|
Scope and Contents |
|
|
The Stoppard papers consist of typescript and holograph drafts, revision pages,
outlines, and notes; production material, including cast lists, set drawings,
schedules, and photographs; theatre programs; posters; advertisements; clippings;
page and galley proofs; dust jackets; correspondence; legal documents and financial
papers, including passports, contracts, and royalty and account statements;
itineraries; appointment books and diary sheets; photographs; sheet music; sound
recordings; a scrapbook; certificates; artwork; minutes of meetings; and
publications, all ranging in date from 1939 to 2000, but primarily from 1970 to
2000. The material is organized in five series: I. Works, circa 1960-2000, undated
(122 boxes); II. Works about Stoppard, 19[60]-1999, undated (2.5 boxes); III.
Correspondence, 1954-2000, undated (21.5 boxes); IV. Legal and Personal Material,
1939, 1944, 1966-2000, undated (8 boxes); and V. Works by Other Authors, 1967-1994,
undated (3 boxes). |
|
|
Nearly all of Stoppard's major plays, screenplays, teleplays, and radio plays are
represented in some form, along with many of his lesser-known works and some that
were never produced. Stoppard's short stories are not well documented in the
collection, although his only novel, Lord Malquist and Mr.
Moon, is represented. For many works, materials from first or early
drafts through various revisions, production, further revisions, and publication
are
present, reflecting Stoppard's practice of rewriting passages of his work
continuously. Many of the typescripts are the result of Stoppard's dictation to
a
typist via cassette tape. Stoppard's revision process continues even after a play
has begun production and been published. Page proofs, galleys, and typesetting
copy
typescripts show changes made in subsequent editions after the initial publication
of a work. |
|
|
For many of the works represented in the collection, Stoppard has maintained
correspondence files, including production files and fan mail, separate from his
general correspondence files, although similar materials may be found in both
locations. Correspondence filed under a title usually consists of letters from
people involved in various phases of a production, or from people praising or
commenting upon the work. Reviews and articles about a work accompany the
manuscripts, and are located under that title. When Stoppard collaborates with
other
writers, he works with them on a sequential basis rather than concurrently, and
his
amount of involvement varies by situation. Stoppard often is involved in film
projects anonymously. For example, he often provides input on scripts sent to
him by
Stephen Spielberg, Mike Nichols, and Kathleen Kennedy. |
|
|
Stoppard's career as a journalist is not as well documented in the collection as his
playwriting career. However, through the years Stoppard has continued to write
occasional pieces for various periodicals, and many of those are present. Folders
of
reviews and articles by Stoppard, some accompanied by letters from editors, are
located at the end of the Works series. Additional articles by Stoppard about
political issues are located in his "Russia File" in
the Correspondence series. Most correspondence from editors of periodicals is
housed
with the general correspondence. |
|
|
Correspondence in the collection relates almost exclusively to Stoppard's career
rather than to his personal life. Most of the correspondence is letters from people
involved in productions of his plays, as well as translators, journalists,
periodical editors, fellow playwrights, and admirers of his work. Nearly all of
the
letters have brief notations, made mainly by Stoppard and his secretary Jacky
Matthews, recording any responses. Photocopies of some outgoing letters, usually
dictated by Stoppard to his secretary, are housed with the incoming correspondence.
Of particular interest is Stoppard's correspondence with Anthony C. H. Smith;
covering an approximate 30-year span, these letters trace Stoppard's writing career
from its beginning. Letters from Stoppard's agent, Kenneth Ewing, cover the years
1962-87 and also follow the rise of Stoppard's career. Correspondence from Faber
and
Faber, Stoppard's primary publisher, discusses publication of Stoppard's books
and
includes printed dust jackets. Other significant correspondents include Ed Berman,
Dirk Bogarde, Noël, Carr, Michael Codron, Guy Dumur, Lady Antonia Fraser,
Michael Frayn, David Hare, Glynn Boyd Harte, Michael Horovitz, Ilya Levin, Bryan
Magee, Trevor Nunn, Laurence Olivier, Harold Pinter, Ned Sherrin, and Kenneth
Tynan.
All correspondents in the Stoppard collection may be found in the Index of
Correspondents. |
|
|
Stoppard's interest in human rights issues is reflected throughout the collection.
Correspondence with many human rights organizations, files on Czechoslovakia and
Russia, and material from his work organizing the Roll Call at the National Theatre
reveal the extent of his involvement in these issues. Through his contacts with
political dissidents, Stoppard became friends with Czechoslovakian playwright
and
politician Václav Havel. Correspondence with and about Havel, copies of his
works, and material from Stoppard's translation of Havel's Largo Desolato were originally grouped together. The correspondence has
been separated and added to the Correspondence series, while Largo Desolato material has been housed with other works by Stoppard.
Translations of Havel's The Beggar's Opera and The Conspirators are located in the Works by Other
Authors series, along with works by Christopher Figg, Tomás Gartland, Tony
Harrison, Vladimir J. Konecni, David Mamet, James Saunders, Peter Shaffer, Anthony
C. H. Smith, Stephen Sondheim, and others. |
|
|
Few original materials relating to Stoppard's personal life are present in the
collection, although some letters to his parents, photocopies of marriage, divorce,
and birth certificates, memorabilia, and photographs are present. The collection
does provide information about Stoppard's interests in cricket, chess, fishing,
and
other subjects. For example, Harold Pinter arranged cricket matches with Stoppard
through correspondence, while Anthony Smith, his wife, and Stoppard used their
letters to each other to play chess. Similarly, typescript and printed copies
of
interviews, Stoppard's responses to various requests, and correspondence about
production disputes provide insights into Stoppard's character and personality.
Stoppard's interest in Ernest Hemingway, as well as his ability to form friendships
quickly, can be seen in correspondence with Joan St. C. Crane of the University
of
Virginia, Carol (Mrs. Patrick) Hemingway, and Margie (Mrs. Louis Henry) Cohn of
House of Books. |
|
|
Other manuscripts relating to Stoppard at the Ransom Center are located in the Gordon
Dickerson, David Hare, Francis Henry King, London Magazine, Harold Pinter, and
James
Saunders papers. |
|
Series Descriptions |
|
|
Series I. Works, circa 1960-2003, undated (122 boxes) |
|
|
The series is divided into two subseries: Original Works and Adaptations; and
Reviews, Articles, and Lectures. |
|
|
The Original Works and Adaptations subseries, arranged alphabetically by title and
within title by genre, consists of typescript and holograph manuscripts, revision
pages, outlines and notes, page proofs, galley proofs, printed pages and books,
theatre programs, production materials, photographs and negatives, posters,
advertising material, clippings, correspondence, and awards. |
|
|
Nearly all of Stoppard's plays, screenplays, teleplays, and radio plays are
represented in some form, some quite extensively. Because Stoppard continuously
revises his works, even after they are produced and published, many variant versions
are present. Stoppard's original labeling of manuscript versions has been retained
and is indicated in the folder list with single quotation marks. In keeping with
Stoppard's original filing system, some correspondence regarding a work is housed
with that work, while similar letters regarding works are housed with general
correspondence in the Correspondence series. Clippings, primarily reviews collected
by Stoppard's parents, and numerous posters and programs from domestic and
international productions cover nearly all of Stoppard's major works. Works
particularly well represented in the collection include Arcadia,
Cats,
Empire of the Sun,
Hapgood,
Hopeful Monsters,
Indian Ink,
The Real Thing,
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead, and Travesties.
|
|
|
Among early manuscripts by Stoppard are holograph and typescript drafts of his only
novel, Lord Malquist and Mr. Moon; a short play,
The Gamblers, which he refers to as his first
"original" play; and Higg
and Cogg, which was performed with The Gamblers
by the University of Bristol drama department. Reviews of those works are
also present. Stoppard's first full-length play, A Walk on
the Water, which was produced as a teleplay, staged in Hamburg, adapted
for broadcast as a radio play, and eventually revised for a London stage production
as Enter A Free Man, is represented by typescripts, a
shooting schedule, programs, clippings, and page proofs. Stoppard originally wrote
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead as a
one-act play about the characters from Hamlet meeting
the mad King Lear when they arrive in England. Among very early versions of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern in the collection is a
mimeograph typescript of Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Meet
King Lear.
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern is a good example of the
many forms of material present in the collection for a single title; in addition
to
items relating to various productions of the play, there are also materials from
the
1978 and 1983 radio productions, an unproduced 1968 screenplay, the film that
was
eventually produced in 1991, and page proofs of various Faber and Faber editions
of
the published work. |
|
|
Jumpers material consists of typescripts,
correspondence, theatre programs, posters, and clippings from various productions,
as well as a reproduction of a drawing by William Hewison, sheet music, page proofs,
and a French translation by Jacques De Decker. The author's notes to translators
accompanies one of several early Travesties drafts,
and typescripts showing revisions made for the 1993 production are also present.
Among other Travesties materials are a memo from
Stoppard to directors, clippings of articles and reviews, profit sheets,
photographs, posters, programs, and an ink caricature drawn by William Hewison
for
Punch. Letters from Noël Carr, widow of
Henry Carr, are among correspondence about the play. In addition, there are German
translations of the play by Hilde Spiel, correspondence regarding a German
production of the play, and an incomplete draft of an opera by Bolen High. Night and Day is represented by various drafts,
programs, posters, production notes, articles and reviews, and correspondence,
including correspondence relating to a German production. A German translation
of
the play by Hilde Spiel is also present, as are typescripts and page proofs of
various printed editions and drafts of a screenplay based on the play. |
|
|
Many manuscripts relating to one of Stoppard's most popular plays, The Real Thing, are present; of particular note are
performance notes; drafts of revisions made for the 1984 American production;
photographs; posters; and production correspondence, including lists of casting
possibilities, rehearsal schedules, touring schedules, cast lists and other company
information, correspondence with actors, directors, and others, congratulatory
notes, telegrams, and fan mail. Page proofs, galleys, and typescripts of various
published editions trace many of the revisions made to the play over the years.
A
proposed précis by Otis Guernsey for The Best Plays of
1983-84 and related correspondence are also included, as are French and
Italian translations. Stoppard's Tony Award for the play is housed with the Center's
personal effects collection. A typescript for a radio broadcast of The Real Thing is also present. Notable Hapgood manuscripts include numerous revision pages,
production correspondence, fan mail, a printed teacher's handbook, and corrected
page proofs of the 1988 and 1994 Faber and Faber editions of the play. Draft
fragments from an abandoned film adaptation are also present. |
|
|
Among Hapgood correspondence are letters between
Stoppard and J. C. Polkinghorne discussing physics and physicists. |
|
|
Of Stoppard's more recent plays, Arcadia and Indian Ink are the most heavily represented. Numerous
drafts, production materials, photographs, tickets, programs, posters,
correspondence, and page proofs from both works are present. In addition, there
are
typescripts from the radio production of Arcadia.
|
|
|
Manuscripts of Stoppard's radio play In the Native State,
the precursor to Indian Ink, include drafts,
clippings, awards, and correspondence. Among drafts and translations of the radio
play Artist Descending a Staircase are those used to
enter the play in the Italia Prize. In addition, that work was later adapted for
the
stage, and drafts, programs, and posters from the production are present. |
|
|
Materials relating to the screenplay of Rosencrantz and
Guildenstern Are Dead consist of typescripts, trailer notes, preliminary
production notes, filming notes, cue sheets, photographs, correspondence, financial
files, and advertising material, including rejected layout ideas. Among other
screenplays represented in the collection are Brazil,
Empire of the Sun,
The Russia House,
Billy Bathgate, and Shakespeare in Love. Besides various drafts of Brazil, there are a plot outline and synopsis by Terry Gilliam and
production material, including correspondence showing the problems that arose
as a
result of the collaboration between Stoppard, Gilliam, and Charles McKeown. Empire of the Sun materials consist of numerous drafts,
a shooting script, production memos, correspondence regarding script revisions
and
other production matters, research photographs of Shanghai, and production
photographs. Included in production correspondence are letters between Stoppard
and
the Writers Guild of America relating to a writing credit dispute that Stoppard
eventually won. The Russia House materials comprise
typescripts and a production file of correspondence with Fred Schepisi about script
revisions. Drafts and correspondence for Billy Bathgate
are present, as are drafts, clippings, awards programs, and some
correspondence relating to Shakespeare in Love.
|
|
|
Screenplays present in the collection that were never produced include Hopeful Monsters (based upon the book by Nicholas
Mosley), Cats (an animated screenplay adaptation of
the musical by Andrew Lloyd Webber), Innocent Blood
(from the novel by P. D. James), Knuckle (an
adaptation of the play by David Hare), Galileo, and
The Frog Prince (based upon John Collier's short
story). Also noteworthy are drafts of filmscripts for Stoppard's popular radio
play
Albert's Bridge and his novel Lord Malquist and Mr. Moon. Uncredited revisions of
screenplays by other authors include those for Always,
Chaplin,
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade,
Medicine Man,
Schindler's List, and Sleepy
Hollow.
|
|
|
Stoppard's well-known teleplay Squaring the Circle: Poland,
1980-81 is represented by background research, multiple drafts, notes on
revisions, and a correspondence and production file. Drafts of the introduction
to
the Faber and Faber text and correspondence with director Mike Hodges, Stephen
Schlow and Dale Sheets of Metromedia, and James Gatward of TVS provide information
about a dispute with Metromedia regarding changes to the film for the American
market. Poodle Springs was a made-for-television film
of Robert Parker's Philip Marlowe book; correspondence and numerous drafts from
that
project are present. |
|
|
The second subseries is comprised primarily of clippings, typescript and holograph
drafts, and galleys of reviews and articles by Stoppard on a variety of topics.
Some
of these are accompanied by correspondence from the editors of periodicals in
which
they were published. Lecture material is also located in this subseries and includes
notes, drafts, correspondence, programs, and advertisements. |
|
|
Series II. Works about Stoppard, 19[60]-1999, undated (2.5
boxes) |
|
|
The second series is divided into three subseries: Articles and Interviews, Literary
Criticism, and Bibliographies. |
|
|
The first subseries consists of correspondence regarding articles on and interviews
with Stoppard, in some cases accompanied by typescripts, and printed articles
and
interviews, all ranging in date from 1966 to 1999. Also included are an outline,
draft, and proofs of Mel Gussow's Conversations with
Stoppard, as well as a typescript of "Stoppard This Evening," which was designed as part of a touring
educational program sent by the University of California to various university
campuses in the United States. |
|
|
The second subseries contains typescripts of books by Jim Hunter and other critical
works, while the third subseries is made up of bibliographies by David Bratt,
Corinne George, and Kimball King. |
|
|
Series III. Correspondence, 1954-2000, undated (21.5 boxes) |
|
|
The third series is also divided into three subseries: General Correspondence;
Political, Human Rights, and Charitable Organizations Correspondence; and Declined
Proposals. Correspondence was originally maintained in roughly reverse chronological
order by date received, which has been retained wherever possible. Most letters
have
notations, mainly by Stoppard and his secretary, usually Jacky Matthews, regarding
the date they were answered, how they were answered, etc. The correspondence is
primarily incoming, but some photocopies of letters by Stoppard, usually dictated
to
his secretary, are also filed here. It should be noted that correspondence regarding
particular works may also be found in the Works series. For information about
the
location of letters by a single correspondent, see the Index of Correspondents. |
|
|
The first subseries contains letters grouped by date as well as by subject, and
consists for the most part of correspondence from people with whom Stoppard worked,
as well as translators, journalists, periodical editors, fellow playwrights, and
admirers of his work. Letters from Stoppard's agent, Kenneth Ewing of Fraser and
Dunlop Scripts, filed with the miscellaneous correspondence, cover the years 1962-87
and follow Stoppard's career from its beginning. Other significant correspondents
include Kingsley Amis, Dame Peggy Ashcroft, Ed Berman, Dirk Bogarde, Michael
Brandman and others at Brandman Productions, Noël Carr, Michael Codron, E. L.
Doctorow, Guy Dumur, Richard Eyre, Lady Antonia Fraser, Michael Frayn, Elisabeth
Frink, Shusha Guppy, David Hare, Glynn Boyd Harte, Michael Horovitz, John Le
Carré, Ilya Levin, Brian Magee, Trevor Nunn, Laurence Olivier, Harold Pinter,
Ned Sherrin, and Kenneth Tynan. Business correspondence with Faber and Faber about
Stoppard's books is accompanied by printed dust jackets. Correspondence with and
about Václav Havel has been grouped together and includes letters regarding
Stoppard's acceptance on Havel's behalf of an honorary degree awarded by Toulouse
University in 1984, and a copy of Havel's "Politics and
Conscience" written for that occasion. Two folders of letters from
Stoppard to Anthony C. H. Smith from about 1960 to 1993 complement other Smith
correspondence which is located within the miscellaneous correspondence folders. |
|
|
The second subseries consists of correspondence with various political and human
rights organizations with which Stoppard became involved beginning in the 1970s.
Among these are Amnesty International, Writers and Scholars Educational Trust
(WSET)
and its Index of Censorship, and the Campaign Against
Psychiatric Abuse. There is a significant amount of material relating to Stoppard's
organization of the Roll Call, or reading of the names of Soviet refuseniks, at
the
National Theatre in 1986. Stoppard's "Czechoslovakia
File" and "Russia File" contain
correspondence and articles relating to human rights issues and political dissidents
in Czechoslovakia and Russia. Additional articles by Stoppard relating to political
topics may be found with other articles by Stoppard in Series I. A typescript
diary
of Stoppard's visit to Russia with a member of Amnesty International may be found
in
his "Russia File." Prints of photographic negatives
from Stoppard's trips have been developed by the Center and placed in the
collection. Stoppard and his wife Miriam served as patrons of various charitable
organizations and made many financial donations through the charitable trusts
they
established; files relating to those causes are also present. |
|
|
The third subseries consists of correspondence from individuals and organizations
requesting interviews, talks, or financial contributions, or proposing theater
or
film projects for Stoppard's consideration. Stoppard's original separation of
these
requests from similar, sometimes accepted, requests found in the miscellaneous
correspondence has been retained. |
|
|
Series IV. Legal and Personal Material, 1939, 1944, 1966-2000,
undated (8 boxes) |
|
|
The fourth series includes a continuous run of appointment books and desk diaries
from 1980 to 1993, numerous awards and honorary degrees received by Stoppard,
legal
documents such as passports and birth certificates, memorabilia, and miscellaneous
clippings, theater programs and posters, and periodicals of interest to Stoppard.
Bank statements dating from July 1967 through December 1974 provide information
on
various productions around the world. Photographs and drawings of Stoppard, his
family, and his associates are also present. |
|
|
Series V. Works by Other Authors, 1967-1994, undated (3
boxes) |
|
|
The fifth series contains translations of works by Václav Havel, works by Tony
Harrison, Harold Pinter, James Saunders, Peter Shaffer, and A. C. H. Smith, among
others. Some of these are accompanied by letters to Stoppard. |
