DePaul University Theatre records

Finding aid updated on 9/19/2018

The Theatre School at DePaul, as it is known today, was born of the theatre tradition at DePaul and the Goodman School of Drama at the Art Institute of Chicago. It came to be in 1978 when the Goodman School of Drama was incorporated into the structure of DePaul. Even before the incorporation, DePaul had a rich tradition of teaching the theatre arts exemplified by the construction of the College Theatre in 1907 and the later introduction of the Department of Speech and Drama. The Theatre School at DePaul has trained generations of theatre artists and maintains the vital contributions of both the Goodman School of Drama and DePaul University to the culture of Chicago and the American theatre. The move of the Goodman to DePaul in 1978 gave the teaching traditions of Goodman a permanent home and restored the theatrical tradition at DePaul. The acquisition of the Blackstone Theatre, now the Merle Reskin Theatre, in 1988 gave The Theatre School a permanent performance home at DePaul and incorporated another facet of Chicago theatre traditions. The histories of these institutions have been intertwined since 1931 through the roles of the Itkins, father David and daughter Bella. This history includes the Goodman's Children Theatre, now known as Chicago Playworks, which was taken on by DePaul after the incorporation.

This collection documents the early history of theatre at DePaul, the merger with the Goodman School of Drama, and subsequent years of the Theatre School. Records document teaching and academics at each institution, administration, and performance through scripts, prompt books, programs, and production photographs. Several dozen written histories and transcripts of oral histories further document the Goodman/DePaul theatre tradition. Consult series level descriptions for more detailed information. For records documenting the integration of the Goodman School of Drama see boxes 1, 17-20, 32, 33 (includes a report on the purchase of the Blackstone Theatre). Additional photographs and memorabilia, publications, and videos can be found on separate finding aids.

This collection is organized into six series. 1. History; 2. College Theatre; 3. Department of Speech and Drama; 4. Goodman School of Drama; 5. Children's Theatre and Playworks; 6. DePaul Theatre School

Consult individual series descriptions for details about arrangement.

• NamesDePaul University.--Theatre School--History--Sources
• Subject
  • Theater--Study and teaching--Archival resources--Illinois--Chicago
  • Acting--Study and teaching--Archival resources--Illinois--Chicago
  • College theater--Archival resources--Illinois--Chicago
  • Theaters--Archival resources--Illinois--Chicago

DePaul University Theatre School videos

DePaul University Theatre photographs and memorabilia

This collection is open for research use.

The preferred citation is: DePaul University Theatre records, [Box#, Folder#], Special Collections and Archives, DePaul University, Chicago, Illinois.

Accession 1985.8; 1987.9; 1987.11; 1990.40; 1991.10; 1991.57; 1994.23; 1995.12; 1995.13; 1998.4; 1999.4; 2001.56; 2010.31; 2013.25; 2014.006; 2014.009; 2014.018; 2015.083; 2016.098; 2018.008

KR 1996; SS 1996; CT 1997; SS 1997; CB 1998; CT 1998; GO 1998; MES 1999; CCB 2000; JSR 2000; MES 2000; CCB 2002; MHW 2002; KEL 2003; AKM 2004; HRL 2013; P. Chavez 2018; revised by P. Chavez 2018