Section internationale des bibliothèques et musées des arts du spectacle de laFédération internationale des associationsde bibliothécaires
Actes du VIIème congrès international des bibliothèques-musées des arts du spectacle

Amsterdam, September 6-9, 1965

Everywhere in the world one complains that the greater part of theatrical performances disappears when the curtain has fallen and all that remains is a number of sketches, programmes, playbills and other relics, which, however interesting they may be, give only a partial impression of the performance on the stage, for the voice and the gesture are gone when the performance is over. Of course there are some recordings of television productions in the Archives of the Television Companies, and old records of legendary actresses, now often only to be found in some private collections.

To end this not so satisfying situation, the Dutch Actors' Union has recently taken the initiative to found an archive of sound and film records. especially of theatrical performances.
I thought it might be interesting to tell you something about this project; I have restricted myself to a rather dry short summing up of facts, as I think that facts are often more useful than philosophical speculations.
This institute will be a centre for all records, in sound and in film production, of Dutch performances on the stage, including cabaret, musical, pantomimes even ballet.
lt will be located in the Theatre Museum. This combination will be very useful: the visitor will be able to find in the collection of the museum every sort of documentation about the performance he wants to hear in the sound archives (programmes, sketches, photos, press cuttings etc. etc.).
The archives are not intended to be a collection of programmes and other documentation: as I have already said, such items are to be found in the collection of the Theatre Museum.
This combination is evidenced by the name of the archives, which are to be known as: Sound and Film Archives of the Theatre Museum.
One of the reasons for this combination we found in Logic, namely in Occam's Razor, here quoted in its original form, which I think, we can still apply: Pluralitas non est ponenda sine necessitate or in other, English words: Plurality is not be posited without necessity, or in our terms: Why make two institutes, if you can make a combination?

So museum and archives work together in close harmony. The archives collect material, already in existence, such as early gramophone records of actresses and actors, copies of outstanding television and radio productions and other important material, or copies of it from private andd public collections.
Preliminary enquiries have shown that most of the people and Institutes involved are quite willing to cooperate. Among them are the institutes of the universities, gramophone companies, radio and television.

Thanks to the cooperation of a gramophone company and a film centre, it will be possible to record certain theatrical performances each year: we think of 30 sound recordings and 3 or 5 film recordings. All will be made in the theatre and specialist technicians will guarantee the best possible results.
With film recording we do not strive to achieve a beautiful or impressive handling of the camera, but we try to make a document of the performance as it is given on the stage.
We do not intend to record a complete play On a film. Together with the producer we shall record some highlights, which will take about three quarters of an hour to run off.

The question of copyright is of course rather complicated. Two lawyers are working on special forms, which we shall use when we loan the tapes or films to schools, universities and others.
The Dutch copyright bureau will advise us in this rather dangerous matter. When the collection of the archives is used for commercial purposes, all rights of course will be paid.
Be this as it may, the Dutch Actors' Union is already cooperating in the most cordial way.

Catalogues will be made of the collection of the institute and distributed among all who are interested in this project. In addition a union catalogue will be tnade of all sound recordings and films of theatrical performances in Dutch private or public collections.

The institute's collection will be available for universities, schools, academies for dramatic art, Dutch cultural institutions abroad, etc. etc. Moreover, in the Theatre Museum, all persons interested will be able to hear records in a "phonobar".

A few words about the organisation. The board of the institute includes representatives of all theatrical companies, universities, academies for dramatic art, the theatre museum, radio and television, societies of actors, authors, theatre directors, the Dutch Centre of the I.T.I., societies of cultural and educational oorganisations etc. etc.
This cooperation on the part of all who are concerned with the project is extremely useful: all problems can be viewed in an „inner circle".
The board, together with the directors (one of whom is the curator of the theatre museum), is assisted by a committee consisting of two producers and a dramaturgist.
The committee and directors will make a selection of the productions to be reecorded.
The government will subsidize this project with a considerable sum. The theatrical companies contribute towards the recording of their own productions. More financial support comes from the contributions of schools and others who want to make use of the material. The schools can become regular subscribers of the Archives.
Of course there are still many problems to solve, but up till now we have overcome all difficulties.
The institute will start operation in January 1966; we are now busy with the preparations. Although the announcement of an institute which has not yet started its work may be considered rather premature, we thought it would be useful to tell you something of these plans. Maybe it can serve as an example for those countries which have incidentally recorded some productions, but have not yet started a regular recording of theatrical performances.
The problems concerning the preservation of theatrical performances are important enough to make an object of profound study. Cooperation on an international plane will be necessary, I think. We in the Netherlands have made an attempt to solve some aspects of the problems of preservation in order that coming generations may haue a useful implement for their research.
But the archives will not be used as archives only: with our material we shall try to stimulate the interest in the theatre, and that is an ideal, in which we are all concerned.

7th Congress

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