Costume design by Ronald Cobb for a cabaret costume representing The Merchant of Venice (design no.2), worn in the Shakespeare number in Bibliotheque at the "Eve" club

Given by Helen and Jimmy O'Brien

Eve was, until its closure in 1992, almost the last in a line of London night clubs that stretched back to the 1920s. It was founded in 1953 by two former employees of Murray's Cabaret Club, Helen Archer and her husband, Jimmy O'Brien. On a tiny stage, barely twelve feet square, they presented some of the most imaginative and inventive floor shows ever seen in London. The designer for the shows was another former Murray's employee, Ronald Cobb. Working in conjunction with Helen Archer, he designed and supervised the making of hundreds of costumes which illustrated and symbolised the selected songs and were deliberately designed to be as complex as possible, so that regular clients saw new 'points' each time they visited. This design was for a costume worn in a sequence called Bibliotheque. Associated production: Director and choreographer: Helen Archer. Eve, London. Performance category: Cabaret. Cabaret costumes and designs given by Helen and Jimmy O'Brien: S.694:1 to S.736-1996.

S.714-1996