in other’s words…
“Joanie Schultz, the director of Frida…a self portrait, who has the compassion to sit with a writer, ask questions until they have maneuvered themselves out of the pinball machine mindset and back to a place of reverence. She is an artist who thrives in the abundance of others, and celebrates the truth of their experience” -writer/performer Vanessa Severo in Dramatists Magazine, 2021.
“I've never worked with a director who's been such a collaborator. She said on one of the first days, 'Whatever the best idea is in the room goes.' She's remarkably intelligent, but it's that rare, beautiful scenario where it is not coupled with an ego." -actor Liam Forde in Metroweekly, 2016.
“Schultz accomplished some of the most daring programming in WaterTower's history. She championed writers, directors and artists from under-represented communities and demographics. The 2018/19which opened with Schultz's adaptation of Ibsen's A Doll's House, had women directors for all of its shows—which may have been the first time that a local professional theater with a full roster of shows programmed a season to be completely women-directed.” -Mark Lowry in theaterjones.com, 2018.
Hi. I’m Joanie Schultz, my pronouns are she/her/hers.
My core values are authenticity/curiosity/collaboration.
I was raised by psychic hippies in Colorado and was taught that magic is real and that utopia is possible. These values have found their way into all of my work; my productions are full of mythic possibilities and hope, and my rooms are inclusive, collaborative, and invite a diversity of viewpoints to create a collective genius. I have a generous spirit and quiet confidence that encourages those I work with to bring out their best, and a discerning eye to distill that into a unified production.
From the first company I created out of college that focused on having a diverse collective of artists, my aim continues to be uniting artists from different points of view, cultures, and aesthetics to create something that is larger than all of us. Be it a re-envisioned classic, world premiere, or contemporary play, I strive to create a work that will uniquely impact our audience by speaking truthfully to our contemporary moment. By simultaneously distilling and amplifying the world, I believe theatre has the potential to create deep empathetic experiences for people in an era gravely in need of human connection.
I believe it is our responsibility as theater artists to tell stories, use forms, and create rehearsal rooms that challenge white supremacist, patriarchal, heteronormative, cisgendered, ableist culture in our work. We connect people through storytelling, and it is in our power to create a more empathetic world by bringing people together through our differences.
There is so much possibility in theater, the platform of the stage can help us reframe and re-see the world, to connect ourselves to what might be invisible in our daily lives. As a queer woman who grew up in a counter-culture home, I have found myself drawn to stories of people who are “othered,” the outsiders, the weirdos, the people who don’t fit in or are invisible to the mainstream. Much of my work as a director focuses on the unspoken, repressed, and forgotten: not only those outcasts (who are often our reminders,) but also the part of a person’s psyche or heart that has been cast aside, the consequences of an action that might not be apparent, or just a part of life that isn't usually discussed. By shining a light in dark places, we use the theatre to remember, rediscover, and realize.
We live in a world where we are inundated with information and entertainment in which it is easy to forget and overlook people, things, feelings, and possibilities. The theatre is a rare opportunity to unplug and share space with other live human beings in a room, breathing the same air, and focusing on the same moment. This is not only special, this is necessary. Without art to refocus us and call attention to the forgotten we might never remember. Things will be lost. People will be lost. And we won't know why.
I hope that people leave my productions with questions that stick with them. I hope they leave having discussions with other human beings and with themselves. I hope that they are inspired to think about or interact with the world a little bit differently. I hope they leave with hope.
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JOANIE SCHULTZ is a teacher, arts leader, and director of theatre and opera. She calls home Chicago, but makes homes wherever she is.
Joanie currently serves as Associate Artistic Director of Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park.
Joanie’s work includes directing for The Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf Theatre, Victory Gardens Theater, The Cleveland Play House, Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Studio Theatre in Washington DC, and at least 30 other theatre and opera companies throughout Chicago and the US.
Directing at Everyman Theatre, 2023.
Select notable work has included directing the smash hit and long-extended immersive production of Hand to God (Studio Theatre & WaterTower Theatre); her own new adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s A Doll’s House (WaterTower Theatre); the visually stunning world premiere of Frida…A Self Portrait (Kansas City Repertory Theatre, Portland Center Stage); the critically lauded The Whale and Rest by Samuel D. Hunter (Victory Gardens Theater); the Jeff Award winning productions of In Arabia We’d All be Kings and The Brief History of Helen of Troy (Steep Theatre); site-specific performances of the operas Acis and Galatea (Chicago Cultural Center) and Bluebeard’s Castle (New Millennium Orchestra); and co-creating and directing a 6-hour theatrical adaptation of Wagner’s Ring Cycle (The Building Stage).
In 2017 & 2018, Joanie served as Artistic Director of WaterTower Theatre in Dallas-Fort Worth, where she oversaw two years of diverse, exciting, and award-winning work. In 2014-16, Joanie served as Associate Artistic Producer at Victory Gardens Theater, as part of the Leadership U One-on-One Fellowship funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and administered by TCG.
Joanie holds an MFA in directing from Northwestern University and a BA in directing from Columbia College Chicago. She was a Drama League Fellow; The Goodman Theatre's Michael Maggio Directing Fellow; the SDCF Denham Fellow; a Lincoln Center Theater Directors Lab participant; and was 2013 Co-Artistic Curator for Theater on the Lake. Joanie was co-Artistic Director of Estrogen Fest; Associate Artistic Director of The Building Stage; and co-Founder/Artistic Director of Flush Puppy Productions.
She is an ensemble member at Steep Theatre; associate artist with Victory Gardens; and an artistic cabinet member at Studio Theatre in DC. She has been on theater (acting and directing) faculty of Columbia College Chicago and University of Chicago, the opera faculty of Roosevelt University and Northwestern University, and has taught for the School at Steppenwolf, Steep Theatre, the Audition Studio, and Italian Operatic Experience. She is a member of SDC, AGMA, and the Dramatists Guild.
Directing Origin Story at Cincinnati Playhouse in the Park, 2022.