Linda Sarver papers, 1972-2012

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Sarver, Linda, 1953-2014
Title
Linda Sarver papers
Dates
1972-2012 (inclusive)
Quantity
26.75 linear feet, (19 boxes)
Collection Number
ACCN 2852
Summary
The Linda Sarver papers (1972-2012) consist of her costume designs and renderings, along with production materials for several theatrical plays she was involved with throughout her professional career. Sarver was a costume designer, educator, dramaturg, author, and scenographer.
Repository
University of Utah Libraries, Special Collections
Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library
University of Utah
295 South 1500 East
Salt Lake City, UT
84112-0860

Telephone: 8015818863
special@library.utah.edu
Access Restrictions

Twenty-four hour advanced notice encouraged. Materials must be used on-site. Access to parts of this collection may be restricted under provisions of state or federal law.

Languages
English

Biographical NoteReturn to Top

Linda Kay Sarver was born in Rockford, Illinois on April 19, 1953, the second daughter and youngest of three children of Everett and Ruth Sarver. The Sarver family has lived in Rockford since 1847, and Linda grew up on the family farm. The Sarvers emigrated to America in the 17th century and Linda was a Daughter of the American Revolution. As a child, she drew and made clothes for her dolls, and showed a keen interest in the fine arts. Childhood visits to Chicago's Art Institute and watching Kenneth Clark's television series Civilization influenced her early interests profoundly.

Linda was Valedictorian of her 1971 class at Auburn Senior High School in Rockford, where she played the lead role in the senior class play and was an editor of the yearbook.

Sarver was educated at Drake University in Iowa where she began as a fine arts major with a gift for portraiture, but shifted to theatre with a focus on design. During the summer after her freshman year she was a "NIT", attending the National Theatre Institute at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center in Connecticut where she studied with directors Peter Brook and Lloyd Richards, and costume designer Fred Voelpel. She graduated Magna Cum Laude with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1975. She completed a Master of Arts at Western Illinois University and then a Master of Fine Arts at Ohio University, where she created her own academic program that included internships with the Indiana Repertory Theatre and The Guthrie Theatre in Minneapolis. In 1977 she took pride in earning membership in United Scenic Artists local 829, the national union for theatre designers, by passing the union's rigorous, 3-day examination.

Sarver's academic career began at Marquette University in Milwaukee and moved to Florida State University, where she headed the graduate and undergraduate programs in costume design. In 1998 she was recruited by the University of Utah to head all the graduate and undergraduate programs in design and to be a Resident Costume Designer for the Pioneer Theatre Company, the professional theatre affiliated with the University. She was advanced to Full Professor, but had to resign from the University in 2004 after she became disabled, the result of injuries when a car struck her as she crossed a street. That event ended her professional career as a designer, as well as her academic career, just as she was reaching new heights in both careers at age forty-five.

She described herself as a life-long student, and throughout and beyond her dual careers Linda continued to pursue her education. She took master classes in America from celebrated designer Ming Cho Lee, in Canada from Desmond Heeley, and in London from Pamela Howard at the European Scenography Centre. Her intellectual interests included many fields of the arts and literature, notably the history of theatrical costuming, Elizabethan drama, classical architecture, antique furniture, and studies in Egyptology with Professor Salima Ikram of the American University in Cairo.

As a professional theatre artist, Linda was primarily a costume designer for the stage, though she was expanding into scenography and dramaturgy when her career was cut short. She designed internationally for the Hong Kong Repertory Theatre (Chekhov's Three Sisters), the Saidye Bronfman Theatre in Montreal (Driving Miss Daisy), and the Falaki Theatre in Cairo, Egypt (Autumn in New York). She designed for America's commercial theatre (the national tour of The Wonders of Magic) and for resident theatres and Shakespeare festivals from Boston to San Diego, from Berkeley to Sarasota. She was Resident Costume Designer for the Pioneer Theatre Company for nine seasons, and she designed for the Walnut Street Theatre in Philadelphia, the Milwaukee Repertory Theatre, and the Colorado Shakespeare Festival, among many. Her work was seen in film (52 Pickup, with Roy Scheider) and television (Moonlighting, with Bruce Willis and Cybil Shepherd).

Linda received many awards for design and for her academic achievements, starting in the 1990s with inclusion in Outstanding Young Women of America and her election several years later to membership in the National Theatre Conference (which she served for six years as co-editor of Broadside, its annual publication). Her bio is found in the 27th edition of Who's Who in the West and the 2000 edition of Outstanding Artists and Designers of the 20th Century. She was twice nominated for Best Costume Design by the Denver Theatre Critics; she was awarded the John R. Park Teacher's Fellowship; she was a member of three U.S. Delegations to the Prague Quadrennial of Theatre Design in the Czech Republic; and she was one of a team of four that was honored by The Academy of Television Arts and Sciences with a citation for Outstanding Achievement in Costuming for the ABC-TV mini-series North and South, Book I.

Linda was author or co-author of her five books and many articles in academic and trade journals. She illustrated several books and was a Contributing Research Consultant for Blueprints of Fashion. Her textbook, Another Opening, Another Show, co-written with her husband Tom Markus, was a standard in the field for over a decade. A Novel Approach to Theatre is a collection of short, humorous reviews of over 500 novels about the theatre. The Cairo Diaries 2004-2006 describes her two years living in Egypt.

Linda served as dramaturg for the Pioneer Theatre Company for nine seasons, and her dramaturgical research supported productions at theatres from Massachusetts to Mississippi.

In her personal life, travel and cooking were two of her great joys. She visited over twenty nations in Europe, North Africa, the Middle East, and Asia and learned to prepare native foods from many of them, to the delight of her family, friends, colleagues, and houseguests.

Images of her designs and samples of her books and articles, along with detailed information about her career, may be viewed on her website: www.lindasarverstudio.com

Content DescriptionReturn to Top

The Linda Sarver papers consist of her costume designs and renderings, along with production materials created for several theatrical plays during her professional career as a costume designer. Included in the collection are professional and academic appointment materials such as curriculum vitae, book publishing materials and sketches, and costume history illustrations and research.

Use of the CollectionReturn to Top

Restrictions on Use

The library does not claim to control copyright for all materials in the collection. An individual depicted in a reproduction has privacy rights as outlined in Title 45 CFR, part 46 (Protection of Human Subjects). For further information, please review the J. Willard Marriott Library's Use Agreement and Reproduction Request forms.

Preferred Citation

Collection Name, Collection Number, Box Number, Folder Number. Special Collections, J. Willard Marriott Library, The University of Utah.

Administrative InformationReturn to Top

Arrangement

The collection has been arranged into six series: I. Professional materials; II. Costume designs and production materials; III. Illustrations for publications; IV. Costume history drawings and research; V. Oversize costume designs and production materials; VI. Oversize illustrations for publications; and VII. General oversize materials.

Costume designs and production materials have been further organized alphabetically based on play titles.

Acquisition Information

Donated by Dr. Tom Markus in 2015.

Processing Note

Processed by Betsey Welland in 2015.

Click here to read a statement on harmful language in library records.

Separated Materials

Photographs were transferred to the Multimedia Archives in Special Collections.

Related Materials

See also the Linda Sarver Costume Designs and Renderings at Marquette University, Special Collections and University Archives.

Forms part of the Aileen H. Clyde 20th Century Women's Legacy Archives.

Detailed Description of the CollectionReturn to Top

I:  Professional materialsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
1 1
Correspondence and professional materials
This folder contains resumes, professional agreements, designography lists, and academic appointments.
1988-2012
1 2
Portfolio of Linda Sarver, Department of Theatre at the University of Utah
1 3
Costume history drawings
undated
1 4
Articles by Linda Sarver
This folder contains the following articles:
  • "Of Garbage and Gold: Great Britain at PQ'91," Theatre Design and Technology, Volume 27, Number 4, Fall 1991.
  • "A Scenofest Journal: Observations of an International Forum of Theatre Design," Theatre Design and Technology, Volume 31, Number 2, Spring 1995.
  • "A Dramaturg's Vision," On-stage Studies, Issue 24, 2001.
1991-2001
1 5
Pioneer Theatre Company
This folder contains production materials and theatre announcements.
1976-2001
1 6
Costume design reviews for Pioneer Theatre Company productions
1989-1998
1 7
National Theatre Conference newsletter, Broadside
This folder contains production and design materials regarding the publication of the newsletter.
1993-1994

II:  Costume designs and production materialsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
2 1
Benefactors, Fallon Theatre, Florida
1987
2 2-3
Bookends, Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006-2007
2 4
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1988
2 5-6
The Count of Monte Cristo, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1998
2 7
The Crucible, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1996
3 1
Hedda Garbler, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
1991
3 2
The Merchant of Venice, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
2006
3 3
The Merry Wives of Windsor, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1992-1993; 2002
3 4
Romeo and Juliet, Western Illinois University, Macomb, Illinois
1977
4-5
Othello, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1989; 1992
Folder
6 1
Romeo and Juliet, Western Illinois University, Macomb, Illinois
1977
6 2
Streamers, University of Oklahoma, Norman, Oklahoma
1978
6 3-4
Sweeny Todd, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1997
6 5-9
The Taming of the Shrew, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1996
7 1-2
Three Sisters, Hong Kong Repertory Theatre, Hong Kong, China
1995
7 3-4
Troilus and Cressida, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1997
8 1
Two Gentlemen from Verona, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1994
8 2
Wonders of Magic, Pabst Theatre, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
1981
8 3
Film and television projects
This folder contains materials regarding costume design work performed for North and South and Honeyboy.
1982; 1985
8 4
The New American Theatre projects
This folder contains the programs for The Sunshine Boys and The Miracle Worker.
1975-1976
8 5
Computer disks

III:  Illustrations for publicationsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
9 1
Another Opening, Another Show, by
Second edition, McGraw Hill Publishers.
2005
9 2-3
Basic Acting, by John Harroup and Sabin Epstein
1995-1996
9 4
Duplicating the Cube, Lawrence Markus
Sarver was commissioned in 2012 to create a set of cartoons to illustrate this mathematics textbook.
2012

IV:  Costume history drawings and researchReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
10 1
Stone and Bronze Ages
10 2
Mesopotamia
10 3
Egypt
10 4
Greece
10 5
Rome
10 6
Byzantine
10 7
Early Gothic (900-1299)
10 8
Middle Gothic (1300-1399)
10 9
Reformation and Elizabethan
10 10
Edwardian (1900-1909)
10 11
1910-1919
10 12
1920s
10 13
1930s
10 14
1940s
10 15
1950s
10 16
1960s
10 17
1970s
10 18
1980s
10 19
Maps
10 20
General research materials
1984-1997
10 21
Julie Engelbrecht, Costume History and Design I, Theatre 253, course handouts
1991

V:  Oversize costume designs and production materialsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
11 1
1940's Radio Hour, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1991
11 2
Autumn in New York, Falaki Theatre, Cairo, Egypt
2006
11 3
Big River, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1990
11 4
Blithe Spirit, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1989
11 5
Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
1988
11 6
The Disintegration of James Cherry, Drake Auditorium
1974
11 7
Dreams of Mankind, PBS
1978
11 8
Driving Miss Daisy, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1991
11 9
Enigma Variations, Walnut Street Theatre, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
2006
12 1
Hedda Gabler, Babcock Theatre, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
1991
12 2-3
The Hunchback of Notre Dame, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1993
12 4
I'm Not Rappaport, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1989
12 5
The Liar, The New American Theatre, Los Angeles, California
1976
12 6
Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Babcock Theatre, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
1990
12 7-8
A Little Night Music, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1989
13 1
Macbeth, Old Globe Theatre, San Diego, California
1991
13 2
Marlin the Magnificent, Drake University
1972
13 3
The Merchant of Venice, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
13 4
The Merry Wives of Windsor, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1993
13 5-6
The Miser, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1990
13 7-8
Much Ado About Nothing, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1992
14 1-2
Othello, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
1989
14 3
Queen Margaret, Colorado Shakespeare Festival, Boulder, Colorado
14 4
Saint Joan, Florida State University, Tallahassee, Florida
14 5
The Secret Garden, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1995
14 6
Stark Mad in White Satin, Milwaukee Repertory Theatre
1980
14 7
The Sunshine Boys, The New American Theatre, Los Angeles, California
1976
15 1
A Tale of Two Cities, Pioneer Theatre Company, Salt Lake City, Utah
1994
15 2
That Championship Season, The New American Theatre, Los Angeles, California
1977
15 3-4
Three Sisters, Hong Kong Repertory Theatre, Hong Kong, China
1995
16 1-2
La Traviata
16 3
Two Gentlemen of Verona
1994

VI:  Oversize illustrations for publicationsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
17 1-3
Original artwork and illustrations for Another Opening, Another Show: A Lively Introduction to the Theatre, by Tom Markus and Linda Sarver
2005
17 4
Original artwork and illustrations for How to Read a Play, by Tom Markus and Linda Sarver
1996
18 1-3
Original artwork and illustrations for A Novel Approach to Theatre, by Tom Markus and Linda Sarver
1997

VII:  General oversize materialsReturn to Top

Container(s) Description Dates
Box Folder
19 1
United Scenic Artists, entrance examination, costume design, Number 79D20
1979
19 2
Independence Studio 3, floor plans
2006

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Costume design--United States--Specimens
  • Costume--History--Sources
  • Drama teachers--Archives
  • Dramaturges--Archives
  • Theater--Production and direction--United States
  • Women costume designers--United States--Specimens

Personal Names

  • Sarver, Linda, 1953-2014--Archives

Corporate Names

  • University of Utah. Pioneer Theater Company--Archives

Form or Genre Terms

  • Business correspondence
  • Clippings (Books, newspapers, etc.)
  • Costume design
  • Drawings
  • Theater programs
  • Theater reviews