Janine Sobeck Knighton is an award-winning, nationally produced dramaturg, playwright, screenwriter, story consultant, and educator. Originally from Central California, Janine is currently based outside of Salt Lake City, UT.

Janine’s professional career started at Arena Stage in Washington D.C. As Arena’s full-time Literary Manager, Dramaturg, and Producer of New Works, she enjoyed working with some of the country’s greatest artists, including Pam McKinnon, Kenny Leon, Brian Yorkey, Tom Kitt, Phylicia Rashad, Edward Albee, Marcus Gardley, Karen Zacarias, Artistic Director Molly Smith, and more, in creating new plays and reimagining American classics. She continues to work around the country as a freelance dramaturg, and is currently working on Relative Space: An Atypical Musical with story by Melissa Leilani Larson and original songs by Kjersti Long and Jeremy Long.

Janine also loves to create her own stories. Recently, her short play, Drawing Under the Microscope, was part of the Kibo Production’s Reboot Festival at Baron’s Court Theatre in London, her play Sing in Me, Muse was part of Cellunova’s One Act Festival in NYC, and her play The Lost Girls was a finalist for the Lanford Wilson New American Play Festival.

Previously, her translation/adaptation of King Stag was produced at Utah Valley University in 2021 and her TYA play, Scaredy Kat Presents won the Purple Crayon Players PLAYground Festival in 2020 and was the premiere production of the Westport Country Playhouse Mobile Unit in Spring 2023. Her play The Tale of Young Beatrix was part of An Other Theatre Company’s New Play Festival in Provo, UT in April 2023, after receiving a reading through Plan B Playwright’s Lab. Her short play, The Edge of Play, was part of Ghostlight Ensemble’s Make/Believe Festival in Chicago in May/June 2023. Her play, Hidden Seashells: A Yoga Adventure (for K-3) received a reading through the Plan B Playwright’s Lab in September 2022 and is a winner of the 2023 Old Miner Children’s Playwriting Contest. Currently, she has two web series, Backstage Bernie and An Open Letter to Isabella Beck, which can be found on the JSK Stories YouTube Channel.

Janine’s plays can be found on the New Play Exchange.

Beyond the stage, Janine is the host of the storytelling podcast, Once Upon a Weirdo, where she explores fairytales and folktales through the perspective of the characters who are often overlooked, forgotten, or misunderstood.

Janine also works with screenwriters in developing several different new screenplays. Freetown was produced in 2014 and Jane and Emma was produced in 2018.

Currently the Associate Professor of Playwriting and Dramaturgy and the Associate Department Chair at Utah Valley University, Janine continues to work while developing the voices of the next generation. Her love for theatre and film education led to the creation of JSK Stories, a production company and website focused on creating a community dedicated to telling stories, arts education, and providing a platform for kids and teenagers to share their creative work in a safe, online environment.

You can find Janine on:

Instagram: @janinesobeckknighton

Substack: Once Upon a Weirdo

LinkedIn: Janine Sobeck Knighton

New Play Exchange: Janine Sobeck Knighton