| My dissertation addresses the valuable contributions of Lowell Swortzell in the fields of Educational Theatre, Children's Theatre, and the theatre of Eugene O'Neill. I trace his steps from his early years in Washington, DC until the end of his life in New York City. I look at the people that influenced his career, his strong bond with his wife and colleague Nancy and reveal the path that led them to start and develop the Program in Educational Theatre at New York University in 1965. I use oral history and archival research to reveal the invaluable contributions Swortzell made to this Program, to the multiple students that he taught and mentored, as well as to the University that he served for close to forty years. I examine his role in rescuing the historic Provincetown Playhouse and reinstating it as a place that young playwrights and artists can develop new work. I reflect on his playwriting with twenty plays that have multiple productions all over the country, as well as his efforts to rescue and adapt existing plays, retelling them in new ways for young audiences and readers in multiple editorial collections. The numerous awards and national and international recognition that Swortzell received are discussed extensively.;While intended as a biography of Swortzell and his contributions to those fields, unavoidably, some of the history of the Program in Educational Theatre at New York University is explored. This study suggests that despite its local focus at New York University, Swortzell's contributions and methods had a positive effect around the country and the rest of the world through his numerous students that have traveled extensively and been at the helm of many departments around the globe. |
