James Shearwood
Theatre Group Coordinating Director
James Shearwood was a member of the Theatre Faculty of Sarah Lawrence College for 18 years. Previously he was the Director of the Theatre Program at Manhattanville College and on the Faculty of the New School for Social Research in NYC. He was a founding Artist-Coordinator of the ground-breaking Project CREATE in Connecticut and developed arts-in-education workshops for the Department of Education in Puerto Rico.
He received a B.A. from Amherst College; was an MCA Fellow at Smith College, where he received an M.A., and took further study at the University of Paris.
As a writer, he has had plays produced at the Ensemble Studio Theatre in NYC, the Yale Cabaret in New Haven, The American Center in Paris and at Tulane University, Amherst College, Smith College and Howard University. He has created original material for multiple productions at Sarah Lawrence and Manhattanville Colleges.
As an actor, he worked in NYC at the New Federal Theatre, Amas Rep, Women's Interart, NY Stageworks, Ensemble Studio Theatre and Playwrights Horizons. He was a member of the improvisational NY Team for Theatresports for two years and studied with Uta Hagen, Herbert Berghof, William Hickey and Wynn Handman.
As a Theatre Director, he has mounted original productions at the Fleetwood Stage in New Rochelle and a wide range of classics at Sarah Lawrence and Manhattanville Colleges.
At Arts on the Lake he has inaugurated the modern vaudeville of Open Mouth, recreated the lives of Kent residents in Kent Stories, produced Library Stories to celebrate the KPL's 50th anniversary and, from time to time, created and performed The Further Adventures of Ralph.