Bios

Jeff Burnett: Actor, Writer

(aka Jesai Jayhmes)

Jeff Burnett trained at the Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in London, directed the first few plays of Jonathan Gems in fringe theatres, joined the company of Liquid Theatre, an immersive theatre experience presented under the arches of Charing Cross Station in Global Village. He also took classes in movement and mime including with Lindsay Kemp.

Moving to the Netherlands, Jeff became co-director and principle actor with International Theatre Research Group KISS based in Rotterdam and Leeuwarden.

There he played the roles of Agamemnon, in Ancient Greek, Jokaanon in a stripped bare and tribal version of Oscar Wilde's Salome, and various roles in a group creation based on the Holy Grail legends. The company performed in Europe, Australia and the US.

He co-directed the KISS Komedy, based on Dante. This 24 hour immersive experience was presented in the Holland Festival in 1982. He also authored and co-ordinated the group creation of a book.

It was there he first worked with collaborator and director Jim Ennis. They are re-uniting after 30 years to make this project.

He also trained with and had an ongoing collaboration with members of the Roy Hart Theatre, a group based in France dedicated to the exploration of the voice, and had the opportunity to train with the Suzuki Company of Toga in Japan.

Jeff returned to the US and began a teaching career in New Haven at the Educational Center for the Arts, Yale University Theatre Studies and the Yale Divinity School. He also presented a number of works at the Arts Hall at ECA and various unconventional locations in the city including, which included The Balcony and The Maids by Genet, Sophocles, Electra, Titus Andronicus adapted from Shakespeare, Work inspired by the Tarot and the Tibetan Book of the Dead, America a Prophecy adapted from William Blake, several solo shows including Tales from the Ether, Death of an Artist and The Macbeths, (an event he has kept in repertoire for the last 30 years). On many projects he worked with brother Jamie Burnett, who is known throughout the region for his artistry with theatre design and lighting.

With former spouse, Nikila Cole, Jeff was co-artistic director of several arts festivals including New Havens 350th birthday, First Night New Haven, and the New World Arts Fest where Earthfall dance (the company of director Jim Ennis) received its US premiere.

He then moved to Vancouver BC. He changed his name to Jesai Jayhmes, the act that was to inspire his latest work 20 years later, Jeff Burnett on Broadway.

At Simon Fraser’s School for Contemporary Art he taught acting and voice, taught at an aboriginal reserve in Kamloops, was a member of Vancouver Playback Theatre, wrote, produced and directed Conversations with Willie, and appeared in Film and Television. He has produced many works in natural environments within settings that bring the audience into the action. He staged a powerful production of Siddhartha with Akasha arts in a Chinese Garden in Vancouver. Jeff, (Jesai) also trained professors, entrepreneurs, and government employees in communication skills, to speak effectively from the platform.

Based In Costa Rica now, he restaged The Macbeths, and directed a Spanish production of Lysistrata where the audience became the chorus. He has given workshops at University for Peace and Earth University, on the power of stories. He also appears in a new film, Dos Fridas, in the role of Charlie Chaplin.

Jim Ennis: Director

Jim Ennis graduated in theatre, performance, dance, directing and writing for performance after training at Dartington Hall College of Arts from 1974-1977 and whilst there won the Elmhirst grant for post graduate studies. On leaving college he founded a performance company with fellow graduates and moved to Holland. Ennis taught theatre workshops mainly in Contact Improvisation and created physical based performance work collaborating with visual and dance artists.

In early 1978 Ennis attended Grotowski’s Theatre Laboratory in Poland and from 1978-1983 he joined the Dutch based International Research Theatre Group Kiss. This experimental company adapted the classics and produced highly physical, vocal and imagistic works which toured throughout the world. These works included a five hour performance of the Orestia and a 24 hour performance of Dante’s Divine Comedy. Ennis became a principle performer with the company and also wrote and directed several works for its repertoire. He authored 3 plays which were performed at major festivals in Holland, Sydney and Melbourne and co-authored Jeff Burnett’s ‘The Theatre Research Book’ published by Uitgenj Luyten in 1982.

In 1984 Ennis joined the Cardiff Laboratory Theatre as a performer and co-creator working on several performance and para-theatrical projects over a period of three years. During this period, in 1985, Ennis was invited to perform with the highly acclaimed Gardzienice Theatre Association, Poland, and remained with them as a performer until 1989, alongside his work with the Cardiff Lab, and was involved in extensive touring and theatre anthropological research of native cultures.

In 1988, Ennis directed Jessica Cohen in her solo work, Orchid Flower Blanche and as a result of this collaboration they founded Earthfall in Cardiff, Wales in 1989.With Cohen he has conceived, authoured and directed over 25 touring works.

Earthfall was founded to create multi disciplinary performance work with movement, live music, film, text and imagery at its core. Ennis and Cohen were also interested to pursue the notion of choreography and politics which they termed Choreopolitik. Ennis initially started as Director/Performer with Earthfall but then concentrated solely on directing, choreographing and co-devising all of Earthfall’s works. Earthfall has subsequently represented Wales throughout the world, winning several awards for its performances and film work.

In recent years Ennis has directed and mentored the Polish company, Chorea, as part of a Wales/ Poland cultural initiative, in three new works which are centred on the performances of a highly physicalised choir and the reinterpretation of the classics.

Ennis has taught extensively at several universities including University of Wales Trinity St David, Trinity College, Dublin, Warsaw University, New York University Stonybrook, Melbourne College of Music and Drama, Dartington Hall, Amsterdam University and was as a visiting lecturer in theatre studies at Yale University, USA.