meet Jessica Harris!

Jessica Harris is an interdisciplinary theatre artist and director who seeks to uplift undertold stories and revitalize the human spirit.

Her work often examines the intersection of arts, education, and social justice. She is the Founder and Artistic Director of Empowered Players, a 501(c)3 arts education nonprofit in rural Virginia. Through EP, she directs and provides yearlong accessible arts programs for K-12 students, and her TEDx Talk titled “The Transformative Power of Theater in Rural Communities” highlights her work.

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Artistically, Jessica focuses primarily on new work and amplifying historically marginalized voices. Recent directing credits include Abiyoyo: A Story-Song Musical, King Hedley II (Jefferson School African American Heritage Center), El Mito or The Myth of My Pain (Purdue University), Always. Already. Enough: Flipping the Script on Mental Illness (Carysbrook Performing Arts Center), Into the Woods (Live Arts), The Black Monologues (The University of Virginia).

Select Associate and Assisting Directing credits include Beastgirl (Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts), In the Heights (Live Arts), Pride and Prejudice (Heritage Theatre Festival). 

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Jessica is also currently the board president for the Descendants of Enslaved Communities at UVA, and works to engage in equitable arts and community repair by serving as the Community Research Program Manager for the Equity Center. There, her work focuses on community-embedded projects and arts-focused research.

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She holds a Master’s in Educational Psychology from the University of Virginia where she also earned an Interdisciplinary B.A. Her work is situated at the intersection of community engagement, education, and arts and place-based praxis. She is an Associate Member of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society.