Jeesun Choi

Jeesun Choi serves as Lecturer of Playwriting and Screenwriting at Purchase College's School of Film and Media Studies. A transnational Korean playwright working across theater, screen, and opera, her creative practice centers on migration narratives and diasporic identity. Her work has been developed at premier institutions including Soho Rep, New York Theatre Workshop, American Opera Project, and Bay Area Playwrights Festival.

Her educational background includes:

• MFA from Dell’Arte International
• BA from Macalester College

Choi's research interrogates lives in migration through bilingual storytelling and transnational perspectives. Her work explores Korean diaspora experiences, economic systems, and environmental crises, often blending comedy with urgent social commentary. She examines identity formation at cultural intersections while addressing themes of financial instability, familial relationships, and community resilience through innovative dramatic structures.

Recent works like To the Ends of the Earth (2023) and Influence (2023) reveal consistent engagement with digital-age identity and diasporic consciousness. Her plays frequently employ ensemble casts to dissect economic collapse narratives against backdrops of natural disasters, reflecting a signature approach that merges intimate character studies with macro-social critique through bilingual and multimodal storytelling techniques.

Her artistic recognition includes:

• Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship (2023-2025)
• MacDowell Fellowship (2023)
• NYC Women’s Fund for Media, Music and Theatre (2023)
• Artist of Exceptional Merit from Asian American Arts Alliance (2020)
• The Kilroys List inclusion (2023)
• O’Neill National Playwrights Conference Finalist (2022)
• O’Neill National Playwrights Conference Semifinalist (2019)

Choi receives significant project support through competitive fellowships including the Jerome Hill Artist Fellowship and NYC Women's Fund. As a current faculty member at Purchase College, she mentors emerging writers while maintaining active industry affiliations. Her Dramatist Guild and Writers Guild memberships facilitate professional development opportunities that inform her pedagogical approach to playwriting and screenwriting instruction.

She maintains robust creative partnerships as a Usual Suspect at New York Theatre Workshop and affiliated artist at New Georges. Her collaborative ecosystem includes residencies at University Settlement, Governor’s Island Works on Water, and Red Eye Theatre, fostering experimental development of new works through structured artistic communities that bridge academic and professional theater spheres.