Winifred Ward

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Winifred Ward was a professor at Northwestern University most notable for having done significant work in the field of children's theatre and pioneering the idea of creative dramatics. She first got her interest in theatre while living in Washington, D.C.

[edit] Children's theatre

She began the program when she instructed her speech students to perform Snow White for Evanston Elementary school in Evanston, Illinois. The play was first performed in 1925 and was hugely popular among the students. After this, she directed the Children's Theatre of Evanston for 25 years, which was a collaborative project between Northwestern College and Evanston Elementary Schools. In 1944, she founded the National Children's Theatre Conference.

[edit] Creative Drama

Creative Drama is a classroom teaching method that places a heavy emphasis on self-expression, literature appreciation, and proficiency in spoken English. It is noted for having a complete lack of scripts. In her own words, "instead of memorizing set speeches and acting parts in the way the teacher directs, the children develop plays out of their own thoughts and imaginations and emotions". When Winifred Ward first started working with Creative Drama, she used the phrase Creative Dramatics which is now less often used.