Nina Wise is known for her provocative and original performance works. Her pieces have garnered seven Bay Area Critics' Circle Awards, and she has received, among other prestigious honors, three National Endowment for the Arts fellowships. Her written pieces have appeared in numerous magazines and anthologies. Nina lives in San Rafael, California. Reviews/Articles about Nina: The Village Voice Yoga Journal Common Ground Selected Scripted Performances The Kepler Planetarium Project: Paradigm Shift Then and Now (2011-12) A solo version of the play developed for planetarium domes. California Academy of Sciences Morrison Planetarium (5 performances) Zeiss Planetarium, Jena, Germany Fulldome Festival The Kepler Project: When Science Lost the Soul (2006-08) A play by Nina Wise with Ralph Abraham and D.W. Jacobs Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe, Playwrights Foundation, San Francisco, Playwrights Festival, San Francisco Riverstage Theater Festival, Sacramento What to Call Home (1997) Magic Theater, San Francisco 3rd Annual Festival of Theater Arts, Sao Paolo International Transpersonal Association, Prague Departure (1994) An opera: book and music by Nina Wise, additional music by Earwax Marin Community Playhouse White Trash (1993) The Marsh, San Francisco Theater for a New City, New York Parlor Performances, Los Angeles Sang Arung Center, Bangkok Earth Drama Lab, Life on the Water, San Francisco Theater Action Group, New Delhi Guidebook for the Lonely Planet (1990) Theater Artists of Marin, San Rafael Highways, Los Angeles Open Center, New York National Performance Network, Oakland Private Road (1988) Script and performance by Nina Wise, Directed by Joe Goode New Langton Arts, San Francisco The Edge Festival, Footwork Studio, San Francisco Walking Home (1986) Written and performed by Nina Wise, Visual design by Lauren Elder Espace dbd Sushi, San Diego Climate Theater, San Francisco Collision (1985) Written and directed by Nina Wise, Visual design by Lauren Elder Parking garage of the Oakland Museum Singing My Mother to Sleep (1984) Written and performed by Nina Wise and others, Directed by Steve Kent, Visual design by Lauren Elder Intersection Theater, San Francisco Marin Community Playhouse, San Anselmo New Langton Arts, San Francisco Ms. America: A Pageant of Heroines and Dybbuks (1981) Written and performed by Nina Wise and others, visuals by Lauren Elder Oberlin Dance Center, San Francisco Improvised Performance and Presentations 2012 What Just Happened? Yogaworks, Larkspur, CA Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA (October, December) Threshhold Foundation, Sausalito, CA Sister Giant Conference, Los Angeles Enchanted Dharma Osmosis, Occidental, CA Stories in Motion Performances by Motion Theater Artists directed by Nina Wise Shotwell Studio, San Francisco 2011 TEDxSF Solo Performance, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, San Francisco Stories in Motion Performances by Motion Theater Artists directed by Nina Wise Open Secret, San Rafael (June) The Garage, San Francisco (June) The Garage, San Francisco (December) 2010 What Just Happened? Solo Performance by Nina Wise based on the last 24 hours The Marsh, San Francisco (4 week run) The Marsh, Berkeley (4 week run) Smiley Building, Durango, CO Stories in Motion Motion Theater Artists directed by Nina Wise The Marsh, Berkeley Cat’s Paw, Berkeley Luck Disguised as Ordinary Life Inquiring Mind Benefit, Berkeley, CA Fun(D)Raising Invoke the Pause Convening, Calistoga, CA I, Eye Science and Non Dualism Conference, San Rafael, CA 2009 What Just Happened? The Marsh, San Francisco Women on the Way Festival Shotwell Studio, San Francisco Eight Guiding Spiritual Principles for Art, Life, Politics, and Love Lecture/Demonstration John F. Kennedy University, Berkeley, CA Stories in Motion Performances by Motion Theater Artists, Directed by Nina Wise 7th Heaven Studio, Berkeley, CA 2008 Election Year: A Festival of Optimistic Voices Illuminating Talk, Enlightening Theater Produced and performed by Nina Wise Talks by leading visionaries followed by solo performances by Nina Wise Lensic Performing Arts Center, Santa Fe March: Alternatives in Healing with Michael Lerner, Charlotte Brody, Carolyn Raffensperger April: Living in a Win-Win World with Hazel Henderson, Rupert Sheldrake, Judy Wicks May: Women Transforming the World with Natalie Goldberg, Susan Griffin, Joan Halifax, Jane Hirshfield, Wendy Johnson Poetry for Water a series of benefits to bring safe water to villages and tribes in Africa with Dave Eggers, Maxine Hong Kingston, Roger Housden Solo Performance Cowell Theater, San Francisco Leap Year Improvised performance with Annie Kunjappy Center for Remembering and Sharing, New York, NY What Just Happened? Manhattanville College, Purchase, NY SF Theater Festival, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, SF Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA 2007 Poetry for Water with Roger Housden, Jane Hirshfield, Jack Kornfield and others Solo Performances 142 Throckmorton, Mill Valley Larkspur Café Theater, Larkspur 2007 Nina Wise, Improvising Sebastopol Center for the Arts Occidental Arts Center Spirit Rock Meditation Center Esalen Institute Tell it on a Tuesday Julia Morgan Center for the Arts, Berkeley Studio Rasa, Berkeley 2006 Now What: A Festival of Optimistic Voices Produced by Nina Wise and Z Space Presentations by leading visionaries followed by performances by Nina Wise Theater Artaud, San Francisco Transforming Medicine: Michael Lerner, Dr. Jim Gordon Women Transforming the World (founders of Code Pink) Jodie Evans, Medea Benjamin, Environmental Justice: Luke Cole, Wes Nisker, Randy Hayes, Social Justice: Van Jones New Models of the Mind: Dan Siegel The Story of the Universe: Brian Swimme Nina Wise, Improvising Women Activists Retreat, Austin, TX Sprit Rock Meditation Center Esalen Institute, Big Sur 2005 Lecture Conney Colloquium on Jewish Arts University of Wisconsin, Madison For What Do We Give Thanks? Solo Performance Cal State Hayward Nina Wise, Improvising Spirit Alive! Wisdom of the World Dominican College, San Rafael, CA Summer Performance Festival Counterpulse, San Francisco Emotion Meets Spirit, Conference on Buddhism and Psychology with Dan Siegel 2004 Nina Wise Improvising Esalen Institute, Big Sur Presently Surprized Nina Wise with Corey Fischer Larkspur Café Theater, Larkspur, CA Off Market Café Theater, San Francisco Listed in “BEST THEATER 2004” by the San Francisco Bay Guardian Nina Wise, Improvising Porter College, University of California, Santa Cruz Shotwell Studios, San Francisco Keynote Address Benefit Dinner, Hospice of Marin Women’s Works Festival Solo Performances Venue 9, San Francisco Evening of Stories with Wes Nisker, Jeff Greenwald, Tanya Schaeffer Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA Storytelling Event, with Jack Kornfield and Wes Scoop Nisker Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA Self-Expression and Spiritual Practice Lecture Institute of Noetic Sciences Lecture Series, San Francisco Enchanted Solo Performance and Daylong Workshop International Transpersonal Association Conference, Palm Springs Healing Journeys: Cancer as a Turning Point Solo performance and Workshop, Seattle 2003 Accept the Present With Annie Kunjappy Clemente Soto Velez Cultural Center, New York Now What? with Annie Kunjappy and Corey Fischer Highways, Los Angeles State of the Union Solo Performance Bowery Poetry Center, New York A Big New Free Happy Unusual Life Keynote Address American Camping Association conference, Riverside, CA Healing Journeys: Cancer as a Turning Point Conference Solo Performance Marin Civic Center, San Rafael, CA Women’s Lives Conference with Jean Bolen and Helen Palmer Solo Performance UC Extension, San Francisco Wild and Wise: Women in Buddhist Practice with Tsultrim Allione, Julie Wester, Zuleka, Sylvia Nakaach Solo Performance Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA 2002 New Year’s Eve with Wes Scoop Nisker Solo Performance Spirit Rock Meditation Center Woodacre, CA Improvised Performance with Annie Kunjappy Actor’s Theater, Santa Cruz, CA The Last Night in May Solo Performance The Open Center, New York Benefit with Annie Kunjappy Esalen Institute, Big Sur, CA International Rivers Network Benefit Solo performance Beach Chalet, San Francisco 2000-2001 Women’s Lives Conference with Jean Bolen, Angie Arrien, Helen Palmer Solo Performance UC Extension, San Francisco April Fools Day Performance with Wes Scoop Nisker Solo Performance Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA Wild and Wise: Celebrating Women in Buddhism with Sylvia Boorstein, Tsultrim Allione, Mayumi Oda Solo Performance Spirit Rock Meditation Center, Woodacre, CA Radio/Television/Film Living Green, UCSF Educational Film, produced by Gail Lee, directed by Deborah Fleischer, Scott Stender, 2012 KALX, San Francisco, 2010 KRON Morning show, San Francisco, 2010 KQED, Berkeley, 2010 KQED, Berkeley, 2008 KRON Morning Show, November 2004 New Dimensions, NPR, national broadcast, September 2004 Jefferson Public Radio, Ashland, July 2004 Wisdom Radio, national broadcast, August 2003 KPFA, Berkeley, Kris Welch show, August 2002 CBS Morning Show, Phoenix, June 2002 KALX, Los Angles, June 2002 WBAI, New York, August 2002 Female Perversions, Independent Feature produced by Mindy Affrime, directed by Susan Streitfeld, starring Tilda Swinton, 1997 Publications "The Freedom to Fall Apart", (story) Inquiring Mind, 2006 "No Thought Then and Now", (article) Tricycle, New York, Spring, 2005 A Big New Free Happy Unusual Life: Self-Expression and Spiritual Practice for Those Who Have Time for Neither, (book) Broadway Books, New York, Spring, 2002 Portuguese edition, Brazil, 2004 German edition, Austria, 2006 "Stories the Body Tells", (article) Yoga Journal, February-March, 1999, Berkeley "Remembering Papaji", (article) Yoga Journal, March-April, 1998, Berkeley "To Papaji", (poem) What Book!? Buddha Poems from Beat to Hiphop; anthology, edited by Gary Gach, Parallax Press, 1998, Berkeley "Does the Buddha Have Breasts?" (article) Inquiring Mind, spring, 1998, Oakland "The Psychedelic Journey to the Zafu", (article), Tricycle, September 1996; New York "The Cantor’s Birthday" (story) The Sun, June 1996, North Carolina "Luck Disguised as Ordinary Life", (story) Caduceus, May 1996, London "Luck Disguised as Ordinary Life", The Sun, February, 1995, North Carolina "Luck Disguised as Ordinary Life", Whole Earth Review, Fall, 1995, Sausalito "Luck Disguised as Ordinary Life", Inquiring Mind, Winter, 1994, Berkeley "Full as in Good" (story), The Turning Wheel, 1994, Berkeley "The Equation for Love", (story) Where the Heart Is", Anthology of Works about Home, "A Day with Thay at Spirit Rock, (story), A Joyful Path, anthology edited by Arnie Kottler, Parallax Press, 1994, Berkeley "Rock Body", (story) Dharmagaia, anthology, edited by Allan Badiner, Parallax Press, 1992 "Lumbini" and "Vulture Peak" (poetry); Inquiring Mind, 1992, Oakland Higher Education and Awards NEA Fellowships Theater Program, Solo Theater Artist (2x) Visual Arts Program, New Genres Marin Arts Council Fellowships Playwrighting New Genres, Career Development Headlands Center For the Arts, Artist-in-Residence Fellowship Djerassi Resident Artists Fellowship Mesa Refuge Resident Fellowship Vermont Studio Center Resident Fellowship Bay Area Critics’ Circle Awards for Walking Home Original Script Original Score Sound Design Lighting Design Bay Area Critics’ Circle Awards for Singing My Mother to Sleep New Directions in Theater Technical Achievement Bay Area Critics’ Circle Award for Collision, New Directions in Theater Commission for Experiments in the Arts, San Francisco, Fellowship Bachelor of Arts, UC Santa Cruz. Independent Disciplinary Major in Religious Studies and the Aesthetics of Movement President's Undergraduate Fellowship Stevenson College Prize for Dance nina@ninawise.com home about nina | performances | workshops | writings videos | booking | motion inc. | the book!