The Mander and Mitchenson Theatre Collection

The Raymond Mander & Joe Mitchenson Theatre Collection is one of the largest collections of theatre and performance related materials in the UK. A charitable trust, the Collection is part of the Jerwood Library of the Performing Arts, based in Greenwich, London UK and staffed by Richard Mangan as Administrator, and Kristy Davis as Archive Officer/Cataloguer. It owes its existence to the extraordinary lifetimes work of Raymond Mander and Joe Mitchenson, and has at its heart two thousand or more archive boxes containing playbills, posters, programmes, engravings, cuttings and production photographs of London and regional theatres. There are files on every actor and actress of note in the British theatre, and sections on circus, dance, opera, music-hall, variety, dramatists, singers and composers, together with many engravings and pictures. The Collection includes many theatre paintings, as well as set and costume designs and 500 pottery figures.

The Collection is open to researchers by appointment. Additionally, the Collection operates as a picture library, and receives many requests for information and verification. The Picture Gallery is available here in browsable format for the first time. The Collection receives no public funding and relies upon its earned income and donations for its survival. Long known for its integrity and accuracy, it continues to enjoy the respect of the profession which it serves, and is used increasingly by commercial media.