Suzan Zeder Papers

The Suzan Zeder Papers are comprised of script drafts and development materials, photographs and slides, production materials, writer's notebooks, syllabi and workshop materials, correspondence, hand- and typewritten notes, newspaper and periodical articles, conference ephemera, National Endowment for the Arts site visit materials, and audiovisual media. The collection documents Suzan Zeder's professional contributions as a prolific playwright, including her work as the author of Spaces of Creation, as well as her career as a university faculty member and administrator. Materials reflect her teaching, mentorship, and leadership as department chair at the University of Texas at Austin and provide insight into her artistic, pedagogical, and institutional impact.

Series I: Professional History documents Zeder's education and scholarly work through unpublished speeches; newspaper and periodical articles; personal and professional correspondence; board minutes; award certificates; and conference programs, notes, and registration packets. Sub-Series A: Education documents Zeder's educational journey from elementary school through her doctoral studies. The materials are arranged chronologically and provide insight into Zeder's early creative development, academic training, and the formative experiences that shaped her career as a playwright and Theatre in Education (TIE) advocate. Materials documenting Zeder's Fulbright Scholarship to England, which funded her study abroad with Theatre in Education companies between 1972 and 1973, are of particular note.

Sub-Series B: Articles and Speeches documents Zeder's professional writing, public speaking engagements, and media coverage of her work from approximately 1977 to 2015. It also includes keynote presentations at numerous conferences and institutions. Sub-Series C: Awards documents honors conferred upon Zeder by such organizations as the Children's Theatre Foundation of America, the Children's Theatre Association of America, Florida State University, the University of Texas at Austin, and Southern Methodist University. Sub-Series D: Writings about Zeder includes scholarly publications, newspaper articles, and interviews. Sub-Series E: National Endowment for the Arts documents Zeder's work with the NEA and her response to the NEA controversy on censorship through newspaper articles, correspondence, speeches, board minutes, and evaluation manuals. Play evaluations, on site theatre evaluations, and research materials on theatres evaluated are also of note.

Series II: Educator documents Zeder's work as a university faculty member and workshop instructor as well as the conferences she attended and her membership in ASSITEJ. The files include research, class and workshop notes, and course syllabi and are arranged chronologically from 1977 to 2012. They show Zeder's work as Director of the Developmental Drama Program at Florida State University (1975-1977); Director of the Child Drama Program, Washington State University (1977-1982); Director of Playwriting, University of Dallas (1985-1985); and Adjunct, Southern Methodist University (1982-1989).

Sub-Series A: Conferences, Residencies, and Workshops houses lesson plans, handwritten notes, syllabi, handouts, student work, student evaluations, class assignments, and workshop proposals documenting various educational workshops and conferences that Zeder attended as well as her membership on various committees, panels, and national and state boards. Of particular note is Zeder's The Inner Source for Out-Write Expression workshop, which influenced her later book Spaces of Creation.

Sub-Series B: University of Washington documents Zeder's early teaching career as Director of the Child Drama Program and Assistant Professor at the University of Washington (1977-1982). Sub-Series C: Classes Taught: University of Texas at Austin includes handwritten lecture notes, class schedules, syllabi, handouts, research articles, play excerpts, guest lecture notes, and playwriting exercises documenting Zeder's Myth, Legend, Tale (DRM 375J, TD 351T/DRM 383P) and Playwriting for Youth (DRM 387R) as well as related courses like Languages of the Stage (TD 311) and Advanced Playwriting Workshop (DRM 360K, DRM 390, DRM 387P). Sub-Series D: University of Texas at Austin, Theatre Department history documents Zeder's leadership and institutional contributions to the University of Texas at Austin Department of Theatre, where she served as department chair and as the first endowed Theatre for Youth Chair. Materials include endowment reports, grant applications, and administrative records. This sub-series also documents the development of the Cohen New American Playwriting Series, a major initiative conceived and led by Zeder to support new play development and elevate contemporary voices within the university and broader theatrical community, and Zeder's work with The Macbeth Project.

Sub-Series E: Theses Supervised documents the graduate MFA theses Zeder supervised during her tenure at the University of Texas at Austin. The materials reflect her extensive mentorship of MFA graduate students in theatre and playwriting and include theses and project documentation completed under her supervision. Sub-Series F: Correspondence contains materials related to the publication and dissemination of Susan Zeder's plays, documenting her professional relationships with publishers, editors, and literary representatives. Her correspondence with Anchorage Press, Orlin Corey, Moses Goldberg, and Sara Spencer is of particular interest. Sub-Series G: Dramaturg includes materials documenting Zeder's work as dramaturg for Wolf Child, The Yellow Boat, and Tomato Plant Girl.

Series III: Works Authored by Zeder forms the bulk of the collection and is composed of handwritten and typewritten manuscripts, annotated scripts, production-related materials, and associated correspondence documenting the development, revision, and dissemination of Zeder's authored works across multiple stages and forms. Sub-Series A: Writer's Notebooks houses private journals that Zeder authored during the playwriting process. These notebooks may not be photocopied. Plays included are Doors, Spa!, Mother Hicks, The Play Called Noah's Flood, Because You Never Asked Me, In a Room Somewhere, The Milk Dragon, Time Again in Oz, The Death and Life of Sherlock Holmes, Do Not Go Gentle, Tuc's Play (The Taste of Sunrise), Spaces of Creation, and The Edge of Peace.

Sub-Series B: Plays Written by Zeder includes drafts, correspondence, revisions, original production materials, programs, photographs, and AV materials documenting the writing and development of Wiley and the Hairy Man, Step on a Crack (1976), Something with Jamie in the Title (1975-1976), Doors (1980), Ozma of Oz — A Tale of Time (1981), Spa! (1982), Because You Never Asked Me (1984), Mother Hicks (1984), Noah's Flood (1985), The Miser (1986), The Death and Life of Sherlock Holmes (1986), In a Room Somewhere (1988), Do Not Go Gentle (1991), Ellen Foster, The Taste of Sunrise (1995), The Edge of Peace (2014), Time Again in Oz, and When She Had Wings (Aviatrix). Of particular note are the drafts, notes, and materials related to staged and public readings documenting the long-term development, revision, and production history of The Milk Dragon. This play evolved from a play to children's book over several decades beginning in the late 1960s during Zeder's undergraduate studies at Bennett College and ending in the early 1980s with its conceptual development during her tenure at the National Endowment for the Arts. Sub-Series C: Spaces of Creation documents both the writing of this book as well as the workshops taught by Zeder that led to its creation.

Series IV: Personal Correspondence houses greeting cards, letters, photographs, and enclosures that document Zeder's personal relationships, professional friendships, and moments of recognition and support across her life and work.