Jane Lowry (February 11, 1937 November 15, 2019) was an American actress primarily known for her theater work on

Broadway Broadway may refer to: Theatre * Broadway Theatre (disambiguation) * Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S. ** Broadway (Manhattan), the street **Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...

and regional theater, as well as her singular leading role in

Alfred Sole Alfred Sole (July 2, 1943 – February 14, 2022) was an American production designer, film director, producer, and writer best known for directing such films as ''Alice, Sweet Alice'' (1976) and '' Pandemonium'' (1982). Prior to beginning his car ...

's horror film ''

Alice, Sweet Alice ''Alice, Sweet Alice'' (originally titled ''Communion'') is a 1976 American psychological slasher film co-written and directed by Alfred Sole, and starring Linda Miller, Paula Sheppard, and Brooke Shields in her film debut. Set in 1961 New Jers ...

'' (1976). A native of Minnesota, Lowry studied theater at

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

under

Alvina Krause Alvina Krause (January 28, 1893 – December 31, 1981) was an American drama teacher at Northwestern University, theatrical entrepreneur, "maker of stars", and director. Her students called her AK. Her first name is pronounced Al-vine-na P ...

. She began her career in experimental

off-off-Broadway Off-off-Broadway theaters are smaller New York City theaters than Broadway and off-Broadway theaters, and usually have fewer than 100 seats. The off-off-Broadway movement began in 1958 as part of a response to perceived commercialism of the prof ...

theater, appearing in numerous

Joe Cino Joseph Cino (November 16, 1931 – April 2, 1967), was an Italian-American theatre producer. The Off-Off-Broadway theatre movement is generally credited to have begun at Cino's Caffe Cino in the West Village of Manhattan. Caffe Cino and off-off ...

-produced plays at New York City's

Caffe Cino Caffe Cino was an Off-Off-Broadway theater founded in 1958 by Joe Cino. The West Village coffeehouse, located at 31 Cornelia Street, was initially conceived as a venue for poetry, folk music, and visual art exhibitions. The plays produced at th ...

. She later landed roles on Broadway in ''Poor Bitos'' in 1964, and as the

understudy In theater, an understudy, referred to in opera as cover or covering, is a performer who learns the lines and blocking or choreography of a regular actor, actress, or other performer in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to ap ...

in the role of Julia in

Tennessee Williams Thomas Lanier Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983), known by his pen name Tennessee Williams, was an American playwright and screenwriter. Along with contemporaries Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller, he is considered among the thre ...

's '' A Delicate Balance'', staged at the

Martin Beck Theatre The Al Hirschfeld Theatre, originally the Martin Beck Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 302 West 45th Street in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. Opened in 1924, it was designed by G. Albert Lansburgh in a Moorish and ...

in 1966. In the 1970s, she starred in several productions for the

Circle Repertory Company The Circle Repertory Company, originally named the Circle Theater Company, was a theatre company in New York City that ran from 1969 to 1996. It was founded on July 14, 1969, in Manhattan, in a second floor loft at Broadway and 83rd Street by direc ...

, and made her feature debut as Annie DeLorenze in ''Alice, Sweet Alice'' (1976). In 1981, she appeared in the

ABC Afterschool Special ''ABC Afterschool Special'' is an American television anthology series that aired on American Broadcasting Company, ABC from October 4, 1972, to January 23, 1997, usually in the late afternoon on weekdays. Most episodes were dramatically presen ...

'' My Mother Was Never a Kid'' opposite

Holland Taylor Holland Virginia Taylor (born January 14, 1943) is an American actress. She won the 1999 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Judge Roberta Kittleson on ABC's ''The Practice'' (1998–2003). F ...

Biography

Early life

Lowry was born in

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

, Minnesota on February 11, 1937 and raised in

Wayzata Wayzata ( ) is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. A western suburb of the Twin Cities, Wayzata is situated along the northern shore of Lake Minnetonka about west of Minneapolis. Known for its small-town character and lakeside lo ...

. Her father, Goodrich Lowry, was a banking executive and the son of

Thomas Lowry Thomas Lowry (February 27, 1843 – February 4, 1909) was an American lawyer, real-estate magnate, and businessman who oversaw much of the early growth of the streetcar lines in the Twin Cities area of Minneapolis, St. Paul, and surrounding com ...

, founder of the

Twin City Rapid Transit Company The Twin City Rapid Transit Company (TCRT), also known as Twin City Lines (TCL), was a transportation company that operated streetcars and buses in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metropolitan area in the U.S. state of Minnesota. Other types of transp ...

. She attended the

Northrop Collegiate School The Blake School is a private, coeducational, nonsectarian PK12 college preparatory day school, established in 1900. Blake is located on three campuses around the Twin Cities area of Minnesota: the upper school (9–12) is in Minneapolis; administ ...

in Minneapolis before completing her high school education at Miss Hall's School, a boarding school in

Pittsfield, Massachusetts Pittsfield is the largest city and the county seat of Berkshire County, Massachusetts, United States. It is the principal city of the Pittsfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area which encompasses all of Berkshire County. Pittsfield� ...

. Lowry graduated with a degree in theater from

, studying under

. While at Northwestern, she appeared in a production of ''Cherry Orchard'', directed by Krause.

Career

Lowry began her theater career in New York appearing in

stage productions at

for theater producer

, and quickly became a favorite of his. She appeared in ''And He Made Her'', a Biblical-themed play, as

Eve Eve (; ; ar, حَوَّاء, Ḥawwāʾ; el, Εὕα, Heúa; la, Eva, Heva; Syriac: romanized: ) is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the origin story, "Creation myths are symbolic stories describing how the ...

in 1961, which was staged at the

Cherry Lane Theatre The Cherry Lane Theatre is the oldest continuously running off-Broadway theater in New York City. The theater is located at 38 Commerce Street between Barrow and Bedford Streets in the West Village neighborhood of Greenwich Village, Manhattan, N ...

. She next starred in the Caffe Cino's ''Babel, Babel, Little Tower'' in June 1961, portraying a waitress, followed by a role as a dancer in ''Now She Dances!'' (also 1961), the latter directed by

Doric Wilson Doric Wilson (February 24, 1939May 7, 2011) was an American playwright, director, producer, critic and gay rights activist. He was born Alan Doric Wilson in Los Angeles, California, where his family was temporarily located. Originally from the ...

. In 1963, she starred in a Michael Kahn-directed production of ''War'', opposite Jerome Dempsey and

Gerome Ragni Gerome Ragni (born Jerome Bernard Ragni; September 11, 1935 – July 10, 1991) was an American actor, singer, and songwriter, best known as one of the stars and co-writers of the 1967 musical '' Hair: The American Tribal Love-Rock Musical''. On Jun ...

. The following year, she starred in a

production of ''Poor Bitos'' at the

Cort Theatre The James Earl Jones Theatre, originally the Cort Theatre, is a Broadway theater at 138 West 48th Street, between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States. It was built in ...

. In 1969, she starred as Olga in a

production

Anton Chekhov Anton Pavlovich Chekhov (; 29 January 1860 Old Style date 17 January. – 15 July 1904 Old Style date 2 July.) was a Russian playwright and short-story writer who is considered to be one of the greatest writers of all time. His career ...

's '' Three Sisters'', directed by

Marshall W. Mason Marshall W. Mason (born February 24, 1940) is an American theater director, educator, and writer. Mason founded the Circle Repertory Company in New York City and was artistic director of the company for 18 years (1969–1987). He received an Obie ...

, followed by the Circle Repertory's ''A Practical Ritual'' (1970), in which she co-starred with

Spalding Gray Spalding Gray (June 5, 1941 – January 11, 2004) was an American actor, novelist, playwright, screenwriter and performance artist. He is best known for the autobiographical monologues that he wrote and performed for the theater in the 1980s and ...

. She made her feature film debut with an unknown role in '' Believe in Me'' (1971), originally titled ''Speed is of Essence''. She subsequently had a major supporting role as the aunt of a child suspected in the murder of her sister in ''

'' (1976). Appearing in ''Cracks'' at the

Theatre de Lys The Lucille Lortel Theatre is an off-Broadway playhouse at 121 Christopher Street in Manhattan's West Village. It was built in 1926 as a 590-seat movie theater called the New Hudson, later known as Hudson Playhouse. The interior is largely unch ...

in 1976, Emory Lewis of the Hackensack ''Record'' positively compared Lowry to

Eve Arden Eve Arden (born Eunice Mary Quedens, April 30, 1908 – November 12, 1990) was an American film, radio, stage and television actress. She performed in leading and supporting roles for nearly six decades. Beginning her film career in 1929 ...

, an actress she was often compared to as they bore similar features. In 1979, Lowry starred as Miss Sophie Gluck in a

Hudson Theatre The Hudson Theatre is a Broadway theater at 139–141 West 44th Street, between Seventh Avenue and Sixth Avenue, in the Theater District of Midtown Manhattan in New York City. One of the oldest surviving Broadway venues, the Hudson was built ...

production of

's '' A Lovely Sunday for Creve Coeur''. In 1981, Lowry co-starred with

in the

'' My Mother Was Never a Kid''.

Death

Lowry died in New York City on November 15, 2019, following a brief illness.

Filmography

Select stage credits

References

Sources

* * * * * * *

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lowry, Jane Actresses from Minneapolis American film actresses American stage actresses Northwestern University alumni