Gyll, Catherine

Reference Code: IE 2135 N26

Title: The Catherine Gyll Papers

Dates of Creation: 1933-2010

Level of Description: Fonds

Extent and Medium: 3 boxes (385 files)

CONTEXT

Name of Creator(s): Gyll, Catherine (1923-2018).

Biographical History: Catherine Gyll was born Catherine Doolin in Dublin in 1923. After seeing a production by the Irish Ballet Club at the Abbey Theatre in late 1939, she auditioned for and was invited to join the Club by its director, Cepta Cullen. Catherine studied and performed with the Irish Ballet Club until 1943, during which time she also studied radiography at St. Vincent’s hospital, Dublin. Catherine performed in most of the Ballet Club’s repertory during this period, including Puck Fair, Aisling, Lanner Waltz, Rhapsodie, and Peter and the Wolf. In 1943, Catherine went to work in London where she met and married theatre director Peter Gyll (1913-1989) while working as an Assistant Stage Manager. Catherine returned to live in Ireland in 2004.

Immediate Source of Acquisition: Donated by Catherine Gyll to the National Dance Archive of Ireland on 26 July 2011.

CONTENT AND STRUCTURE

Scope and Content: Photographs and memorabilia relating to Catherine Gyll's time with the Irish Ballet Club in the 1940s, and programmes, flyers, brochures, souvenir booklets, press cuttings, and books collected by her, reflecting her lifelong interest in all forms and aspects of dance.

Appraisal, Destruction and Scheduling Information: All records have been retained.

Accruals: No accruals are expected.

System of Arrangement: The material has been arranged thematically into four series (ballet, contemporary dance, world dance, and books) and thereunder alphabetically by dance company and chronologically by date, retaining the original order imposed by Catherine Gyll.

CONDITIONS OF ACCESS AND USE

Conditions Governing Access: Unrestricted access to all items.

Conditions Governing Reproduction: Standard copyright regulations apply to all items. For photocopying or reproducing material, please consult with the staff.

Language/ Scripts of Material: English.

Physical Characteristics and Technical Requirements: Paper documents in good or reasonable condition.

Finding Aids: A hard copy of the descriptive catalogue is available at the Special Collections and Archives Department, Glucksman Library, University of Limerick.

ALLIED MATERIALS

Existence and Location of Originals: Items 1/1/1/1/2, 1/1/1/1/6, and 1/1/1/1/9 are photocopies of programmes held in the Irish Theatre Archive, Dublin.

Related Units of Description: Other items from Catherine Gyll’s private collection pertaining to the Irish Ballet Club (including a signed photograph of Cepta Cullen and two photographs of the dancers from Puck Fair) are lodged in Bruce Arnold’s private collection.

DESCRIPTION CONTROL

Archivist’s Note: Papers arranged and described by Anna-Maria Hajba.

Rules or Conventions: This description follows guidelines based on ISAD(G) 2nd edition, 2000, Irish Guidelines for Archival Description, 2009, National Council on Archives: Rules for the Construction of Personal, Place and Corporate Names, 1997, and EAP Guidance on Data Protection for Archive Services, 2018.

Date of Description: September 2011. Revised June 2020.