Fonds AR009 - Stuart Baker fonds

The fonds consists of five series: Personal Life, Pre-Totem Theatre Involvement, Totem Theatre, Post-Totem Theatre Involvement and the Arngrim Family series. These series document Baker’s involvement in the Canadian theatre scene over a period of time spanning approximately thirty years, as well as certain aspects of his personal life. The fonds consists primarily of photographs and slides, both professional and private; they are largely unidentified. Also included are three scrapbooks of drama clippings of Vancouver productions, 1948-1951, theatre posters, programs, memorabilia and several letters. Personal Life series includes photographs, slides and home movies accumulated by Baker that relate to family, friends and trips abroad. Pre-Totem Theatre Involvement series documents Baker’s involvement in Canadian theatre from the late 1940s until 1951, and is comprised of photographic material. Totem Theatre series documents extensively Baker’s involvement with the Totem Theatre company between 1951 and 1954. The series encompasses not only the administrative and promotional side of Totem Theatre, but also the production and staging side. The series includes administrative and promotional material as well as photographs and an extensive collection of newspaper clippings. Post-Totem Theatre Involvement series documents Baker’s involvement with North American theatre between 1954 and the late 1970s, and includes an extensive collection of slides, photographs and newspaper clippings. The Education sub-series documents Baker’s involvement with drama and summer theatre schools. Arngrim Family series consists of documents accumulated by Baker that relate to the family of his friend, Thor Arngrim and include photographs, slides and sound recordings. Arngrim married Totem Theatre actress Nora MacMillan in 1954 after the demise of the theatre company, and as such, some materials relating to her later work can also be found within this series. The fonds has one subseries: the Education sub-series found within the Post-Totem Theatre Involvement series.