MARY ETHEL SCHMIDT received her MFA from Mason Gross School of the Arts, Rutgers University, where she was the recipient of the Levin Scholarship for three years. In New York City she studied at the Classic Stage Company, was a founding member of the Metropolitan Playhouse and worked at the Director’s Company, where she received a Revson Fellowship to study directing and then continued on as Associate Artistic Director. She is currently a member of the Associate Faculty at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts, where she has taught acting and has directed over 50 productions. She has acted in and directed numerous productions in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. An accomplished playwright, her plays have been performed in New York City, Seattle, and Kansas City. Internationally she has studied at the National theatre, directed the Swedish Premiere of Nicky Silver’s Raised in Captivity and performed The Belle of Amherst and Wenceslas Square in Vilnius, Lithuania. She is a member of Actors Equity Association and The Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers.