Diplomatic Maven Jan Du Plain Lists D.C. Theatre She’s Excited For

The patron, PR and diplomatic maven of Du Plain Global Enterprises talks the background world of D.C. theatre.

We spoke with 11 of D.C.’s performing arts professionals to learn more about how they set the scene. Check out the rest of the roundup here. 

Throughout Jan Du Plain’s storied career, she’s repped films for CBS, television and radio for WETA and plays for Ford’s Theater. Her truest calling has been connecting D.C.’s diplomatic community to the region’s arts and audiences. We caught up with Du Plain about public relations, returning to D.C. and cultural diplomacy. 

District Fray: What was your entry point into public relations?
Du Plain: My father was a newspaperman, so I grew up in the world of communications, reporting and deadlines. After traveling the world starting when I was three — my dad wanted to write the Great American novel — we landed back in a small California town called La Cañada Flintridge, where he ran an award-winning local paper. He continued traveling and writing stories. I’m grateful to him for giving me a sense of global citizenry, caring about the world and its people. 

After working in California and New York, why did you decide to return to D.C.?
New York was overwhelming for me, to be honest, at that time of my life. There’s California and there’s New York, and then right in the middle is Washington, D.C. It’s more manageable. My first job was PR at Ford’s in 1971. The numerologist on staff told the head of Ford’s, Frankie Hewitt, that I would be very committed and that she should hire me. Frankie was a very interesting woman. She convinced the secretary of the interior to have a theater at Ford’s in the first place. That was the same year the Kennedy Center and Wolf Trap opened. 

How did you get into cultural diplomacy?
After I started my company, I met with Cultural Tourism DC. They were starting a project to open the doors of embassies to the public. We have the largest diplomatic community in the world, more than 180 embassies. It’s called Passport DC. Working with embassies became my niche. We went on to do the Embassy Chef Challenge. I am also the embassy liaison for the DC World Trade Center; they do 300 international events a year. 

A subscriber to multiple theaters, Du Plain is eager to catch three historically-informed shows this season: “Tempestuous Elements” @arenastage, “Confederates” @mosaictheaterdc and the American tribal love-rock musical “Hair” @sigtheatre.

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Chad Dexter Kinsman