Press & Awards
HONORS & AWARDS
SELECTED PRESS RECOGNITION
“…the luminous Chicago actress Jenny McKnight certainly nails that triangulated requirement. Mostly by merely sitting still and watching, McKnight shows us the myriad colors of Kate, from the childlike to the sensual, the pliant to the defiant, the vulnerable to the ironic, the persistently challenging to the seductively acquiescent. It’s a gorgeous performance, not least because it makes one insistently understand why another woman and man are fighting so hard to win her past and present.” - Chicago Tribune
“The cast is almost all Chicago-based, but composed mostly of actors who are newcomers or underexposed at this level. McKnight is a case in point. I’ve watched and admired her for years. She excels here. In the play’s central and most disturbing scene, McKnight’s resilient but nonetheless achingly vulnerable Myra must confront the impending loss of her child, which is to say she confronts the loss of pretty much everything.” - Chicago Tribune
“The production… boasts a slew of finely tuned performances, particularly from McKnight. The central figure, her Myra pulls us in instantly as she worries about losing Pete to her wealthy ex… McKnight’s fine sense of the character’s quiet nobility makes Myra easy to root for.” - Variety
"As the young woman, McKnight is elegant and lovely in her subtle suggestion of the dichotomy in her character as she remembers pivotal moments of her coming of age, and is horrified by the vision of the old woman she will become." - Chicago Sun-Times
"... And as the woman's young and idealistic self, the vulnerable, complex McKnight delivers a monologue as emotionally painful as it is sensual. It recounts a brief, youthful vista of sexual and seemingly spiritual fulfillment, which will never return. It's delivered with such wistful delicacy it makes you mourn your own happiness -- as unappreciated -- at the time." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight is superbly cast and she turns in a rich, compelling and strikingly sympathetic performance ... Whenever McKnight is onstage, she grounds the whole affair in truth..." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight ... proves once again that she is an actress of luminous intelligence and perception. Her every move and emotional shift is precise and piercing..." - Chicago Sun-Times
"McKnight is the standout, combining excellent physical grace with intensity, clarity and honesty in a role that could have been extremely unsympathetic, even repellent. See McKnight now, so you can say you saw her when." - Chicago Reader
"As portrayed by Jenny McKnight, an actress whose luminous work in several Eclipse productions should have grabbed the attention of every director in the city, both mother and daughter are forces to be reckoned with..." - Chicago Sun-Times
"Thanks to ... a blistering lead performance from Jenny McKnight, this is a powerful and gripping two hours of theater. McKnight, an immensely talented and honest performer whose work has grown a great deal in the last year, is terrific in the lead role." - Chicago Tribune
"In a staging so rich in breathtaking performances, it's difficult to single out any one artist, but Jenny McKnight's gently tragic Birdie balances most convincingly on a precipice separating honesty from mad greed." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight's superb performance -- flickering between anxiety and determination -- is as musical and poetic and full of little fireworks as Williams' language." - Chicago Sun-Times
"Jenny McKnight's performance is exquisitely graceful." - Chicago Reader
- Named one of "Elite 8 Chicago Actresses" by Chicago Sun-Times
- Chicago Tribune Top Ten Best of 2002: "Jenny McKnight's performance as a troubled schoolteacher (Mrs. Mackenzie's Beginner's Guide to the Blues) was one of the very best pieces of acting of the year..."
- Chicago Sun-Times Best of 2001: "Jenny McKnight's exceptional performance as both the wife and the daughter of the fabled Romantic poet Lord Byron in the Eclipse Theatre production of Childe Byron."
- Chicago Sun-Times Best of 2000: "The Eccentricities of a Nightingale, a Tennessee Williams revival starring the excellent Jenny McKnight at Eclipse Theatre."
- Joseph Jefferson Award Citation Winner: Best Supporting Actress
- Two-time Joseph Jefferson Award Citation Nominee: Best Actress
- After-Dark Award for Costume Design: Suddenly Last Summer at Eclipse Theatre
- Four-year Ensemble member of Eclipse Theatre Company, Chicago
- Proud Member of Actors’ Equity Association since 2002
SELECTED PRESS RECOGNITION
“…the luminous Chicago actress Jenny McKnight certainly nails that triangulated requirement. Mostly by merely sitting still and watching, McKnight shows us the myriad colors of Kate, from the childlike to the sensual, the pliant to the defiant, the vulnerable to the ironic, the persistently challenging to the seductively acquiescent. It’s a gorgeous performance, not least because it makes one insistently understand why another woman and man are fighting so hard to win her past and present.” - Chicago Tribune
“The cast is almost all Chicago-based, but composed mostly of actors who are newcomers or underexposed at this level. McKnight is a case in point. I’ve watched and admired her for years. She excels here. In the play’s central and most disturbing scene, McKnight’s resilient but nonetheless achingly vulnerable Myra must confront the impending loss of her child, which is to say she confronts the loss of pretty much everything.” - Chicago Tribune
“The production… boasts a slew of finely tuned performances, particularly from McKnight. The central figure, her Myra pulls us in instantly as she worries about losing Pete to her wealthy ex… McKnight’s fine sense of the character’s quiet nobility makes Myra easy to root for.” - Variety
"As the young woman, McKnight is elegant and lovely in her subtle suggestion of the dichotomy in her character as she remembers pivotal moments of her coming of age, and is horrified by the vision of the old woman she will become." - Chicago Sun-Times
"... And as the woman's young and idealistic self, the vulnerable, complex McKnight delivers a monologue as emotionally painful as it is sensual. It recounts a brief, youthful vista of sexual and seemingly spiritual fulfillment, which will never return. It's delivered with such wistful delicacy it makes you mourn your own happiness -- as unappreciated -- at the time." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight is superbly cast and she turns in a rich, compelling and strikingly sympathetic performance ... Whenever McKnight is onstage, she grounds the whole affair in truth..." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight ... proves once again that she is an actress of luminous intelligence and perception. Her every move and emotional shift is precise and piercing..." - Chicago Sun-Times
"McKnight is the standout, combining excellent physical grace with intensity, clarity and honesty in a role that could have been extremely unsympathetic, even repellent. See McKnight now, so you can say you saw her when." - Chicago Reader
"As portrayed by Jenny McKnight, an actress whose luminous work in several Eclipse productions should have grabbed the attention of every director in the city, both mother and daughter are forces to be reckoned with..." - Chicago Sun-Times
"Thanks to ... a blistering lead performance from Jenny McKnight, this is a powerful and gripping two hours of theater. McKnight, an immensely talented and honest performer whose work has grown a great deal in the last year, is terrific in the lead role." - Chicago Tribune
"In a staging so rich in breathtaking performances, it's difficult to single out any one artist, but Jenny McKnight's gently tragic Birdie balances most convincingly on a precipice separating honesty from mad greed." - Chicago Tribune
"McKnight's superb performance -- flickering between anxiety and determination -- is as musical and poetic and full of little fireworks as Williams' language." - Chicago Sun-Times
"Jenny McKnight's performance is exquisitely graceful." - Chicago Reader