About Me
Still from The Greeks with Burning Coal Theatre in 2017.
Jess Jones-Gauslå is an American-raised storyteller based in Norway who aims to create thought and the possibility for change in those who experience her and the stories she chooses to tell. She is an actor, stage fight performer/director, and teacher.
Jess began studying theatre with Shakespeare at Cambridge University which awakened her love for sword play. She began work as a sword fighting pirate with The Shadow Players in high school and would go on to train with The Society of American Fight Directors. She has now become a certified fight performer with the Nordic Stage Fight Society and is in their teacher training program.
Jess has a long career on the stage in the States and is working towards a stage and screen career basing from the Nordics. She received her MFA in TV, Film and Theatre Acting Focus at Cal State LA in May 2020.
Jess has been certified as an Actor Combatant with the SAFD having been certified in Rapier & Dagger, Unarmed, Broad Sword, Knife, and Single Sword. She has also certified as a fight performer with the Nordic Stage Fight Society with certifications in Unarmed and Broadsword, Knife and Theatrical Martial Arts; and Performance Pass-level certifications in Rapier, Rapier and Dagger, Quarterstaff, Small Sword, and Sword and Shield. In this process she got to study with Richard Ryan, J David Brimmer, K Jenny Jones, Mike Mahaffey, Collin Bressie, Jeff Jones, Ian Rose, Bo Thomas, Kristoffer Jørgensen, Huw William Reynolds, Iiro Heikkila, Oula Kitti, Ville Seivo, Anders Jacobsson, Peppe Ostensson, Johannes Eilertsen, Nigel Poulton, Yarit Dor, Lasse Friborg, and Kaire Russ, Tim Klotz. She has been the fight director on many shows including Dracula at Temple Theatre, The Unseen Hand at Cal State LA, and assisted drama desk award winning fight director Steve Rankin on Henry IV with The Shakespeare Center of LA starring Tom Hanks. In the acting field, she has trained with Ray Dooley at UNC Chapel Hill; Anna Estrada, Michael Yurchak, Matthew Floyd Miller, Randee Trabitz, Tanya Parry, and Steve Rothman at Cal State LA; Ward Acting Studio; with Dana Marks at Duke University, Puppetry with Torry Bend, Aerial Silks at The Trapeze School of NY Chicago and with NYC's Fight or Flight. She has also studied at Berkley Rep, Studio ACT, Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey, Cambridge University, and at NCSA. Her BA is in Theatre Performance from Barton College (2010).
Still from No Exit at the Kennedy Family Theatre