A collection of material from acclaimed theater director, Henry Fonte, who served as the producing artistic director at the Jerry Herman Ring Theatre and the Director of Conservatory Programs in University of Miami for five years. He received his initial education from the University of Florida, earning both a Bachelor of Arts in 1973 and a Master of Arts in teaching in 1976. His acting career began in New York City where he was a founding member of the Pearl Theatre Company. He later founded the New Works Development Program at the Hartt School at the University of Hartford in Connecticut.
The collection is primarily comprised of playscripts, production notes, playbills, and programs but also contains audio-visual materials, posters, photographs, clippings, correspondence, theater set models, and various related items and ephemera from Henry Fonte.
The Billy Matthews collection documents the work of Terry Miller and Terry Helbing co-founders in the 1980's of the Meridian Gay Theater Production Company in New York. The archives include typescripts, clippings, articles, contact lists, reviews, and research files on various plays, theatrical history, and playwrights. The correspondence reflects the administrative history of the Meridian Gay Theater.
