J.M. (Jean M.) Redmann grew up in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, a small town on the Gulf of Mexico. At eighteen, determined to escape the South, she headed north to attend Vassar College in Poughkeepsie, New York. The day after receiving her degree in drama, Redmann boarded a train for New York City. Determined not to become just another rich yuppie, she embarked on a career in theatrical lighting. Riches never once threatened her doorstep. To this day, they remain far afield.