Walter Toscanini, Bibliophile and Collector, and the Cia Fornaroli Collection of The New York Public Library

Abstract

The first dance items of what is now known as the Cia Fornaroli Collection entered the New York Public Library in 1954, do nated by Walter Toscanini, the eldest child of the great conductor Arturo Toscanini, in memory of his wife, Cia Fornaroli, a cele brated dancer. Walter was a collector with a mission: to document Italy's dance heritage and give it the recognition he felt it lacked. Despite the importance of that heritage in the birth and develop ment of theatrical dance in Europe, at least until the end of the nineteenth century, no history of Italian dance then existed?and still does not. However, the fact that such a history can now be writ ten is mainly the result of Walter Toscanini's collection of material that covers nearly five centuries of dance history. Some documents may be found at other libraries and archives, but only at the Jerome