Shakespeare's Globe Trust

The Globe archives comprise the following:

The institutional archive: minutes, correspondence and administrative papers documenting the establishment and running of the Globe as a theatre, educational centre and exhibition space.

The performance archive: Records of performances held at the Globe, including audio and video recordings, prompt books, wardrobe bibles, music scores, and production ephemera.

Personal archives: Correspondence and diaries of prominent figures associated the Globe, including Sam Wanamaker and Mark Rylance. The Council Memories' Project, an oral history project to document the memories of individuals and groups involved in the Globe restructure, is soon to be launched, and its records will be added to the archives.

Architectural archives: The Pentagram archive contains plans, correspondence and paperwork relating to the reconstruction of the Globe. Work is now underway to construct an indoor Jacobean theatre at the Globe, and records of this project will be added to the archives.

The Original Practices Costume Archive: This is a collection of 26 original costumes created for Shakespeare's Globe in the period 1997-2005, all of which were constructed using Elizabethan and Jacobean methods and historically accurate materials. The costumes in the collection were selected by Olivier Award-winning designer Jenny Tiramani, as representative of the research and experimental techniques into historical pattern cutting and construction undertaken at the Globe.

The June Everett Archive: The artist June Everett produced a substantial body of paintings and drawings documenting the reconstruction of the Globe. The Archive consists of approximately 180 works on paper.

The project to rebuild Shakespeare's Globe was initiated by the American actor, director and producer Sam Wanamaker after his first visit to London in 1949. Twenty-one years later he founded what was to become the Shakespeare Globe Trust, dedicated to the reconstruction of the theatre and the creation of an education centre and permanent exhibition. After 23 years spent tirelessly fundraising, advancing research into the appearance of the original Globe and planning the reconstruction with the Trust's architect Theo Crosby, Sam Wanamaker died in 1993, the site having been secured, the exhibition undercroft structurally complete and a few timber bays of the theatre in place. Three and a half years later the theatre was completed.

Access is by appointment only. The Globe Library & Archives are open Tuesday to Thursday, 10.00 am - 5.00 pm. Full details of our admission procedure are available on our website at www.shakespearesglobe.com/education/library-archives

Material is not yet catalogued. Partial lists of some collections are available for consultation at the Library & Archives office. For specific enquiries, please contact the Library & Archives in advance of your visit, so that we will have time to facilitate access to relevant material.

Self-service photography of archival material is allowed only with permission from the archivist, and within the boundaries of copyright law. A limited photocopying service is also available on application to the archivist or librarian.

The archive collections are still in the process of appraisal and cataloguing. Access to our material will be facilitated to the best of our ability.

Accruals are expected in all collections other than the Original Practices Costume Archive and the June Everett Archive.

Related collections in Britain include those held at the Shakespeare Centre Library and Archive.

Most material original.