George E. Lask (1866-1936) was a prominent stage director in San Francisco and New York. Lask is famous for staging the first American production of the musical Florodora in New York in 1900. The original sextet in the show that Lask picked and trained came to be known as the Florodora girls, a precursor of the American chorus girl. The majority of the collection contains scripts and plots for stage productions as well as correspondence, photographs, printed materials, newspaper clippings, and other theater related items.

George E. Lask, veteran manager and director of the stage, is famous in the theater world for staging the first production of Florodora in New York in 1900 and being the first authority on what is now known as the American chorus girl. Born in 1866 in San Francisco's Chinatown district, Lask began his theater career at the Boys' High School, now known as Lowell High School, where he was a member of the Longfellow Literary and Dramatic Club. After graduating from high school, Lask traveled to Europe. Upon returning to the city, Lask worked at the grain exchange and then as an errand boy at Crocker-Woolworth Bank. While employed at the bank, Lask appeared in numerous amateur theater productions and even found success as Launcelot Gobbo in Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice. Lask then auditioned with Fred Bert, manager of the California Theatre, for a spot in W.S. Sheridan's repertoire company. Lask got the part and for the next eight months he toured the coast playing the boy roles in Shakespearen dramas.

19 boxes (9.5 linear feet) 3 flat boxes

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