Research Catalog

Title

Robert C. Schnitzer and Marcella Cisney papers, circa 1890-1989.

Author

Schnitzer, Robert C.

Supplementary Content

Finding Aid

Items in the Library & Off-site

Details

Additional Authors

• Cisney, Marcella
• Hayes, Helen, 1900-1993.
• Havoc, June
• Wilder, Thornton, 1897-1975.
• Flanagan, Hallie, 1890-1969.
• Robbins, Jerome
• Terkel, Studs, 1912-2008.
• Childress, Alice
• Geer, Will
• Rabb, Ellis, 1930-1998.
• Hall, Donald, 1868-1948.
• Nesbitt, Cathleen, 1888-1982.
• Cisney, Michael
• Abels, Moses J. S.
• Miller, Gilbert
• University of Michigan Professional Theatre Program
• ANTA (Organization)
• Theatre Guild
• Association of Producing Artists
• American Educational Theatre Association
• National Theatre Conference
• New School for Social Research (New York, N.Y.). Dramatic Workshop

Description

19.25 lf (43 boxes)

Summary

The Robert C. Schnitzer and Marcella Cisney papers document the career of this couple who, working individually and at times in collaboration, devoted their entire careers to the theater.

Subjects

• Scripts
• Theater > Production and direction
• Clippings
• Correspondence
• Programs
• Drama in education > United States
• College theater > United States
• Memorandums
• Television > Production and direction
• Theater > United States
• Papers
• Photographs
• Printed ephemera

Genre/Form

• Papers.
• Correspondence.
• Programs.
• Scripts.
• Photographs.
• Clippings.
• Memorandums.
• Printed ephemera.

Access (note)

• Collection is open to the public. Library policy on photography and photocopying will apply. Advance notice may be required.

Source (note)

• Schnitzer, Robert C.

Biography (note)

• Robert C. Schnitzer and Marcella Cisney were producers, actors, administrators and educators who individually, and sometimes in collaboration, spent their entire working lives in the theater.
• Marcella Cisney (1913-1989) was born in Pennsylvania, and trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. From 1946 to 1948 she was a faculty member and director at the Pasadena Playhouse. From there she went to the Warner Brothers studio, where she trained contract players, then to CBS-TV (1950-1954), where she directed a variety of early television programs. In 1961 she directed the Theatre Guild American Repertory Company production of THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH. In the 1960s Cisney worked with her husband, Robert C. Schnitzer, to develop the University of Michigan's Professional Theatre Program. They brought a number of visiting artists to the Ann Arbor campus, including the Association of Producing Artists, the American Conservatory Theatre, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, and the Phoenix Theatre. Cisney directed a number of productions as part of the New Plays Project, including AN EVENING'S FROST by Donald Hall, AMAZING GRACE by Studs Terkel, THE CASTLE by Ivan Klima, and THE CONJUROR by Evan Hunter. In later years, Cisney and Schnitzer moved to Connecticut, where Cisney organized seminars and staged play readings.

Processing Action (note)

• Cataloged

Call Number

*T-Mss 1999-028

OCLC

NYPW02-A274

Author

Schnitzer, Robert C.

Title

Robert C. Schnitzer and Marcella Cisney papers, circa 1890-1989.

Restricted Access

Collection is open to the public. Library policy on photography and photocopying will apply. Advance notice may be required.

Biography

Robert C. Schnitzer and Marcella Cisney were producers, actors, administrators and educators who individually, and sometimes in collaboration, spent their entire working lives in the theater. Robert C. Schnitzer was born in New York in 1906. As a young man he became involved in the Federal Theatre Project, eventually rising to the position of Deputy National Director. He also served as Drama instructor on the faculties of Vassar, Smith, Columbia and the University of Michigan. Over the years Schnitzer acted in a managerial capacity for a variety of producers and institutions, including Cheryl Crawford, Gilbert Miller, Erwin Piscator's Dramatic Workshop, the Kalamazoo Civic Theatre, and the Martha Graham Dance School. As general manager for the international exchange program of ANTA (American National Theatre and Academy) during the 1950s, Schnitzer was responsible for sending over one hundred artists overseas. In 1961 he managed the European and South American tours of the Theatre Guild American Repertory Company. Starting in the 1960s, Schnitzer worked on the development of the University of Michigan's Professional Theatre program in collaboration with his wife, Marcella Cisney, whom he had married in 1953. The couple later moved to Connecticut, where they worked with the Westport Weston Arts Council.

Marcella Cisney (1913-1989) was born in Pennsylvania, and trained at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts. From 1946 to 1948 she was a faculty member and director at the Pasadena Playhouse. From there she went to the Warner Brothers studio, where she trained contract players, then to CBS-TV (1950-1954), where she directed a variety of early television programs. In 1961 she directed the Theatre Guild American Repertory Company production of THE SKIN OF OUR TEETH. In the 1960s Cisney worked with her husband, Robert C. Schnitzer, to develop the University of Michigan's Professional Theatre Program. They brought a number of visiting artists to the Ann Arbor campus, including the Association of Producing Artists, the American Conservatory Theatre, the Stratford Shakespeare Festival, and the Phoenix Theatre. Cisney directed a number of productions as part of the New Plays Project, including AN EVENING'S FROST by Donald Hall, AMAZING GRACE by Studs Terkel, THE CASTLE by Ivan Klima, and THE CONJUROR by Evan Hunter. In later years, Cisney and Schnitzer moved to Connecticut, where Cisney organized seminars and staged play readings.

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Finding Aid

Added Author

Cisney, Marcella.

Hayes, Helen, 1900-1993.

Havoc, June.

Wilder, Thornton, 1897-1975.

Flanagan, Hallie, 1890-1969.

Robbins, Jerome.

Terkel, Studs, 1912-2008.

Childress, Alice.

Geer, Will.

Rabb, Ellis, 1930-1998.

Hall, Donald, 1868-1948.

Nesbitt, Cathleen, 1888-1982.

Cisney, Michael.

Abels, Moses J. S.

Miller, Gilbert.

University of Michigan Professional Theatre Program.

ANTA (Organization)

Theatre Guild.

Association of Producing Artists.

American Educational Theatre Association.

National Theatre Conference.

New School for Social Research (New York, N.Y.). Dramatic Workshop.

Research Call Number

*T-Mss 1999-028