Jessica Anne Nelson

Artistic Collaborator / Intimacy Coach

Jessica is an award-winning theatre director, creator, producer, and intimacy director, living and working on the stolen, occupied, and traditional homelands of the Coast Salish peoples; the xwməθkwəyə (Musqueam), Sḵwx̱ wú7mesh (Squamish), ̓Səlílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), q̓ ic̓ əy̓ (Katzie), q̓ wɑ:n̓ ƛən̓ (Kwantlen), and Semiahma (Semiahmoo) Nations.

Jessica sets the bar for creating respectful, caring, and imaginative spaces for artists to play and explore in her gripping and provocative productions. Her intimacy direction centers on the principles of creating consent-based and trauma-informed work and has trained with the National Society of Intimacy Professionals (Canada) and Theatrical Intimacy Education (USA). With her MFA in Directing (UBC), and many years of experience in devising creation-based techniques and community collaborations, her work focuses on stories that shine a light on stereotypically negative or dark characters and stories, while also striving for social change. Jessica has had the privilege to work in disability theatre as a director, producer and collaborator since 2019 with the Canadian Institute for Inclusion and Citizenship and Community Living Society in New Westminster; creating two original productions with a group of self advocates – Romance, Relationships & Rights (2019), and We Deserve to Work (2022–2023).

Jessica is praised as being one of the most kind- and open-hearted directors’ actors have had the pleasure to work with. Her passionate and supportive nature enables her artists to succeed, whatever is being asked of them. She has been honoured with the Sydney J. Risk Award in Directing, Yvonne Firkins Prize, John Brockington Scholarship in Theatre (UBC) and was an inaugural recipient of the Bill Millerd Artist Fund (Arts Club Theatre). Some of her recent productions include Gracie (Excavation Theatre & Fay Theatre, Director, 2024), What a Young Wife Ought to Know (Excavation Theatre, Director, 2023), Under the Needle (Stone’s Throw Productions, Director, 2023), Forgiveness (Arts Club Theatre Company and Theatre Calgary, Intimacy Director, 2022), and In Camera (Realwheels Theatre, Intimacy Director, 2022).

Reach Jessica at www.jessicaannenelson.com to learn more.