The American Theatre Architecture Archive (ATAA) at THS accepts materials of all kind that document the rich history of America’s theatres.

The mission of the ATAA is to collect, preserve, and make available to the public all information related to:

• All buildings designed or primarily and regularly used for the exhibition of motion picture or stage presentations and the equipment related to those buildings.
• All periods of American theatre design and construction.
• Topics related to theatre buildings, their equipment and their operation (e.g. architects, stage and equipment designers, decorators, owners, builders, managers and front-of-house and backstage staff).

THS is actively seeking the following for the ATAA:

• Materials relating to theatres in the states of: North Dakota, South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana, Washington, Oregon, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma
• Materials relating to very early theatres (1600-1900)
• Materials relating to small town theatres (across the country)
• Materials relating to Mid-Century Performing Arts Centers (across the country)
• Artifacts/Objects relating to Legit theatres and Opera Houses
• Artifacts/Objects relating to Drive-ins
• Artifacts/Objects relating to Nickelodeons
• Earliest Film Daily Yearbooks and/or Wid’s Yearbooks (pre-1926)
• Julius Cahn’s Official Theatrical Guides

Materials that meet this criteria include:

• Corporate and business records
• Theatre industry trade publications
• Artifacts from the theatres including fragments of the building itself 
• Blueprints
• Information on theatre architects and designers
• Personal snapshots (Interiors & exteriors)
• Other objects or documents which relate to theatre architecture.

Materials donated to the ATAA will be processed (inventoried and described), cataloged, and stored in closed stacks (not accessible for browsing by the public). Once cataloged, materials are made available to the public for research and are used only in-house under the supervision of archives staff and volunteers. Additionally, materials may be exhibited in the American Theatre Architecture Museum, used in THS publications, or made available for other publication use unless prohibited by copyright or in the donation agreement.

If you are interested in donating materials to the ATAA or have additional questions about donation agreements, please contact Kathy McLeister, Archive Director.

Your donation will help THS to better document theatre architecture history. Also, THS is a 501(c)3 non-profit and your donation may be tax-deductible. (Please note that THS cannot place a value on the materials.)