CHG recipient case study by Julia Mant of the NIDA Archive. Presented at the 2018 Community Heritage Grants Preservation and Collection Management Training Workshops

1. Julia Mant, Archives and Records Manager, NIDA

2. NIDA Archives
The NIDA Archives collects, organises and preserves archival records created
by or relating to NIDA.
As a valuable resource for research, teaching and education, the Archives
supports NIDA’s role as Australia’s leading national educator in the dramatic
arts.
The archives holds:
• administrative and production records dating back to 1958
• records of affiliated organisations, such as the Old Tote Theatre Company
• a small collection of personal archives
• NIDA’s costume research collection.
The NIDA Archives is open to NIDA staff and students and to external
researchers, subject to specific access or donor conditions. We are located in
Alexandria, NSW and accessible by appointment only.

3. Community Heritage Grant Process
2014: Significance Assessment - $4000
2015: Preservation Assessment - $4500
2016: Storage and Training – two proposals
1) NIDA Archives and Costume Collection: Cleaning
and Handling Archival Formats - $3600
2) NIDA Archives: improved storage of the archival
collection - $3,430
2017: Digitisation of NIDA Archives: NIDA colour
transparencies 1973 to 1985 and Old Tote Theatre
Company images 1963 to 1978 - $12,000

4. Key lessons….
• Be involved in the initial Significance Assessment –
everything hinges from this plan and the report
recommendations will facilitate all future grant rounds.
• Engage with the assessor in the report writing: read the
drafts and discuss their findings.
• Work out your timings – if you can undertake projects
between November and March, you can acquit and seek
additional grants.
• Think about the public access nature of the program.
• Funding assists training, software, handling as well as
digitisation.
• Anticipate infrastructure requirements for digital
preservation as this can be expensive.

5. Statement of Significance
• 5.1 Statement of significance
• The National Institute of Dramatic Art was founded in 1958 to ‘encourage and promote the theatre arts in
all forms’. In particular NIDA provides practical training for people seeking careers in live theatre,
television, film and radio. NIDA enrolled its first students in 1959 and its graduates have gone on to
become prominent in acting as well as production, design, scriptwriting and related fields. NIDA formed
two theatre companies, Old Tote Theatre (1963-1978) and Jane Street Theatre (1966-1982), to assist in
promoting theatrical practice and providing venues for new Australian productions.
• The NIDA Archives are housed in a relatively modern building which provides adequate storage and a
comfortable and welcoming reading area. It receives a steady flow of enquiries from researchers but
computerisation of the catalogue would make the Archives increasingly accessible to researchers around
Australia and result in increased interest and usage.
• The Archives includes records of NIDA’s administration and teaching as well as production records of the
Old Tote Theatre and Jane Street Theatre. Material is held in a wide variety of formats including
photographs, original design artwork, costumes and print material such as programmes and
prospectuses. The personal archives of key figures in the history of the Institute are also held.
• Areas of exceptional significance in the collection include the photography (including the Robert Walker
Archive), the set designs (especially the Yoshi Tosa collection), and the costume collection. Areas of high
significance include the comprehensive series of corporate records and material relating to theatrical
pedagogy such as the photographs of classes and the prompt scripts.
• As a unique collection of material on Australia’s national training body for the performing arts, the NIDA
Archives are assessed to be of national significance.
Dr Anne-Maree Whittaker, NIDA Significance Assessment, 2015

7. Thank you
Julia Mant
julia.mant@nida.edu.au
02 9697 7595