified.

Physical Description: 37 items.

Box 1, Folders 18-19

Signatures cut from body of letters.

Physical Description: Approximately 75 items. In two folders.

Manuscript Materials

Item: 1

Guestbook. n.p., 1899-1934.

Physical Description: 25 leaves, signed. 21 × 16.5 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Guestbook belonging to Edith Craig and signed by friends and visitors. Includes sketches by Pamela Colman Smith. Signed by Laurence Irving, Ellen Terry, Gordon Craig, Pamela Colman Smith and Christopher St. John.

Box 2

Item: 2

St. John, Christopher Marie(?) The Golden Book. n.p., 1911.

Physical Description: 58 leaves in black leather journal. 17.5 × 11 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Holograph manuscript of prose, verse and quotations written for Edith Craig. With this: Ephemera. n.p., n.d. 7 items. Newsclippings, postcard and bookmark.

Prompt Books

Box 2

Item: 3

Shaw, George Bernard. Back to Methuselah; a Metabiological Pentateuch. London: Constable and Company, Limited, 1922.

Physical Description: 267pp.

Scope and Content Note

Prompt copy used by Edith Craig in the stage presentation of the play. Tipped-in photographic reproductions of the cast. Signed by members of the cast, including Dame Edith Evans. A Court Theatre production, n.d.

Box 2

Item: 4

Sinclair, Upton. Singing Jailbirds. Pasadena, California, 1924.

Physical Description: 95pp.

Scope and Content Note

Presentation copy of the play to Edith Craig. Her pencilled annotations and stage directions throughout.

Sketchbook

Box 2

Item: 5

Wardell, Edith [pseudonym for Edith Craig] Drawing book. n.p., 1884.

Physical Description: 10 leaves. 17.5 × 26.5 cm.

Scope and Content Note

Drawings and sketches for practice in rendering. Pencil, wash, and pen. Drawings annotated by Ellen Terry.

Presentation Copies

Box 2

Item: 6

Smith, Pamela Colman. Annancy Stories. New York: Russell, 1899.

Physical Description: 79pp.

Scope and Content Note

Presentation copy to Edith Craig with inscription and original sketches by Pamela Colman Smith on front flyleaf.