Jessi Kirtley

Kirtley is from Roswell, Georgia, where she attended Mountain Park Elementary School, Crabapple Middle School, and Roswell High School. She began performing at a young age, partaking in public school musicals, local public theater camps, and dance lessons. In 2018, she received a Schuler Award^{[nb 1]} for Best Performance by a Supporting Actress for her performance as Paulette Bonafonte in Legally Blonde.^[1] The next year, for her performance as Mary Poppins as a junior in high school, she was awarded Best Leading Actress.^[2][3] Later that year, she performed at the Jimmy Awards, where she was a finalist.^[4][5]

Kirtley earned a Bachelor of Music in Music Theatre from Baldwin Wallace University.^[6]

Kirtley's professional theatre career began when she became a member of the Forestburg Playhouse resident company in 2022.^[7] Kirtley performed at Cleveland's Beck Center as Lizzie Borden in Lizzie: The Musical (2022)^[8] and Molly in Ghost (2023)^[9] as part of a collaboration between the Beck Center and Baldwin Wallace Conservatory of Music. In 2023, she led the Great Lakes Theatre production of Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812 as Natasha to critical acclaim.^[10][11] The production premiered in Boise, Idaho at the Idaho Shakespeare Festival.^[12] In 2024, Kirtley played Claire in Ordinary Days at Playhouse Square.^[13]

In 2025, Kirtley joined the original Broadway cast of Operation Mincemeat as first cover for Jean Leslie & Others and dance captain, marking her Broadway debut.^[14][15] In February 2026, she was promoted to principal for the role.^[16][17]