Janys is a freelance writer, director, dramaturg and theatre-maker.  Her current projects (besides the TWO WOMEN project The Wasteground Circus, the theatre and circus piece which is having its Arts Council England pilot tour in Bristol in April 2022) include a new adaptation of Peter Pan and Wendy for Pitlochry Festival Theatre for November-December 2022. 

 

Janys has previously held part-time posts as the Associate for New Writing at the Octagon Theatre Bolton (2015-2019); as a Theatre, Dance and Circus Assessor for Arts Council England (2012 to 2019); and as a Dramaturg for National Theatre Wales (2014-2015).

 

Janys met Producer Deborah Dickinson whilst they were both working at the Octagon Theatre, and they were inspired to form TWO WOMEN by the obsessions they had in common - about high-quality theatre, new writing, site-specific work and socially-driven content that aspires to a better world. 

 

Janys began her career as a performer, working at theatres including York Theatre Royal, Manchester Library Theatre, Manchester Contact Theatre, Birmingham Rep, Northampton Theatre Royal, KneeHigh, West Yorkshire Playhouse, Chester Gateway and the Dukes’ Playhouse Lancaster.  Her radio acting includes roles in Sons and Lovers and Frankenstein and her TV acting roles in Coronation Street; Brookside; Hetty Wainthropp; The Royal Today; Courtroom; Always and Everyone; Dalziel and Pascoe; Out of Hours and Butterfly Collector.

 

As a director, Janys has worked for the New Vic (as an Associate Artist), the Octagon Theatre Bolton, Theatr Clwyd, Oldham Coliseum, Theatre Centre, New Perspectives, Action Transport and many youth theatres.  She has also made a great deal of work for Rural Touring Networks.

 

 Janys has written extensively for theatre, adapting North and South for Pitlochry Festival Theatre in Summer 2019 (★★★★ The Scotsman  ★★★★ The Guardian):
https://www.theguardian.com/stage/2019/sep/01/north-and-south-review-strikes-and-strife-in-a-factory-town

She has previously adapted The Secret Garden, The Railway Children and Jane Eyre, all for the Octagon Theatre.  The Secret Garden received a nomination as Best Young People’s Production in the Manchester Theatre Awards.  Her adaptation of My Family and Other Animals for York Theatre Royal (★★★★ The Times, ★★★★ The Mail, ★★★★ The Stage) was published by Nick Hern Books in 2022.

 

TV writing includes Holby, Children’s Ward, Engie Bengy, Belonging, and over 100 episodes of Emmerdale. Her episode represented the BBC's Belonging when it won a Welsh BAFTA for Best Series.  She has been BAFTA-nominated as Best New Writer for Television; nominated for Best Episode in a Soap; and Writers' Guild nominated for Best Radio Play for Children.

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Janys has also written widely for BBC Radio 3 and 4, including original plays like Miss Thingummybob and The Village and adaptations for Classic Serials like The Single Heart. 

 

Janys’ most recent work was to write and direct A Day In The Life Of Us, a TWO WOMEN mixed youth and professional production funded by the Welsh Government's Winter of Wellbeing Fund (January to April 2022) and before that to direct a project about the Chester Rows following on from workshops at Storyhouse Chester.  In 2020 she directed a new play called Fell by Chris Salt in a national tour; and wrote and also directed a promenade piece for young people called Shakespeare’s Kitchen, site-specific to an Elizabethan house in Conwy.