Apollo Archives - Apollo Theater

Overview

First conceived in anticipation of the Apollo Theater’s 75th anniversary in 2009, the Apollo Theater Archives were part of a series of retrospective projects that also included a traveling exhibition in partnership with the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture – and the publication of a companion book, Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing: How the Apollo Theater Shaped American Entertainment – and the Apollo Theater Oral History Project in collaboration with the Columbia University Center for Oral History Research. Following years of intermittent progress, the theater hired its first full-time archivist in 2017, thanks to a grant from philanthropist Robert F. Smith.

The Apollo Theater Archives is not yet open to the public, as materials are currently being collected, cataloged, preserved, and digitized, but the Archives welcome your questions. While most Apollo programs from the past two decades were recorded and photographed, events that took place between 1934 and 1977 were documented much less extensively, as the Apollo was a working theater that focused its resources on filling seats, paying performers and staff, and staying in business. Consequently, very few photo and video materials exist from this period of the Apollo’s existence.

Archive Photos

Meet The Apollo's Archivist

Learn more about the Apollo’s Archivist, Brad San Martin in his interview with Archives Aware!

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is in the Apollo Theater Archives?
The Apollo Theater Archives includes materials related to (and resulting from) the operation of Harlem’s world famous Apollo Theater, dating from prior to the theater’s opening in 1934 to the present day. These materials include, but are not limited to, the following categories:
- Photographs
- Video
- Audio
- Historic documents (contracts, scripts, business records, etc.)
- Program booklets
- Posters and flyers
- Other physical artifacts: architectural elements, backstage passes, ticket stubs, etc.
- Commercial CD, LP, videocassettes, and DVDs recorded at the Apollo Theater
- Published and unpublished books about or related to the history of the Apollo Theater
- Oral histories about the Apollo Theater and the Harlem community
The Apollo Theater Archives also collects and stores data related to the Apollo Theater, including a performance history database containing information about shows presented at the Apollo Theater from 1934 to the present day.
What is NOT in the Apollo Theater Archives?

For most of its existence, the Apollo was a working, for-profit theater. The owners understandably focused their limited resources on selling tickets, paying performers and staff, and keeping the theater running. They were not able to dedicate time and money towards recording and/or photographing performances at the theater. As a result, photographs, audio, and audio-visual recordings of Apollo Theater performances from 1934 through the late 1990s are very rare.
Is the Apollo Theater Archives the only resource for information and materials related to the Apollo?

While the Apollo Theater Archives is the only repository exclusively devoted to the Apollo Theater, Apollo and Apollo-related materials can be found in other institutions. Two of the most extensive Apollo-theater related holdings are:

The Frank Schiffman Apollo Theater Collection at the National Museum of American History

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The Gordon Anderson Collection at the Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture

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Can the material in the Apollo Theater Archives be viewed online or in person?

Currently the Apollo Theater Archives are not open to the public, as the process of collecting, cataloging, preserving, and digitizatizing materials is still ongoing. Our goal is to eventually allow people to search the archives via an interactive web portal.

Online streaming or display of certain materials in the Apollo Theater Archives is not possible due to copyright and/or existing contractual agreements.
Can materials in the Apollo Theater Archives be licensed for my book/documentary/TV show/article/website?
How can I contact the Apollo Archives?

Contact Apollo Archives

The Apollo Theater Archives welcomes your questions about the Apollo Theater, its history, legacy, and performances. Please provide as much information as you can in the contact form and allow 2-4 weeks for a response.