Jessica Norman
ma nishtana
Question: Why is tonight different from all other nights? Answer: Usually I would do anything to avoid this holiday: roll my eyes And let...
JESSICA NORMAN
Writer & Creative Producer
WRITING
Award-winning writer for stage and screen. Currently: Hampstead Theatre INSPIRE programme & alumni of Soho Theatre Writers' Lab
For Stage
This Little Earth
Arcola Theatre, 2019
Long-listed for the Women's Prize for Playwriting 2021
In development supported by Arts Council England.
Wilding
Long-listed for The Women's Prize for Playwriting 2020 & shortlisted for the 2019 Papatango Award
Unremembered
Hampstead Theatre, In development as part of INSPIRE Writers Programme 2022
For Screen
Lockdown Lives Shorts, dir. Ben Caplan, 2020
Winner, Best Isolation Short, LA Motion Picture Festival 2020
Kick It Down Productions, 2020
TV Pilots Unremembered and Office Bitch
PRODUCING
I have nine years' experience as a creative producer, making innovative new work & consulting for the UK's leading theatres and production companies across live & digital formats.
Recent clients include: UK Antarctic Heritage Trust, Lewisham Borough of Culture 2022, Complicité Theatre Company.
I was Creative Development Associate at The Old Vic where I developed new work for the theatre, including: the One Voice monologue series, working closely with artists including Russell Brand, Maxine Peake, Lolita Chakrabarti and Adrian Lester; and the Voices Off talks programme.
Previously, I worked at Sonia Friedman Productions on over ten musicals and plays in under two years, including the development of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
Out of gallery
DRAMATURGY & SCRIPT READING
I'm also dramaturg and script-reader for theatre.
As well as four years' experience establishing and running The Old Vic's literary department, I've delivered dramaturgy and literary support to The Donmar Warehouse, Stage Entertainment, Chichester Festival Theatre, The RSC and The Bush.
Freelance projects include the Olivier-nominated The Phlebotomist by Ella Road (Hampstead Theatre) and, while at Sonia Friedman Productions, I supported the development of Harry Potter and the Cursed Child.
I offer a tailored service and competitive pricing to writers looking to develop their work. This could be a one-off read, or more sustained dramaturgical support.
TESTIMONIALS
What They’re Saying
Jessie is absolutely brilliant. Incredibly supportive and insightful. I couldn't recommend working with her enough.
Charlie Fink
Jessie is a patient and supportive dramaturg, great at giving creative and pragmatic notes.
Matilda Ibini
Jessie is lovely and whip-smart. Her generous dramaturgy will help you fulfil your vision for even the most challenging play.
Tom Wright
CONTACT
If you have a project or just want to connect please get in touch!
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Jessica Norman
when they came to cut the trees down.
I. When they came to cut the trees down They brought dogs to keep us in line. II. We stood behind fences And watched the trees bleed...
Jessica Norman
songs from Lesvos
In a camp by an olive grove You sit with guitars Under canvas and stars At the place where hope and pain meet Where men, Who may not be...
Jessica Norman
to silence.
We leave space for grief, between sips of wine; Emptiness we would have filled before Filled to the brim to pass the passing time Is...
Jessica Norman
The Worth of a Life
What is a life worth? What is the worth of a life? Why is hers worth less And his worth more Than mine and yours? Why do some Stand proud...
Jessica Norman
Time to Stand and Stare
I made a friend today as I stood and stared by the riverside stock still, one meter tall, not half as wide, without a care he stood my...
Jessica Norman
she leaves in the night.
She leaves in the night With a passport and an empty suitcase. She walks for hours: And as the dawn rises, the city grows to meet it,...
Jessica Norman
Demons
When the demons come Do not fight them You will only lose Welcome them in: Invite them for a cup of tea Ask them to hang Their fangs up...
Jessica Norman
Sylvia, Assia.
A dance in life A dance in death: six years apart They share one heart And a gas oven. Assia: his mistress While Sylvia was alive; Sylvia...
Jessica Norman
One Hundred Self Portraits
Rembrandt painted close to One hundred self-portraits In pencil and ink and oils and chalk - Brow etched with lines And glazed eyes That...
Jessica Norman
Time
Another year old and not wise Wishing to grow younger with age as I watch time run past outside the window. Autumn overstayed its welcome...
Jessica Norman
Library
Do not think That you can read me - Curl up with me and bend My pages back To keep your place. That’s not your right to do - I am not...
Jessica Norman
A Scattering
We scattered you Under the fig tree So we could feel your touch On the wind And bite into your fleshy fruit. Some of you we threw Into...
Jessica Norman
Wild Words
The smash whack of a wealding glint, Merged at the rush of a roar or a bark, The hum beat seethes and flaps As we dip at the break...
Jessica Norman
A Poem for a Dark Day
Sitting in a forest (My mind buzz buzzing With petty squabbles And slights and indecisions And the vastness of inequality And What I’m...