Ruth Orkin Original Photos, Tanglewood: Leonard Bernstein, Benjamin Britten

Description: Ruth Orkin Original Photos, Tanglewood: Leonard Bernstein, Benjamin Britten Click to Enlarge Description: Three special items relating to the first American performance of the opera Peter Grimes by Benjamin Britten: 1) Program booklet for the first American performance of Peter Grimes: An Opera in Three Acts and a Prologue Berkshire Music Center, Serge Koussevitsky, Director; Leonard Bernstein, Conductor, August 6, 7 and 9, 1946. Wrappers, 8vo, 32 pages. Condition: Very Good+ condition (Some age browning of paper. Clean with no tears.) 2) Original Ruth Orkin black and white print, matte finish on heavy stock, 9.75 in. x 8 in. photograph showing a scene during the first American performance of Peter Grimes. On the back of the photograph is the following ink inscription: "Peter Grimes / 1st American performance / Tanglewood / 1946". Stamp on the back of the photograph reads "Please Credit Ruth Orkin, 88 Horatio Street, N.Y. 14. One Reproduction Only". Condition: Very Good: Upper left hand corner has light creasing (2.5cm x 2.5cm triangle). Lower left hand corner crease (1.5cm x 2.5cm). Lower right hand corner has faint crease (.5cm x 1cm). 3) Original Ruth Orkin black and white print, matte finish on heavy stock, 9.75 x 8 photograph showing the curtain call at the end of the first American performance of Peter Grimes. The photograph shows the cast in costume, applauding, together with Benjamin Britten and the conductor, Leonard Bernstein. On the back of the photograph is the following ink inscription by an unknown hand: "Peter Grimes / 1st American /performance /1946 / August 6, 7, 9 /Tanglewood / Bernstein-Conductor / Benj Britten (present)". Stamp on the back of the photograph reads "Please Credit Ruth Orkin, 88 Horatio Street, N.Y. 14. One Reproduction Only";. Condition: Very Good: Faint diagonal creases at the four corners: upper right hand corner - (2 cm x 4 cm), upper left hand corner - (1 cm x 2.5 cm), lower left corner - (0.5 cm x 1 cm), and lower right hand corner - (1 cm x 1.5 cm). Small brown spot on upper background. Crease-like imperfection in the background which appears to have been in the print as originally issued. These prints date back to the time when the young Orkin was a freelance photojournalist. Peter Grimes, with a libretto by Montagu Slater, was completed in 1945 and had its premiere on June 7 of that year by the Sadler's Wells Opera Company. Slightly over a year later, the work had its American premiere at the Boston Symphony's summer home at Tanglewood, under the baton of Leonard Bernstein. "Peter Grimes is widely regarded as one of the masterpieces of postwar opera, and its premiere marked a turning point in the history of British opera" (Boyden, 583). It "laid the foundation for a revival of native opera which Britten's works have continued to dominate" (New Grove 3:293). "The music was complex and subtle and harmonically modern, not the kind that can be fully appreciated at a single hearing. But its dramatic impact was so inescapable that the audience sat spellbound... 'It is a milestone in modern opera,' wrote the correspondent of the New York Times" (Cross I: 142). "The opera seizes on you, possesses you, keeps you riveted to your seat during the action and keyed up during the intermissions, and drops you, purged and exhausted, at the end" (Edmund Wilson). Ruth Orkin (1921-85) Ruth Orkin's mother was a movie actress and although Ruth was born in Boston she grew up in Hollywood during its heyday. Given a camera at 10, she was 12 when she developed her first pictures, and soon began to photograph movie celebreties. She worked as a messenger for MGM, but soon left as she wanted to be a cinematographer and the union there would not accept women. Orkin moved to New York in 1943, taking pictures of children and working as a nightclub photographer. Soon she was working for magazines such as Life, Look, Horizon and Ladies Home Journal, becoming known particularly for her portraits of musicians such as Leonard Bernstein. In 1950 she took a trip to Israel and lived on a kibbutz for severl months, befre leaving to tour Europe. In Florence she photographed her classic image 'American Girl in Italy', still a best-selling poster, and she also photographed in Venice, Rome, Paris and London. Orkin met photographer Morris Engel at the New York 'Photo League' and in 1952 they made the classic film 'Little Fugitive' together, getting married while working on it. This story of a seven year old boy who is tricked into thinking he has killed someone fleeing for his life to Coney Island was a great influence on the French New Wave film makers such as Francois Truffaut, not least in showing that films could be produced without massive funding. In it they used ordinary people rather than actors, shooting in actual locations and using a special lightweight 35mm film camera that Engel had made which enabled work with a small team and with great mobility. Orkin and Engle shared most of the jobs on this film - she was Editor, Co-director and Co-writer and also responsible for much of the editing. Despite its low budget approach, this film was nominated for an Academy Award and won the Silver Lion at the Venice Film Festival. Their second film, 'Lovers and Lollipops' also won awards but made less of an impact. Orkin became a mother, and photographed her two children and also the views from their Central Park West apartment, producing the books 'A World Through My Window' (1978) and 'More Pictures From My Window' (1983), as well as the more general 'A Photo Journal' (1981). In the late 70s she taught at the School of Visual Arts, New York City. Check our other auctions and store listings for additional unusual items. (Click here to view all of our auctions) Shipping and Payment Information Shipping : DOMESTIC Domestic Priority Mail shipping, including Delivery Confirmation and Insurance, is free. This applies to any address in the US and Puerto Rico, as well as to APO addresses. INTERNATIONAL For international shipping, we urge bidders to request quotes of shipping costs before bidding. We will also specify international shipping options and prices after the conclusion of the auction. We will try to provide a range of options but buyers should be aware that all shipments are via air mail and shipping of heavy books can be expensive. COMBINED SHIPPING For international transactions, combined shipping of multiple lots can substantially reduce postage. This is especially the case for M-Bag shipments of up to 11 lbs and for multiple volumes that will fit into a single Priority Mail flat rate box. For the above options, the postage rate is fixed independently of the weight. INSURANCE All of our domestic shipments are fully insured. Payment : No credit cards except through PayPal. Paypal payments should be in US Dollars but Euros are also acceptable if prior agreement is obtained. As of October 2008, Ebay is imposing the requirement that all payments be made via Paypal or other online means. We understand that this requirement may be a problem to some of our customers and we will do our best to accommodate their needs. inkfrog terapeak

Price: 1000 USD

Location: NJ

End Time: 2025-02-02T02:39:19.000Z

Shipping Cost: 0 USD