Heather Gilbert

Heather Gilbert is a brilliantly gifted and multi-award-winning American lighting designer celebrated for her profound emotional precision, painterly control of shadow, and exceptional ability to sculpt intimate and grand atmospheres alike. A graduate of Trinity University, she further mastered her craft at the prestigious theater department of Northwestern University, where she earned her Master of Fine Arts. Known for her unique ability to infuse performance spaces with a deeply evocative, breathing light that mirrors the psychological shifts of a narrative, she has built an illustrious biography through her extensive collaborations with premier regional institutions and commercial producers across the United States. She achieved monumental critical acclaim within the international theatrical community, securing a Tony Award nomination for Best Lighting Design of a Play for her exquisite, transformational work on the landmark Broadway production of The Sound Inside. Her extraordinary portfolio features defining, highly praised designs for acclaimed Off-Broadway and regional productions, most notably her celebrated work on the world premiere of Stereophonic, Bug, Our Town, and Everyday Charlie. Honored with the prestigious Drama Desk Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award, alongside multiple Joseph Jefferson Awards for her outstanding contributions to the vibrant Chicago theater scene, her exceptional artistic achievements continue to redefine the visual and emotional possibilities of modern stagecraft.