New York Public Library Theatrical Exhibition in Focus Celebrating 50 Years of Theater in Film & Tape Archives

New York Public Library center stage Celebration fair 50 years of theater in film and tape archives

The exhibition will feature works by Stephen Sondheim, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Lyn Notting, Lauren Hansberry, Paula Vogel, and others.

The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts will celebrate its archive of films and tapes, launched in 1970, in a new gallery, The Focus Stage: 50 Years of Theater in Film and Tape Archives.

The exhibition, which opens on July 14 and runs until February 25, 2023, was originally planned for 2020 but has been postponed due to the pandemic. Spread over two floors of the library, the gallery features excerpts from many of the productions filmed by the department, including Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional theater productions, as well as interviews with theater professionals and behind-the-scenes photos.

Attendees can expect a job offer Stephen SondimAnd the Cole PorterAnd the Meredith WilsonAnd the Lin Manuel MirandaAnd the Janine TessoriAnd the Lauren HansberryAnd the Tennessee WilliamsAnd the Martin McDonaghAnd the Lynn NottageAnd the Paula Vogelamong other things.

“With thousands of products to choose from, it has been a really tough job to organize this fair,” said Patrick Hoffman, who has served as Director and Curator for TOFT since 2001. The depth and breadth of our TOFT archive and vast collection of video recordings from Broadway, off-Broadway, and regional theater productions. None of these recordings would have been possible without the incredible support of the theatrical community as a whole, an alliance of Broadway unions, producers, playwrights, directors, choreographers, designers, actors, orchestra musicians, company directors, production stage managers, and stage supervisors, as well as The talented TOFT crew and video crew whose work makes TOFT’s mission possible. Fifty years of hard work took place behind the scenes to make all of this happen, and I’m proud to finally unveil the center stage in the Performing Arts Library.

The exhibition also includes Anniversary of the TOFT Foundation, Betty El Corwinwhich convinced the New York Public Library, guilds, theater guilds, and creative artists to realize its vision of recording live theatrical performance for future generations.

The TOFT collection consists of more than 5,000 plays, musicals, classics, experimental and groundbreaking productions, and 3,000 additional videos of interviews, dialogues, film and television adaptations, award shows, and other theater-related programming. Visitors can access recordings in the Lucille Lortel Showroom on the third floor of the Library of Performing Arts for free with a New York Public Library Card.

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