Djanet Sears

Who is Djanet Sears?

Djanet Sears is a Canadian playwright, actor and director. She was born in 1959 in England, to a Guyanese father and a Jamaican mother. Sears was raised in England and Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. Her birth name was Janet — she added the D when she came across a town called Djanet on a trip to Algeria.

Her play Harlem Duet won many Canadian awards, including four Dora Mavor Moore Awards and a Governor General's Award for drama.

In addition to her writing, Sears also acts in theatre and film productions. She was also a founding member of Obsidian Theatre, a Toronto theatre company that specializes in African and Caribbean Canadian drama, and is a professor at the University of Toronto.