A Harlem ballet company founded during the civil rights movement to provide an inclusive space for ballerinas of different races and ethnicities is fighting in court for control of its history.
Dance Theatre of Harlem argued in Manhattan federal court on Monday that a former dancer-turned-archivist has wrongfully claimed ownership of a trove of photographs that make up a major portion of its historical archive. The dispute has hindered the cultural institution’s ability to share its history with the public, the dance company argued in a lawsuit filed last year in the Southern District of New York. It has also blocked a source of revenue for the nonprofit dance organization, the lawsuit says.
The court conflict involves Dance Theatre of Harlem; its former archivist, Judy Tyrus; and ChromaDiverse, a nonprofit Tyrus founded to preserve the records of performing arts groups. Dance Theatre of Harlem has accused the heirs of their one-time photographer of illegally donating 16 boxes of archival materials to Tyrus’ organization.
Attorneys for Dance Theatre of Harlem, Tyrus, ChromaDiverse and the photographer’s heirs made their arguments in court Monday but did not provide additional comment following the hearing.
The photos in question date back to as early as 1969, the year Harlem-born dancer Arthur Mitchell founded Dance Theatre of Harlem. Mitchell was the first Black principal dancer in the New York City Ballet and felt inspired to support ballerinas of color after the assassination of Martin Luther King Jr. For decades, the organization has trained dancers in Harlem and performed around the world.
The ballet company hired photographer Margaret Elizabeth “Marbeth” Schnare in 1969 to document rehearsals, performances and backstage moments during its early years, according to Dance Theatre of Harlem’s lawsuit. The photos capture a broad range of the group’s early history, including intimate moments of dancers practicing beside ballet barres in the studio and dramatic shots from the company’s performances. Since then, the organization has used those photos for marketing, souvenir books and other chronicles of its history, the lawsuit states. The dance company also licenses photos from its archive to third parties.
Dance Theatre of Harlem claims in court papers that it has always owned Schnare’s photos, as well as copyrights for the pictures. Schnare stored some of the physical copies of the images at her home until her death in 2006, and her will did not leave the photos to anyone, according to the lawsuit. After Schnare died, Dance Theatre of Harlem said, her heirs gave the pictures in her apartment to a friend, who then turned them over to the ballet company.
The current dispute arose when Tyrus published a book in 2021 about the ballet company, “Dance Theatre of Harlem: A History, A Movement, A Celebration.” Tyrus had been a principal dancer with the group for more than two decades and served as its archivist from 2008 to 2015. Dance Theatre of Harlem gave her permission to include materials from the archive in her book, according to court papers. But as Tyrus was finalizing the project, she and Dance Theatre of Harlem’s leadership clashed over several aspects of the book, and their relationship deteriorated, according to court papers.
After the falling out, almost 16 years after Schnare’s death, the photographer’s heirs signed paperwork donating her entire photography collection to Tyrus’ nonprofit, ChromaDiverse. ChromaDiverse has asked a San Francisco court to force Dance Theatre of Harlem to turn over all of Schnare’s photos in its archive. Dance Theatre of Harlem argues in court papers that the photos never belonged to Schnare and were never her heirs’ to give away.
Melissa Holsinger, Dance Theatre of Harlem’s attorney, said in court that the litigation has prevented the organization from licensing the photographs to other institutions, including the Ford Foundation.
“Those are lost opportunities that [Dance Theatre of Harlem] has not been able to capitalize on,” she said.
Tax filings show Dance Theatre of Harlem’s budget had a nearly $800,000 deficit in 2024, the last year for which records are available. The ballet company went on hiatus from 2004 to 2012 due to a lack of funding, according to multiple reports from the time.
ChromaDiverse said in court papers that it had its own plans to license Schnare’s photos and that “such licensing was an essential source of revenue” for the organization. ChromaDiverse’s tax filings show the nonprofit’s revenue exceeded its expenses by about $8,300 in 2024.
Brian Cohen, an attorney representing ChromaDiverse, Tyrus and Schnare’s heirs did not immediately respond to a request for comment but asked in court for Tyrus and the heirs to be dismissed from the lawsuit. He said the case isn’t about a dispute between individuals, but rather between nonprofits over ownership of a copyright.
U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams said she would rule on his request to dismiss Tyrus and the heirs from the lawsuit “promptly.”
