About Jan
Jan Henderson is one of North America’s leading clown and mask teachers and directors. She has devoted the last 40 years to helping people get in touch with their most authentic, playful, creative aspect - their inner Wise Fool - and use it to enrich their personal and professional lives. Jan studied and performed extensively with master teacher, Richard Pochinko, before co-founding with him what is now the Theatre Resource Centre, Toronto. From 1982 -1991 she was co-artistic director and performer with Small Change Theatre, literally clowning her way around the world, discovering first hand that laughter is the universal language. Jan teaches at Grant McEwan University, Opera Nuova, Citadel Theatre Young Company, the University of Alberta, where she has received four awards for excellence in teaching. She also teaches for The Clown School in L.A., and gives annual mask and clown workshops through her company, Fool Moon Productions. Jan was on the Creativity Faculty of the Leadership Development program at the Banff Centre from 2002 to 2017, and is a recipient of Global Television’s Woman of Vision award. In 2014 she was nominated for an Outstanding Lifetime Achievement Award for the Mayor’s Celebration of the Arts, and in 2018 received the Elizabeth Haynes Stirling Award for Outstanding Contribution to Theatre in Edmonton. Jan is co-artistic director of Small Matters Productions, where she creates shows that enjoy critical acclaim on international stages, including the Toronto Festival of Clowns, Le Festival des Clowns Montreal, and the New York International Clown Theater Festival. She recently returned to the stage in the popular clown comedy, Over Her Dead Body, for Edmonton’s Fringe Theatre Adventures. Jan’s lifetime of work is celebrated in the documentaries, The Art of Clowning, Clown and Mask, and The Wise Fool, a film by Geraldine Carr.
Ryan Parker Photography
