Converted to EAD3 : Encoded Archival Description (EAD), Version 3 : Release: 1.1.1 : Release Date: 2019-12-16. Validating against latest version of schema.
Contact information: https://hdl.loc.gov/loc.music/perform.contact
Catalog Record: https://lccn.loc.gov/2003682045
DACS was used as the primary description standard.
Collection material chiefly in English, with some in Spanish and French
Purchase, Frank Eng (former business manager of Dance Theater and Horton's heir), 1995
No further accruals are expected.
Michelle Forner first processed the Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection in 1997. Nancy Seeger edited the finding aid in 2012, and in 2020, Morgen Stevens-Garmon reorganized the collection and revised the finding aid.
Audiovisual materials from the Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection have been transferred to the Library of Congress Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Division, where they are identified as part of the Horton Collection (MAVIS collection no. 12699) and the Lester Horton Audio Materials (MAVIS collection no. 3372). Inventories of these materials appear as appendices in the finding aid.
The Larry Warren Collection on Anna Sokolow and Lester Horton contains material on the Dance Theater as collected by Horton's biographer. The Prevots Collection of Materials on Norma Gould also contains additional material on Horton.
Materials from the Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection are governed by the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.) and other applicable international copyright laws.
The Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection is open to research. Three folders of material containing payroll and wage information for employees of the Lester Horton Dance Theater are restricted until 2030. Researchers are advised to contact the Music Division prior to visiting in order to determine whether the desired materials will be available at that time.
Certain restrictions to use or copying of materials may apply.
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information: [item, date, container number], Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection, Music Division, Library of Congress, Washington, D.C.
Materials in the Lester Horton Dance Theater Collection span from 1918 to 1996, but the bulk of these items were created between 1940 and 1959, at the height of the company's activities. Formed from the earlier Horton Dance Group in 1946, the Dance Theater served as a training center and venue hosting a resident company performing works choreographed primarily by Lester Horton. After Horton's death in 1953, the company performed works by members such as Alvin Ailey, Yvonne de Lavallade, Don Martin, and James Truitte. The Dance Theater closed permanently in 1960, but the training technique that Horton developed continued to be taught by dancers who had trained under him.
The records, bank statements, contracts, financial documents, press releases, and internal communications in the Business Papers outline the everyday activities of a mid-twentieth century modern dance company. Several folders of bills and receipts give a sense of the company's routine expenditures. Clippings and scrapbooks chart Horton's early career as it evolved into the formation of the Dance Theater. Architectural drawings, leases, and permits document changes to the Dance Theater's permanent space on Melrose Avenue.
The Production Files contain photographs, programs, written scenarios, and costume and set renderings related to Horton's work and that of the Dance Theater. The majority of the material relates to choreographic works put on by the Dance Theater, including pieces created after Horton's death. However, works created by Horton independent of the Dance Theater are also found here. Also present are several typed scenarios for works that may never have received full production. This series is divided into two subseries, Individual Works and Programs.
Materials related to the Dance Theater School, Horton's training technique, and student performances are found in the Education Files. The series has course descriptions, photographs of student classes and performance, and administrative information on staffing, schedules, and fees.
Letters and drafts of letters are arranged in the Correspondence. The majority of the material is written by or to Frank Eng, the Dance Theater's business manager beginning in 1950 and its director after Horton's death. For the most part, correspondence is focused on the Dance Theater's activities, but the series also contains personal letters from Horton and Eng. This series is divided into two subseries that distinguish communications with individuals from those with organizations.
Horton's general writings and notes about dance are included in Professional Papers. Also found in this series are several folders of writings by Eng, an unpublished interview with founding company member Bella Lewitzky, a copy of Larry Warren's published biography of Horton, and documentation on Horton's death and burial.
Formal portraits and snapshots of Horton, Eng, and Dance Theater performers and staff are found in Photographs. While the images primarily focus on specific individuals, photographs from the opening night of Choreo '50 reveal the Dance Theater's audience and the festivities of a premiere night.
Music consists of pieces either composed for Horton and the Dance Theater company or collected by them. The series contains manuscript scores for several dance works created by Horton, including
The collection is organized in seven series:
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
Comprised of architectural drawings, clippings, contracts, financial documents, inter-office communications, legal documents, press releases, promotional materials, scrapbooks, and biographical information on the company and dancers, the Business Papers document the everyday activities of the Dance Theater. Clippings and material in the two scrapbooks hold information on Horton's career before the formation of the Dance Theater and its earlier incarnation as the Lester Horton Dancers or Horton Dance Group. Several folders of bills and receipts reveal the various company expenses, including a wide range of maintenance activities such as paint purchases and ticket printing costs. Bank statements and ledgers chart the financial decisions of the company, and documentation on Horton and Frank Eng's personal bank accounts contain expenditures linked to company activities. Materials related to the Dance Theater School are found under Education Files.
Arranged alphabetically by material type.
Information related to specific productions and choreographic works put on by Lester Horton and the Dance Theater company is organized in this series. Material types include costume and set renderings, photographs, programs, scripts, typed scenarios, and licensing agreements with composers.
Organized as two subseries, Individual Works and Programs.
This subseries consists primarily of photographs and design renderings of individual dance works created or considered by Horton or the Dance Theater. Some files contain scripts or written dance scenarios. The majority of the pieces were created by Horton, but works presented by the company after his death are also included such as Alvin Ailey's
Arranged alphabetically by title of work.
This subseries contains programs and fliers for works created by Horton or the Dance Theater. Performances were either presented at the Dance Theater space or in other venues around Los Angeles and the United States. Early programs document Horton's career prior to forming the company, and later programs record revivals of Horton's pieces or evenings dedicated to his memory.
Arranged chronologically.
This series contains all materials related to the Dance Theater School and Horton's career as a dance educator. Course descriptions give insight into the school's different offerings, and photographs provide visual documentation of class activities. A series of drawings by Verena Ruegg outlines the training technique Horton devised. Administrative materials related to the school are also found in this series including correspondence with prospective and enrolled students, scholarship auditions, school schedules and fees, and information on teachers and staff. A file on the Veterans Administration shows how the school received support for engaging veterans as students and staff.
Organized alphabetically by subject.
Letters and letter drafts in this series are primarily to and from Dance Theater business manager Frank Eng and founder Lester Horton. For the most part, communication concerns the promotion and activities of the Dance Theater and Lester Horton's legacy, but personal correspondence is also included.
Organized as two subseries, Individuals and Organizations.
Communications with dancers, composers, and others make up this subseries and include letters written to both Horton and Eng. The only piece of correspondence between Horton and Eng is a despairing missive written by Horton at a time of financial hardship. Horton corresponded with composers Heitor Villa-Lobos, Judith Hamilton, and conductor Leopold Stokowski, as well as dancers Merce Cunningham and Michio Itō and potential student Elia Kazan. A letter from Villa-Lobos is in French with English translation, and correspondence with Mexican promoter Pablo de Prida is in Spanish, also translated. Eng kept in touch with former company members such as Alvin Ailey, Don Martin, and James Truitte. Also present is a file of Eng's correspondence with Horton's biographer, Larry Warren, and Jacob's Pillow founder Ted Shawn. Whether correspondence is with Horton or Eng is indicated at the folder level.
Arranged alphabetically by author's last name.
Letters from organizations are primarily directed to Frank Eng or the general address for the Dance Theater and discuss activities, engagements, and promotion of the company. Correspondence with the Cincinnati Ballet Company details revivals of Horton's dances as reconstructed by James Truitte.
Arranged alphabetically by organization name.
Books, catalogs, programs, writings, and personal papers collected by Horton and Eng are included in this series. The majority of the series consists of writings and notes from Horton on various aspects of dance and writings by Eng on various aspects of Horton's work. There is a transcript of an unpublished interview conducted with Bella Lewitzky describing her early career with Horton. A file of programs contains ephemera likely collected by Horton and Eng and does not include any work created by Horton or the Dance Theater. Personal papers consist of auto and home insurance documentation, reference letters recommending Horton, and a file with material on his death and burial.
Arranged by material type.
This series consists of formal portraits and snapshots of dancers and other individuals associated with the Dance Theater. Group photographs are organized under Dance Theater Company, and images from the opening night of Choreo '50 are filed together. Some folders contain photographic negatives of existing prints. Also included in this series are two photographic metal print plates, one of which features Leila Goldoni and the other Don Martin. Photographs of specific productions are organized under Individual Works within Production Files. Images of classes and children's performances are arranged under Education Files.
Arranged alphabetically by subject.
Contains music composed for or collected by Horton and the Dance Theater company. Composers with significant representation in this series include Judith Hamilton, Lou Harrison, Pérez Prado, Gertrude Rivers Robinson, Milton Rosen, and Heitor Villa-Lobos. Several folders consist of percussion orchestrations for an unidentified version of Horton's
Arranged alphabetically by composer and title therein.
Material transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Devision of the Library of Congress. LC item numbers included as available.
Material transferred to the Motion Picture, Broadcasting, and Recorded Sound Devision of the Library of Congress. LC item and catalog numbers included as available.