Chess Jakobs (any pronouns) is a Black, Jewish, and Queer American Creative Producer, Director, Dramaturg, Writer, Actor, and Cultural Designer.
BROADWAY: The Heart of Rock and Roll (Assistant Director). OFF-BROADWAY: Dracula: A Comedy of Terrors (Associate Director/Dramaturg). REGIONAL: Steppenwolf Theatre Company (Downstate), Alliance Theatre (Colassal), Indiana Repertory Theatre (A Christmas Carol), Olney Theatre Center (Fiddler on the Roof). FILM: Good Genes, Scott For Now. TV: NBC, BET, Bravo. You can watch their acting reel here.
Chess's new play, The American Five, is currently under development and commissioned by Ford's Theatre. Aaron Posner directed the developmental workshop featuring Yoni Bornstein, Jay Frisby, Noah Keyishian, Fatima Quander, and John Floyd. Chess is writing a new documentary for People over Plastic called Sister Nature and is developing another new play titled Great Minds Think Differently.
Chess currently serves as the Head of the Culture Amp Foundation. As a cultural designer, I have used their Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Anti-Racism frameworks to design culture at PokémonGO, Culture Amp, and LiveRamp. In 2022, they received Untapped's DEIB Walk The Walk Award for Diversity Strategy and 2018 the MLK Spirit Award for Leadership. Chess also used their theatre training to study racism in public housing in Chicago at Roosevelt University. Chess was the inaugural Chair of the Advisory Board at Broadway Dreams.
They received their BFA in Acting and Directing from the University of Michigan. They are proud members of the Actors Equity Association and Associate Members of the Stage Directors and Choreographers Society and the Dramatists Guild.
