PRODUCTION BOOK FOR ‘THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER’ produced at Old Sturbridge Village, Mass., July - August 1953,

[THEATER / ENTERTAINMENT, COMPLETE PRODUCTION BOOK FOR STURBRIDGE VILLAGE PERFORMANCE] PRODUCTION BOOK FOR 'THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER' produced at Old Sturbridge Village, Mass., July - August 1953, submitted by James Karr, stage manager; the publications and papers collected in a 8-1/2" x 11" black spring binder with "The Devil and Daniel Webster" in pen on a paste-on label on the spine, about 225 pages of production-related material including handwritten pages, typed pages, annotated pages of 2 copies of scarce 1943 Boosey & Hawkes printing of popular opera, and 2 detailed blueprints, different types of material are in sections identifying the type of material with a typescript front page, sections in order: cover page: [title page/cover sheet] PRODUCTION BOOK for THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER produced at OLD STURBRIDGE VILLAGE, MASS., July - August 1953, submitted by: James Karr, stage manager; THE PROGRAM: Old Sturbridge Festival, Sturbridge, Massachusetts, presents a music play / THE DEVIL AND DANIEL WEBSTER in the new Outdoor Amphitheatre, Words by Stephen Vincent Benet, Music by Douglas Moore, with Clifford Harvuot, Josh Wheeler, Adelaide Bishop, Luigi Vellucci, and a cast of over fifty people, State Director, Elemer [sic, usually Elmer] Nagy, Musical Director, Moshe Paranov, Choreographer, Alwin Nikolais, Production Designed by Elemer [sic] Nagy, July 18 through August 30, 1953, softcover 20 pages including covers, photographs; STAGE MANAGER'S PROMPT BOOK: James D. Karr in pencil at upper right corner of front cover, vocal score published by Boosey & Hawkes, "The Devil and Daniel Webster," 1938, 1939, by Stephen Vincent Benet, Music Copyright 1943 by Boosey & Hawkes, softcover, 94 pages including covers, scattered occasional short pencil notations, sometimes circled numbers; STAGE MANAGER'S PERFORMANCE PROCEDURE: "sweep stage…check orchestra pit", etc., 3 pages; THE PROPERTY PLOT: detailed list of props, "3 ladder back chairs…wooden churn…blueflow platter", etc., last page/page 3, hand-drawn diagram of parts of the stage such as bench and Welsh cupboard with props positioned, all 3 pages headed "For Dr. Nagy"; THE LIGHT CUE SHEET: 10 handwritten pages of details of lighting during the course of the performance, e. g., "Score 1 III up full with music…up full med. dim…up full on an 8 second count…up full on Webster entrance…down and out"; SCORE FOR THE LIGHT SHEET: 1943 Boosey & Hawkes score/sheet music 94 pages "The Devil and Daniel Webster – Words by Stephan Vincent Benet, Music by Douglas Moore" with occasional notes in pencil, and also red pencil underlinings of vocal parts of the character Mary played by Adelaide Bishop indicating this sheet music was used by her and she later obtained the entire production book (see Provenance below); THE INSTRUMENT SCHEDULE: i. e., lighting equipment pieces (instruments), one large blueprint, 24" x 22", folded to fit in spring binder, 11 columns from left to right "Inst[rument] Number…Type of Instrument…Location…Lamp - Watts & Type…Use [column heading]: Cool…Warm…Mary Prayer Special…Jury Special…Fiddler Special", etc.; THE LIGHTING PLOT: one large blueprint, 24" x 22", folded to fit in spring binder, titled "Old Sturbridge Village Theatre, Prod[uction] The Devil & Daniel Webster, Lighting Layout, R. G. Lawson", light positions and types around and over the stage with positions of major parts of the setting, e. g., fireplace, cupboard; ONE-OF-A-KIND ITEM, unique theater and entertainment memorabilia and record of the production of a play involving noted persons of the theater world that is also a handbook for the production of any stage performance; PROVENANCE: Fairfield County, CT, estate sale of Adelaide Bishop career and household items /// CONDITION: well-preserved, minor edgewear or wear from handling of some pages, production book kept in order as found/acquired.