“Theater Organizations, Groups, and Meetings” consist of subject files for various professional organizations; theater groups, conventions, and festivals; and foundations with which Schneider was involved or had contact. Among these are foundations such as the Rockefeller, Ford, and Woodrow Wilson foundations; theater groups such as The Acting Company, the Juilliard School, and Theatre Communications Group; theaters such as the Alley Theatre, Catholic University Theatre, Goodman Theatre, and Guthrie Theatre; and professional organizations such as the Society of Stage Directors and Choreographers. Those groups or meetings which had only small files (usually a single letter or two) have been combined and placed in the files labeled “Miscellaneous Theaters and Organizations.”

The most extensive files are those relating to the Ithaca Festival Theatre, a project initially conceived as a cultural, educational, and recreational facility for all the performing arts (theater, music, dance, films, and the visual arts). The original concept of the Festival Theatre, which was located in Ithaca, New York -- home of Cornell University and Ithaca College -- was to provide a source of cultural opportunity when the university and college were not in session. Schneider served as the Artistic Director of the Festival Theatre for several of its planning years, although he ultimately resigned when constant delays postponed its opening and the concept of the theater's scope changed. Nevertheless, the files provide insights into many phases of the Theatre's planning and design and documents various fund-raising projects organized to solicit financial support from the local community, private foundations, and local and state governments, efforts to design a theater and grounds conducive to artistic expressions, and plans for the types of plays and repertory company needed to execute the Theatre's goals.

Also included are files relating to the Ford and Rockefeller foundations for which Schneider worked as a consultant. Included with the Rockefeller Foundation files are confidential memoranda from Schneider in which he forthrightly critiques the overall programs and performances of various theater groups and companies and makes recommendations regarding their grants. In addition to documenting Schneider's activities in the National Endowment for the Arts, these files also reveal the role of the federal government in assisting theater in America. Finally, a large file exists for the Arena Stage where Schneider directed many productions throughout his career and served as Associate Director.