--Joshua Jackson is a well-loved TV and film star who became a heartthrob 20
years ago on the teen smash Dawson's Creek, and has remained a fan favorite
ever since thanks to a healthy resume that includes a current sexy Showtime
hit The Affair. But the charming leading man is now living his best life
fulfilling a longtime dream of Broadway by starring in Children of a Lesser God
opposite Deaf newcomer Lauren Ridloff. Hear how theater saved the young actor
after his run as Pacey Witter ended, his advise for today's young Hollywood, and
what it's like to have a leading lady who never leaves his eye on this week's
Show People.
--Joshua Jackson. Thank you for coming in.
--Thank you for having me. --Welcome to
Broadway! --Thank you.
--You've wanted someone to say welcome to Broadway for a long
time. --For a long long time, yeah.
--This is a dream -- It's a dream and to do it with
something like this, which is so demanding but so rewarding and the
response that we've had so far has been really warm it has been yeah just a
dream. --You refer to Children of a Lesser God as
your happy place often on social media.
--Yeah. --It's your happy place.
--It is. Yeah I mean
the the experience of doing a play is such a joyful thing, and it's not it's
not the place that I spend the bulk of my work life. So when I do get the
opportunity to come and do it it's usually because something really
specific that I want to be a part of a story that I want to tell and you know
to to walk up to work every day and walk into a Broadway stage is a pretty
magical feeling for an actor. So it is my happy place. And it just so happens at
the environment that they've created for me to work in is also beautiful and I
have this collection of actors, particularly with Lauren, just this
connection that is really unusual. And frankly I, having never worked with
a deaf actor before, one of the things that I've learned: When we got into the
rehearsal process after a couple days, I was like something's discomfiting about
this and I realized it's because oh she never ever leaves my eyes. It's something
that you're always trying to search for when you're an actor, particularly on
stage, just find the two eyes. But she's always there with me. There's like
this rope tied between the two of them were onstage together. And that bond is
as a joy to experience every night.
--Children of a Lesser God, I remember when
the play first premiered abroad when I was a kid. It was a big sensation. I've
actually been surprised that it hasn't come back to Broadway sooner.
--I mean yeah
it should have --When I heard you guys were up in the
Berkshires I was like oh!
--Right of course that should. Yeah so I mean I
think partially it's because there's just not a lot of representation inside
of the Deaf community, onstage. Partially it's because the Sarah role is iconic
and really complicated, and because of the lack of representation there's not a
gigantic talent pool to draw from. And and so yeah I mean it's a magical it's
almost a dance that happens every night with her. It's just a magical thing to
watch. So yeah I'm I'm glad I'm part of the team that gets to bring it back.
--So how did that happen? I know your director Kenny Leon, the very
talented Kenny Leon. I'm reading his memoirs right now.
--He's yeah yeah
phenomenal man as well as a phenomenal director. --He directed you two years
ago off-Broadway in Smart People.
How did that lead to Lesser God?
--The conversation about this started there and he had told me that this is
something that he had been wanting to do for several years and I really loved the
experience of working with him on Smart People we you know sort of nebulously
started the conversation but there wasn't anything real or tangible about
it yet and so flash-forward... that was in February of two years ago, so
November of two years ago, he was putting together a read through and had
assembled a bunch of people and called me up and he wanted me to do it. You know,
no commitment at that point, and had said look I I haven't found I found everybody
else I think but I haven't found my leading lady. But I do have this woman
that has been teaching me ASL for the purposes of the read-through I think
would be amazing. Of course that's Lauren.
And she comes in, and and we're going
through day one the rehearsal day, and we get to the climactic scene in the play
where the Sarah character uses her voice, and she says through her interpreter, "I
haven't spoken out loud since I was 13 years old."
So 20-some odd years. -- Wow.
--Exactly, every hearing person in the room, no
matter what conversation they were in goes, "I'm sorry, what?" because it's an
inconceivable thing for us. And she said because I haven't used my voice I'm
not sure how it'll hold up two days in a row. Do you mind if I just wait until
tomorrow to use it when we have people in the
room? and then he of course said yes. So flash-forward, the next day, we're going
through... The play works. I mean Mark is a brilliant writer and it's an
excellent piece of text. And so the room is warm where it's supposed to be warm
and the you know the comedy is landing and the heaviness is landing. We finally
get to that scene, and we who had been in the rehearsal room the day before, all
knew that this was coming. So there's this like electricity frankly building
building building, and then when she let it go it was a nearly indescribable
blah blah blah, obviously indescribable.
A nearly indescribable, but kind of primal
experience. Because it wasn't so much about the sound, and she definitely
hadn't tried to make consonants or vowels for a long time. Really, it was
just this raw emotional outpouring, and I completely came unglued. Everybody
who could hear in the room, frankly. I looked up, Kenny was beside himself, Hal
was beside himself. And it was just one of those moments that can only
happen in a live space. And, you know, I walked out of that room, and Kenny and I
went to go get a drink afterwards and I was like man if that she can do that,
like that's the whole thing right there. And so that was the beginning of Lauren
being a part of this. --Wow it's incredible.
--Yeah --And she'd never done anything like
this. --No, and so I mean she's just an
amazing woman. So, so, she agreed to do
that. She agreed to do the second read-through. And she is not by choice a
professional actress, agrees then to do the summer run. And day by day, as she
learns the technique of the thing, she finds new ways to express herself, but
just instinctually is so very very right. Like she's just a phenomenal actress and
watching her discover the ways in which she can tell this story has been a true
joy, but for her to go from like teaching the director sign language to making
her Broadway debut in 16 months is crazy. And to be to handle it with such grace
and calm at every step of the way, the, she's she's one of one.
--So let's
set it up a little bit. You play James. --Mhm
--You said this is the most challenging thing you've ever done as an actor.
--By a long stretch.
--Let's set it up a little bit for the people that didn't
grow up with this play. Talk about this guy and sort of where where he's at...
--So James is ex-hippie, ex-Peace Corp, heart of gold guy, who has gone to school learn
sign language wants to be a speech therapist because he just wants to do
good and be on the right side of things. And in the process of working at this
one particular school meet so a woman who's working at the school as well, and
initially in his sort of misguided white knight-ness wants to help her, or really
force her to learn to speak, thinking that you know she has all of the tools
to have a full life, but she's just, by not speaking or lip-reading, she's
missing this one critical component. And and is trying to kind of force that upon
her. Through that tension, they fall in love and they embark on this life
together, and it's really the the beautiful tragedy of he and she never
really being able to to accept each other as they are, rather than how they
want them to be. --It is sort of a
beautiful romance on top of a lot of
other things, but what's it been like for bringing it back to audiences?
--First off,
I think people are surprised at how much they allow themselves to laugh. How much
funny there is in it. You know and there's a sign of good writing as well. A
lot of the tension is cut through with humor, and I think they're also just, you
know, when we nail the the the last three scenes of the play, I think people are
really caught off guard by how emotionally destructive the end of this
play is. I mean it really when I when we get it right, it will just tear your
heart out of your chest. --Mm-hmm. I love having my heart torn out
so I'm so in. --I know it's the
perverse reason why we go. --Absolutely.
--You know, you go to a play and you're just like
I want you to ruin my night. [laughs]
--Yeah I want you to reach in grab my heart and throw
it against the wall at Studio 54. --And stamp on it a couple times.
We got you. --Okay we're going to take a quick break.
We'll be back with more Joshua Jackson.
[jazz music]
[jazz music]
--We are back with Joshua Jackson, finally on Broadway in Children of a Lesser God
So excited. --After all these many years.
--So, let's talk more about Lauren Ridloff,
who I've had a few interactions with. She's very charming, very beautiful. I
love the the poster in the artwork look like you guys are I'm sure you're used
to doing very intimate like photo shoots with actresses, but it looks like your
faces are just inches apart. Is that photoshopped or what an awkward day of
like putting your faces just
--Yeah, well we're that was about halfway through the
day out of town run last summer. So we're quite used to being in each other's
faces at this point. And they may have I don't know I mean I don't know which two
images they used. There were definitely some shots that were where yeah you have
that funny thing of like "And hold it."
"Hi, so how are the kids? How's your husband?"
Make sure your breath smells good all that. --Exactly,
lots of breath mints. --So I know you just you just sort of told
story of how she
first got involved. What was it like getting to know her? What what it did was
it purely through the work? Do you go out of your way to sort of hang out beyond
the rehearsal room?
--Well, okay, so in the normal course of business, yeah. I think
particularly for leading man and leading lady it's important to get to know each
other to sort of understand who each other are, especially if you're going
to be going into places that are uncomfortable. You know, I want you
to be able to trust me and I want to be able to trust you that that we're going
to go to these places, and that, you know, I won't take it too far, and and you can
always rely on me to be there. In this case, it was more complicated because I
couldn't communicate with her, personally. I didn't know her language. So when we
got into the rehearsal space, we had interpreters with with us in the
rehearsal space, so we could communicate that way I was very quickly trying to...
I'd done a little, well not a little bit, I'd done quite a bit of work before I
got there, but had a lot more work yet to do just even they get the language of
the play. So we would spend our day in rehearsal, and then she I in Alexandria
Wailes, who's the ASL director for the show, who's come with us to this
production, as well, break out another four hours and slowly but surely build
me into a place where I was like post toddler in that language set.
--Now how much ASL do you know now?
--Okay, so there's actually two different languages. So
there's ASL, which the which is a language of Deaf people for Deaf people,
but I speak, well technically I speak pidgin signed English, but signed English
in the play, which is just our language, interpreted or translated directly into
signed English. So I'm conversational. I'm still expanding my vocabulary,
so when we get into like really specific things. I still have to ask her to show
me the signs, but you know she and I go out to when we have two-show days, we'll
go out for dinner in between the two shows I just the two of us, and we can
carry on a conversation easily. --Do you know how to sign shoot the shit?
--I guess it would
be...Yeah, shoot the shit.
Talk shit? I don't know.
--So Patrick Stewart, let's talk about that
guy. You were on a show called Dawson's Creek. Some people watching this might
know that. I think the world knows that. And after that ended, I'm sure is kind it was
like, you know, everyone was like what does this mean now for your career? That
was like sort of a big moment?
--Yeah, I mean, truthfully, we were...From the
outside or from the inside? Because from the inside, it was more like... I mean, we
were there for six years, so it was such a long and then ultimately complete
experience because we knew that we were going to end when we were going to end
it. So there was just this tremendous sense of relief. The panic didn't set in
for like a month and a half afterwards of like 'Oh man. I'm unemployed. What am I
gonna do?' But, yeah, the the finish of that... I knew
within a couple of months that I was gonna go and do this Mamet play with
with Patrick Stewart. -- Life in the Theater
--And I wanted the challenge. There was
something like a question that I needed to have answered for myself. And that was
the way to search for that answer. That was one of those moments in my life and
yeah, to put myself, you know, in Mamet's language on the West End, a two-hander
with just Patrick Stewart, is about the deepest of the deep end that you can
possibly go into. --Yeah moments like
that make me really like an actor
because it's like, you could have done so many
easier things but you were just like nope. --I'm not that guy.
--It's a bold statement. You went there and you didn't sink.
--The, we did not sink, no. We had the.. I mean, I did
have one scathingly bad review, which is of course the only review that I
remember. But it was brilliantly bad. I think he compared me... first off, he said I
was American, which is just factually incorrect, but he said I looked like an
American cockroach that had been flipped on its back trying to right itself on
stage.
That's pretty bad.
--Wow. --That's pretty bad
--And you really can quote it like that.
--I mean it's only been 17 years. [laughs] I'm sure I'll forget
eventually. --Haunted by that.
Okay. -- Yeah Evening Standard.
Oh yes, I remember.
--By all accounts, it was a success from
--Yes, other than that guy, it was a success.
--Yeah, and it put Patrick
Stewart in your life, and and you say that he really kind of got
roof to fall back in love with this. Or... --If I I mean if I'm to be perfectly
honest, I was quite burnt out at the end of Dawson. So, there were many
satisfying moments through that experience, but there was many
unsatisfying moments. And if I could have ended it a couple years earlier
than we did, I would have. And part of the burnout was just doing one character
essentially for six years, and had forgotten what the joy of the job was,
and something was itching in me, which is exactly why I was like "This seems scary
and difficult. I'm going to go do this." And it was the process of rehearsing
with Patrick and then the process every night. I mean, he had, still, I mean, he's
such a skilled theatre actor. If he had wanted to slaughter me on stage, and just
to showcase his talents he absolutely could have done that. That was within his
power, but he's not that man. He was incredibly gracious, and incredibly
gracious in allowing my learning curve, which is, which was very steep for that
show. And being helpful where he could and just setting the parameters like how
a good actor does this, and seeing his joy in it, and then discovering my own
joy and it reminded me like, "Oh right. I'm an actor. This is really, truly what I
want to do. I love this." --And you had done
theater as a kid. -- I done theater as a kid.
--I've heard about your Charlie Bucket. People are still talking about it.
--That was, honestly, that show was
brilliant. ---Willy Wonka. Was it Willy Wonka
or Charlie and the Chocolate Factory? --It was
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. It was the first time, I think
this is true. If it's not, I'm gonna make it true for this show.
-- Let's make it true.
--I think it was the first time that Roald, it was right before Roald Dahl died. And he gave
his blessing because it was a professional show. And it was the first time
it had ever he'd ever said okay you can charge people to see this. But it was
just a beautiful crazy, so crazy, telling of that story. And I, you know, I was a kid
who was raised on those books so that was a brilliant time. And then I'd done a
little workshop-y and smaller things over the years. But like I said, it's really
specific experiences in my life: The coming to the theater world that
I have been looking for something to do on Broadway since working with Patrick
in the West End. And they brought that show to Broadway, but I couldn't do it
because I was working. Life in the Theater
They brought our production of The Life in
the Theatre to Broadway -- Oh Life in the Theater. I thought you
meant Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I'm
like, that was last year, dude.
I'm sorry you're too old to play Charlie
Bucket. I mean it would have been fun, but.
--Yeah --Right Life in the Theater
Suddenly, this
is really creepy. No, they brought our productions of Life in the Theater here.
And I couldn't do it because I was working, which was heartbreaking.
--And T.R. Knight was like I'll do it! --Yeah, bastard!
So, so, I have been looking looking looking
looking looking, and finally this thing, this monumental thing that we're trying
to do, is how I get to get here, which is
--Finally! Dreams come true you just
have to be really, really patient. --Yeah.
--Okay. We're gonna take another break.
We'll be right back with more Joshua Jackson.
[jazz music]
[jazz music]
--We're back with more Joshua Jackson. Let's talk about another iconic role,
The Changeling. That was another important one for you wasn't that?
--Wasn't that a big...?
--Wow, you have done your research.
Yes it was my debut. I was baby in pram. I
think I'm probably uncredited in that, but yeah that was the first time I was
--You weren't Union. --Probably, yeah exactly.
Darn! But, yeah, I've been I guess technically at
this since I was very very young.
My mother was working on The Changeling
in Vancouver, and I'm not exactly sure how it is that I ended up in a stroller,
but I ended up in a stroller.
--Are you actually in the movie? --In the briefest of
all possible ways. --Okay okay. So no real memories of that one.
--No, but I think it was six
months old. [laughs] --Okay, so, and mom sort
of brought you to auditions and it seems
like she... I mean she was in the in the business. --Right, so single mom. So, yeah, I
was in her workspace quite a lot. My mother was a casting director, and she,
and like, I said I was in her work environment quite a lot. And her
assistant was also a single mom, so her son and I would just hang out in her
office after school. That particular thing was being cast during the summer.
And so they were looking looking looking for two kids to play brothers who were
the the stars of the movie. There's a flashback sequence in the beginning of
the film, and we were just always around and as they were looking looking looking.
--They were like those two!
--Yeah, the the director was kind of like, you know, I get all
these professional kids and they're too polished. I want it a little bit rough.
And so he's like just bring them in. Apparently, I got the job because at some
point I just threw my arm around the other guy because we knew each other so
well, and they were like yep that works! Okay you're good. And I do remember
however, my first professional day as an actor, I didn't know what mark was, I
didn't know anything. But so apparently, I showed up and they were like, "So
you're gonna go there and you say your lines." Okay, so I would walk up and look
down at the piece of tape and then I stood up like completely stiff, and I
said whatever my line was. So I worked for five days on that show, and at the
end of the fifth day we shot that the first scene that we had done together.
And I was like why? Didn't we already do this once?
The director's like, "Well, you've kind of eased into
it now. But that first day, you looked like someone had shoved a broomstick up
your ass you were so stiff. So I just thought we should come back and do this
again. I was like, Oh okay.
Show business! Here we go.
--And that was Crooked
Hearts, your first film right?
--Yeah. --People can still watch that.
--The yeah you can
find it. I mean, it is a truly phenomenal cast. That's like a an amazing amazing
collection of actors. --You know, when
you look at your career, it is
incredible, how you your career...When you, I mean it's it's pretty amazing.
You've, you've always stay interesting and you've always gotten involved in
real interesting projects, and you've been working. What what is the, what's the
secret to that? What, I mean, if you had to give advice to someone on some hot teen
show right now who's like What do I? What's gonna happen to me? I mean it's
really an interesting path. --Well, I mean,
if you are on one of those shows, of
which there are several right now, I would say care less about being pretty.
Right? There's a whole industry built around kind of frivolous, external
things, which is actually worse now than when I was doing Dawson's because the
social media thing hadn't didn't exist yet. And, you know, be honest with yourself.
What is it that you love about this job? And if you love the part where you're,
you know, where you're in a scene with another human being and something
magical can happen, and and you know a wise voice can give you a little
direction, and and so an idea that hadn't occurred to you can come out, then take
the time. Right? like the gray hairs and the wrinkles are the good stuff. Right?
Like if you if you take real joy out of this, and you continue to feed it,
right, you put everything that you have into it and it feeds you back, then
you'll have as long as you want, I think. --Right, go call Patrick Stewart and go to
London. --Well yeah, I mean, Patrick's a
really good example. I had, I've had
several very important like actors that I have worked with like at very specific
moments in my life, where you see, "Oh, this is how it can be done well over time." And
you know, we all want to be successful and we all want to be you
know have to have the whole Megillah, but the truth of the
matter is is that, the chasing of that kills a lot of the joy. And if you can be
alright with not constantly chasing the bright, shiny thing. And just finding the
things that feed you. And I've certainly been guilty of chasing the bright, shiny
thing, so I'm not throwing stones from glass houses here, but it, over the course
of time if you just can keep on coming back to the thing that makes you happy,
that thing that feeds you, I think you can do this for a very long time.
--I realized that that you will be on Broadway this year for your birthday.
--Yes. --And it's a good birthday.
--The big 4-O
--That's exciting. -- That's a
big one. So if you had, if the Broadway goal was 40, you made it!
--Yeah [laughs] --By 40, I got to get
to Broadway.
--I didn't put a timeline on it, but it is an excellent birthday present for 40.
--So, what is turning 40 mean to you?
--Well, partially it's that survivor thing.
I got the, every year that clicks by is another year that like I can't believe I
still get to tell stories for a living. This is amazing. The transition into 30
was one of the greater reliefs of my life. It's amazing how much, how
much easier things got north of 30. Like, the 20s, for anybody who's in your 20s,
enjoy it. It's a ton of fun, and it gets easier I promise. Because just everything
is difficult when you're in your 20s, and then you know that my 30s have been
pretty fantastic. So I'm hoping that my forties will kind of keep that going.
--Forties it just keeps getting better. I can tell you.
--The, okay, good.
--So, what do you want people to know about this play? It's a really cool play. I feel
like a lot of your fans might not know it, you know. I think it's exciting bringing
it to a new audience. --- Yeah. I mean, I think...
I think a lot of people won't know
it. It's so, I've had a funny experience describing it. When people are like
what are you doing? I'm doing a play. What's the play? I'm
Doing Children of a Lesser God. Every single person that you say the title to
goes, "Oh, I know. I love that. And then I can see the second thought of like you
have no idea what that's about. It's such a great title that everybody
seems to remember the title. And, you know, if and if you remember the movie
you'll recognize the story, but the telling of the story on stage is
completely different. And I and I hope that it you know people are
transported for the two hours that they're with us every night.
And then we rip your heart out throw it against the wall and stomp on it.
--Yes, please do that.
Looking for that. And also The Affair is also
coming back right? Season 4? -- Yeah in June.
I'm going to have a big June.
--Yeah you have a big June. -- 40, The
Affair, show on Broadway --Look at you.
--Life is good. -- I don't know, your forties are gonna be good,
I think. --Oh, I'm off to a good start
barring disaster knock on wood.
--Well Children of a Lesser God is at Studio 54, the legendary
54. Thank you so much for coming by.
--Thank you for having me. --Thank you for being on Broadway. I hope see
more of you on the Broadway stage.
-- Well let me get through this one first, and
then absolutely.
--Okay great. Thank you so much everyone. Check out Childen of a Lesser
God at Studio 54. Thank you for watching. We'll see you next week.
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