Photo by Mia Isabella Photography
Jillian Jetton is a director, maker, and curator of new performance. Raised in the Bay Area and based in New York by way of Philadelphia, her background spans scripted, devised and physical theater, video art, and experience design.
Most recently, Jetton directed the sold out run of my utopias by Jay Stull in the Exponential Festival. With support from HERE Arts and a NYSCA Commission, she is developing SEE/UNSEE by Lila Blue, a song cycle séance inspired by painter and mystic Hilma af Klint. This piece was previously shared at The Brick (PRISM Festival), in residence at Z Space, and developed in retreat at the Lake Lucille Project.
Jillian stewards and co-curates with Matthew Antoci SalOn!, a quarterly gathering of micro-acts founded by Theresa Buchheister in 2014 (@salonseriesbk). Previous collaborations include Brian Mertes, Pig Iron Theater Company, Team Sunshine Performance, and Headlong, among others. As an educator, Jillian has taught playmaking and playwriting to learners of all ages. MFA Sarah Lawrence College, BA Brown University, Mercury Store Directing Lab, Headlong Performance Institute.
Publications, Interviews, Etc.
MFA Thesis: Iterative Performance: Resistance & Opportunity in the Rhythm of Returns
“Devised Theater” Guest Artist Lecture, Introduction to Playwriting & Screenwriting, Berkeley City College
Miguel Gutierrez, Interviewed by Jillian Jetton & Andrew del Vecchio
Will Frears, Interviewed by Jillian Jetton and Michelle Cowles
Zach Morris, Interviewed by Jillian Jetton and Aliya Hunter
“The Deep Waves of Jillian Jetton,” Mira Treatman, thINKingDANCE
“Mieke D, Tony Moaton, and Jillian Jetton,” interviewed by Elena Aaroz in Innovations in Socially Distant Performance, Princeton University
“Young Jean Lee’s Cruel Dramaturgy,” Patricia Ybarra, Modern Drama, Vol. 57 (citation)