International Association of Libraries and Museums of the Performing Arts

Société Internationale des Bibliothèques et des Musées des Arts du Spectacle

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Minutes of the General Assembly

Held on Friday, 13 September 1985 at 10.30 a.m. in the Physics Lecture Theatre, Imperial College, London

The Theatre and Theatre Collections / Le théâtre et les collections de documents

International Association of Libraries and Museums of the Performing Arts
16th International Congress, London, 9-13 September 1985
Proceedings of the Congress

Société Internationale des Bibliothèques et des Musées des arts du spectacle
16ème Congres Internationale, Londres, 9-13 september 1985
Procès-Verbal

London 1986, pp.103-105

The President welcomed the delegates and conducted the meeting.

  1. Apologies were received from the following members of Council: Liliana Alexandrescu (Romania), Eszter Gyorgy (Hungary), Anne Murch (Australia), Irene Peypoch (Spain), Alessandro D'Amico (Italy), Paul Delsemme (Belgium), Claud Michel Cluny (France).
  2. The minutes of the General Assembly in New York, 1982 were approved as a correct record with the following correction to Item 10: that, because of the postponement of the Congress from 1984 to 1985, Martin Dreier elected  Treasurer, Alfred Golding elected Vice-President, André Veinstein re-elected Vice-President, Alexander Schouvaloff re-eleeted Secretary General and Harald Zielske elected President would all serve for 5 years instead of 4 and that, therefore, the next elections would take place in 1987.
  3. The President first reported on SIBMAS activities since the Congress in New York by stating that 1) there had been a meeting of the Council of SIBMAS in London in July 1983 to discuss suggested amendments to the Rules, that 2) there had been a meeting of the Council of SIBMAS in Avignon in April 1984 to make further progress on the amendments to the Rules and to finalise arrangements for the London Congress in 1985, and that,  simultaneously, meetings had taken place of a) the SANDAS Commission which had made some good progress and of b) the Audio-Visual Commission which he regretted it had not been possible to reactivate. The President announced that the Audio Visual Commission was therefore suspended for the time being but that he hoped it might be revived in the not too distant future.
  4. The President mentioned the involvement of SIBMAS in two major international projects, namely the World Encyclopaedia of Contemporary Theatre (WECT) and the International Theatre Bibliography (ITB), which appeared later on the present agenda but he reported that he had attended a special conference organised by the editors of ITB at Bellagio in October 1984.
    The President reported that a Scandinavian regional 'Blue Book' had been published, that considerable progress had been made towards the formation of an Italian National Centre, and that the West German National Centre had been very active with the newest member being the Municipal Museum in Mannheim.
    The President reported that relations with IFTR continued to be good and welcomed the President, William Green, to the General Assembly.
    The President reported that SIBMAS also maintained good relations with ITI (though no representative could be present at the General Assembly) and that he had attended Executive Committee meetings in Amsterdam in 1983 and in Rome in 1984, and the International Congresses of ITI in East Berlin in 1982 and in Canada in 1985. He reported that the liaison committee was to have its annual meeting in East Germany.
    The President reported that good relations had been maintained with ICOM through the Vice-President André Veinstein and that he hoped a delegation from SIBMAS might be sent to the next ICOM Congress in Buenos Aires in 1986.
    The President reported that relations with IFLA had been maintained in Munich in 1983 when there had been a demonstration of the TANDEM system but that SIBMAS had not been represented either in Nairobi or in Chicago. The President welcomed David Cheshire as representative of IFLA to the General Assembly.
  5. The President asked the membership secretary, Jack Reading, to give his report. Mr Reading said there were now five National Centres: West Germany with 11 members, Nordisk with 16, Holland with 12, Italy currently being formed and France, and that the United Kingdom, with potentially 20 members, had been holding informal meetings in London at the headquarters of the British Theatre Association where, as Mr Reading reminded those present, there had been a reception for delegates to the Congress on the previous Sunday. There was a unanimous vote of thanks to the hosts of that happy occasion. Mr Reading concluded by announcing that there were currently 37 Corresponding Members and 33 individual Members. (The Membership Report is attached at Annex A.)
  6. The President asked the Treasurer to report on the current financial situations. The Treasurer presented the accounts for the year which were approved by those present. (The accounts are attached at Annex B.)
  7. The President asked Eric Alexander to report on the Bulletin. Mr Alexander stated that 3 issues were being published per annum, with 400 copies in English and 150 in French, and that 200 copies were sent to members of FIRT, 125 copies to members of SIBMAS. The President commented that the real value of the Bulletin lay in the accuracy of the information it contained. He therefore urged those present to send any relevant information to the editors and, particularly, to notify them of any change of address. (Annex C)
  8. WECT. The President who had been present at the previous meeting of the Executive Editorial Board reported on WECT in place of Professor Rolf Rohmer. He said that four major organisations - ITI, IATC, IFTR and SIBMAS, supported by UNESCO - were involved with this publication which would show the development of world theatre from 1945-85. It was planned to be in 4 volumes of approx 2.5 m. words with 1,000 illustrations and to publish the Encyclopaedia between 1991-1995 in English, French and, possibly, Chinese. The structure was that there was an International Executive Board of an independent company formed under Canadian law, that the entries would come from the countries themselves, that there was no international editorial board but that there was a Chief Editor, Don Rubin. The President reported that 70 countries had agreed so far to participate in the project and that 45 national editorial committees had begun to work. It was hoped to attract financial support for the project from the Ford Foundation, UNESCO, the French Ministry of Culture and the State University of Mexico.
  9. ITB. Professor Ortolani reported that this project had started with the American Society of Theatre Research and was intended to be a computerised databank of bibliographical information, that it had been involved with TANDEM from the beginning and that he saw in it great possibilities of growth in bibliographical research but that he needed the assistance of individuals to send him bibliographical information. He hoped that SIBMAS would consider establishing an official Commission to work on the content and form of the bibliography and suggest improvements to it.
  10. The President asked the chairmen of the Commissions to report on the meetings which had been held during the Congress.
    • Mademoiselle Cecile Giteau reported on the SANDAS Commission. (Her report is attached at Annex D).
    • Professor Alfred Golding reported on the Blue Book Commission. (His report is attached at Annex E)
    • Dr Otto Schindler reported on the Bibliography Commission. (His report is attached at Annex F)
    • Antony Hippisley-Coxe reported on the Circus Commission. (His report is attached at Annex G)
    • The President reported on the Ad Hoc Committee by saying that it had been agreed to try to form a delegation to attend the ICOM Conference in Buenos Aires and to participate in the book exhibition there.
  12. The President announced that £152 and 105 Swiss Francs had been collected for the Eva Steinaa Memorial Fund. After a short discussion it was agreed to donate the amount to the Danish Cancer Research Fund in accordance with Mrs Steinaa's wishes.
  13. Voting took place on the amendments to the SIBMAS rules. The results were as follows:
  14.  
    Article 5 Adopted unanimously
    Article 6 Adopted, with 1 abstention, with the following further amendment:
    That only the words 'institution or individuals' be included
    Article 7 Adopted unanimously with the following further amendment:
    Insert the word 'usually' before the word 'meet'.
    Article 9 Adopted unanimously
    Article 11 Adopted unanimously
    Article 12 Adopted unanimously
    Article 13 Adopted unanimously
    Article 17 Adopted unanimously with the following further amendment:
    Delete the word 'corresponding'
  15. The new membership subscription rates proposed by the President, Council and Membership Secretary as follows, were approved unanimously:
  16.  
    National Centres with maximum of four Members 120 Swiss Francs
    - for each additional Member 25 Swiss Francs
    Members (Institutional) 30 Swiss Francs
    Associate Members 20 Swiss Francs
  17. The President announced that
    1. a 'mini-conference' on databases for the theatre would be taking place at the Barbican Centre immediately after the SIBMAS Congress and that it would begin at 5 p.m. with a reception to which all delegates were invited, and that
    2. a World Shakespeare Congress would take place in West Berlin in April 1986 for which he would be pleased to provide further information.
  19. The President announced that an invitation had been received from Dr Siedhoff to hold the 17th International SIBMAS Congress in 1987 in Bayreuth. The exact dates would be confirmed later but 7-11 September had been  provisionally suggested. The Congress would have two general themes: a) Theatre in Black Africa, and b) Documentation for Musical Theatre.
  20. There being no further business, the President formally closed the proceedings by thanking the staff of the Theatre Museum in London for having made all the arrangements for the Congress and, in particular, Mrs Claire Plumb for all her efficiency, hard work and continuous good humour both before and throughout the period of the Congress.

16th Congress

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