Call Number:

Ms. Coll. 905

Repository:

University of Pennsylvania: Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts

Extent:

226.2 linear feet (327 boxes)

Language:

English

Preferred Citation:

The Savoy Company records,1901-2017, Ms. Coll. 905, Kislak Center for Special Collections, Rare Books and Manuscripts, University of Pennsylvania

Date:

1901-2017 (inclusive)

Form:

Opera, Audiovisual materials, Concert programs, Clippings (information artifacts), Scores, Correspondence, Operas -- Scores, and Photographs

Abstract:

The Savoy Company is the oldest amateur theater company dedicated to the production of the works of Gilbert and Sullivan. The collection contains administrative material, programs, musical and vocal scores, scrapbooks, audio-visual material and photographs which document its annual performance.

The Savoy Company of Philadelphia was founded in 1901 by Dr. Alfred Reginald Allen with the assistance of his sister Anne Carrington Allen (Nance) and Maria Scott Beale (Rydie). Dr. Allen's intent was for the Company to perform the operas based on the original English staging. He believed Americans had ruined the operas in their attempt to circumvent copyright laws.

Despite Dr. Allen's resignation from the Company in 1902, it has produced one of the thirteen surviving Gilbert and Sullivan operas annually since its inception, excluding the years 1918-1919, and 1942-1945 due to the World Wars. The operas performed include Trial by Jury; The Sorcerer; H.M.S. Pinafore; The Pirates of Penzance; Patience; Iolanthe; Princess Ida; The Mikado, Ruddigore; The Yeomen of the Guard; The Gondoliers; Utopia, Limited; and The Grand Duke. The productions are produced entirely through the volunteer labor of the Company's membership, which includes the actors, chorus members, backstage crew, board members, officers and committee chairs.

Revenue from each performance is donated to local charities including the Alfred Reginald Allen Scholarship Fund. The Fund was established in 1921 by Savoy members in memory of its founder and supports the acquisition of books and scores for the University of Pennsylvania's Otto E. Albrecht Music Library.

The Savoy Company records provide insight into the workings of the Savoy Company from its founding in 1901 through the beginning of the twenty-first century. Ranging from files pertaining to the Company's history and productions to the files of individual Company presidents, members, administrative board and committees. The first five sections constitute the bulk of the collection and provide the most insight into the Company's daily functioning. The remaining sections include programs and publicity materials, opera scores and parts, published annals, scrapbooks and photo albums, audio-visual, miscellaneous and oversize materials.

The structure of the collection deviates minimally from that of the Records as they were transferred from the Company to the Rare Book and Manuscript Library, and so reflects the Company's organizational structure. The distinction between production and presidential files, for example, though their contents overlap, indicates a separation between administrative and production-related responsibilities.

Throughout the lifespan of the Company represented in this collection, its members have consistently and actively not only preserved materials important to Company history, but published annals of its history in increasing detail; these can be found in Series VIII. Noteworthy items in the collection can also be found in the Historical Files, including correspondence between early Company members and from W.S. Gilbert, and the Company Files and miscellaneous sections, including early bound books of minutes, accounts and performance roles.