Houghton Rooms Open to Display Drama Collection

Three special rooms in Houghton Library, housing the College's vast Theatre Collection--perhaps the greatest collection in the world were opened to the public yesterday.

The display rooms, donated by the late Mrs. Theodore Sheldon in memory of her son, Edward B. Sheldon '08, were more than a year in preparation. Originally scheduled to open late in the Spring, problems in building delayed the opening date for several months.

Mrs. Sheldon contributed $100,000 towards the construction of the room, which are located in the basement of Houghton. The three rooms include, the central room, the Edward Sheldon Room, and the George Chaffee Room.

The Chaffee Room contains the ballet collection of New Yorker George Chaffee "the finest in America" according to William B. Van Lennep '29, curator of the Theatre Collection. The collection spans the history of ballet from its origin in 1581 up to the present. Among the items included are books, prints, drawings, figurines, and a pair of ballet shoes belonging to ballerina Alicia Markova, one of the foremost of our time.

The Sheldon Room displays some of the works and letters of Edward Sheldon, along with a great deal of material on 20th century drama.

The central room contains display cases, and is intended to give the impression of looking through the proscenium arch of a theatre.