Born in Frederick, Maryland, I lived in Washington, D.C., from the ages of 3-18. The impact of growing up in the nation’s capital cannot be understated, with ample exposure to diversity instrumental in creating the woman and artist I am today. When I chose to pursue a career in theatre, I decided to move to Chicago, Illinois, because of the art the city amplifies: fresh, risk-taking storytelling, presenting bold choices from a wide range of voices.
My years in D.C. and Chicago continue to inform my perspective, and serve as a reminder that art is an opportunity to share what affects me, and us, everyday: labor, media, climate change, and relationships with each other and ourselves.
In 2022, I studied abroad as a drama student at the University of Greenwich, focusing my studies on documentary theatre and intercultural theatre. The next year, I graduated from Columbia College Chicago with an acting B.F.A. and a minor in playwriting.
Since my return from London, I have worked a variety of front of house associate and managerial positions across the city of Chicago—at the Chicago Children’s Theatre, Definition Theatre, the Chicago Shakespeare Theater, the Den Theatre, and the Studebaker Theatre at the Fine Arts Building. These positions have allowed me to continue my studies long after leaving school, and I appreciate being in atmospheres cultivated and informed by creatives.
An important aspect of my practice is frequent exposure to new works, including sharing my own. I have found a home for this at the Chicago Dramatists, where I am a network playwright, as well as through my involvement as a performer in Chicago’s fringe theatre scene.
Last spring, I created a comic collective called Living Ink!!, a bi-annual publication featuring comic strips and panels from artists across the country. I find comics to be an invaluable exploration of perspective and storytelling.
My current projects include developing a children’s book about food chains titled worm & fly, and working towards producing my full-length play Red Glare. Volume 4 of Living Ink!! will be released this fall, around the same time of the premiere of Thanks for Nothing, an original musical part of Rhinofest 2026, where I am playing Jack.
J. Ravenscroft 