CJ Willette
Introducing…
Playwright and Communications Associate
About
CJ Willette (She/Her) is a Chicago-based playwright whose work centers around the intertwining of black experiences through concepts of dystopia, whimsy, and grandeur. CJ holds a Bachelor in Fine Arts in Playwriting from The Theatre School at DePaul University. Recognitions include May 32nd (2024 Eugene O’Neill National Playwrights Conference, Semifinalist) and Balderdash (2025 Freshly Brewed, The Understudy, Semifinalist). May 32nd received a workshop from DePaul University, which included a three week 29-hour rehearsal process directed by Keira Fromm. The process accumulated in two staged-readings. Balderdash received a developmental workshop and public staged reading from Hamsterpants’ Productions (2026).
CJ is an Ojai Playwrights Conference affiliate, serving as 2025 Artistic Intern and 2025–2027 Reading Committee member (Conference '26 & '27); This included assisting JuCoby Johnson’s staged Reading of The Red Man, which was directed by Khanisha Foster under the leadership of Artistic Director Jeremy Cohen. She is a member of the 2023 Cody Renard Richard Cohort and an alumni of the Broadway Coalition Advocacy. She serves as a Development Director for Do Process Theatre and as the Co-Artistic Facilitator of Estuarine: A New Play Nursery. Additionally, CJ has participated as a devisor with Free Street Theatre, her most recent involvement being Tanuja Jagernaut’s Rupture/Repair. She is also the mentee of Kimberley Senior, providing assistance to Timeline Theatre’s production of Hundreds and Hundreds of Stars by Sandra Delgado.
For access to her writing portfolio, please visit her New Play Exchange profile. For access to her corporate work experience, please connect with her on LinkedIn.
-
Let’s connect! Please click on the link below to follow my profile on Linkedin:
-
Want to read my plays?
Please click on the link below to view my New Play Exchange profile:
-
Do Process Theatre recenters humanity within the process of theatre making.
To learn more about the company, please click the links below:
-
In 2023, I was selected as a Cody Renard Richard scholarship recipient.
To learn more about the next generation of theatre artists of color, please click the links below:
https://playbill.com/article/the-cody-renard-richard-scholarship-program-announces-2023-cohort
-
In the summer of 2025, I had the invaluable experience of bringing to life The Red Man by emerging playwright JuCoby Johnson. I achieved this working alongside Khanisha Foster and Naysan Mojani.
https://www.ojaiplays.org/theredman
Special thanks to Agyiewwa Asante and Jeremey Cohen for the opportunity to lend my artistic eye to such a talented cohort of writers. Excited to continue our work on the reader committee for such a great initiative.
-
Shadowing the production of Hundreds and Hundreds of Stars by Sandra Delgado was a priceless experience. Thank you to Kimberly Senior for connecting me with this fantastic ensemble.