Carrie Gilchrist (Artistic Director/ Program Director/Co-Founder Lovewell Theatre Project) Year round, Carrie serves as the Artistic Director of Lovewell Institute. She has directed over 30 Lovewell productions and has helped to pioneer programs in Chicago; L.A.; New York; Ft. Lauderdale, Miami, Boca Raton, Key West and Marathon, Florida; Carrolton and Dayton, Ohio; Las Vegas; Salina and Kansas City, Kansas; Lomma, Oskarshamn, Stockholm and Linköping, Sweden and St. Petersburg, Russia. After receiving her BFA, with honors, in musical theatre from Webster Conservatory in St.Louis, Miss Gilchrist headed to Chicago to pursue an acting, directing and teaching career. She served as the company manager for Deeply Rooted Dance Chicago and for Scrap Mettle Soul Community Performance, directed new works at The Theatre Building Chicago and for the 24-hour Project and created a pilot creative arts program in the urban heart of the Chicago Public School systems. Carrie is the recipient of the Swedish Women’s Educational Association Scholarship for her work with the Swedish American relations in the arts. In 2010, she was the producer of the first Lovewell Songbook CD recorded with various Lovewell artists and Broadway talent and, also published the book that accompanies the CD. She is a founding member of the Lovewell Theatre Project, a professional theatre company formed with Lovewell trained artists, and has co-written 3 full productions with the company. Most recently, Carrie produced and directed the first fully produced LTP show, Let There Be Balloons, funded by the FAB! Grant. carrie@lovewell.org
DAVID SPANGLER , Ph.D. (Founding Artistic Director) is currently Program Administrator and Artistic Director of Nova Southeastern University’ s Interdisciplinary Arts Master’ s Program. Dr. Spangler graduated from Carnegie-Mellon University with post-graduate work at the University of Pittsburgh and Kansas State University and received his Ph.D. from Union Institute & University. He has worked professionally in theatre, film, and television as a director, writer, composer, and performer. His Broadway credits include The Magic Show, Seesaw, and Elizabeth I. He has also written and produced 35 songs for the Emmy Award winning Romper Room & Friends (9 CBS/Fox videos achieving “ Gold” status). Dr. Spangler is the founder and artistic director of Lovewell Institute for the Creative Arts. As an interdisciplinary arts administrator and consultant, he has served in various capacities with the Miami City Ballet, Walt Disney World Entertainment, the Theatre League of South Florida, the Arts Advisory Committee for the Broward Public Schools, and was appointed by the Florida Secretary of State to serve as a grant panelist and evaluator for the State Division of Cultural Affairs. He is the recent recipient of the Joseph Levitt Award for Contributions to the Arts. david@lovewell.org