In this episode, we caught up with Joe Jackson, who is the Department of Theatre & Film's new Instructional Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre Dance. Fun fact about Joe—he's actually an alum of our program! We talked about that, and what he's teaching, and so many other things.
In this episode, we caught up with Joe Jackson, who is the Department of Theatre & Film's new Instructional Assistant Professor of Musical Theatre Dance. Fun fact about Joe—he's actually an alum of our program! We talked about that, and what he's teaching, and so many other things.
More about Joe: http://theatreandfilm.olemiss.edu/JoeJackson.html
Katherine Stewart
Hello hello and welcome back to Stage & Screen1 I’m your host, Katherine Stewart, and my guest today is Joe Jackson. He joined out department this semester as Instructional Assistant Professor or Musical Theatre Dance he is also chroegraphing our big fall musical INTO THE WOODS, which opens tonight, Friday November 4, and runs through Sunday November 6 Joe was a delight to visit with and we had a really fin conversation. I think you’ll enjoy it, so stick around.
Good morning, Joe. Thank you very much for joining us today.
Joe Jackson
Thanks for having me. I'm excited to be here.
Katherine Stewart
Absolutely, we're excited to have you, so yeah. Just to kick us. Off if you wouldn't mind. How about just introduce yourself? Tell us. Who you are and and where you're. From and what we're doing here?
Joe Jackson
Awesome, I could speak on this for days, but I'll make it brief. So Long story short, I am originally from Atlanta. Georgia I am an alum of the program. I asked no so I was here from 96 to 2000. I graduated with a BFA in theater and a concentration in musical theatre.
Katherine Stewart
Yes, we will talk more about that.
Joe Jackson
I went on to New York where I was working in and out of the city. I got my equity card. Uh, you know after a few years of doing non equity work, which I think is important for my understanding and appreciation of the business and I, you know, I definitely have a lot of knowledge that I I I look forward to imparting onto our students. And and then I have. I'm back here now with my masters now in directing as well as a lot of years of professional work, both on stage and as a director and choreographer.
Katherine Stewart
Wonderful, so can you tell us a little bit about some of I don't know. Some career highlights that you've had in between leaving and coming back.
Joe Jackson
I can't. Great question. So uhm, what probably one of the biggest opportunities I had was I was on a national tour non excuse me on an equity tour with the Broadway icon Tommy Tune he is known for being one of the only people that actually. As a Tony Award for Best Actor Best Supporting Now. After directing and choreographing, so he's he's sort of done it all and it was on a production called Doctor Dolittle with Mr. Toon and originally it was it had all the hopes of, you know we're going to do an out of town run. We're going to go on tour and then eventually it's going to transfer into Broadway and all of us on tour. We're all excited about that. Or that ever that you know that opportunity, but the show had its problems and it it it we? Let's just say we ended our tour a little earlier than we expected. But it wasn't for lack of our our our efforts the show had some some struggles with the writing and whatnot, but it was fun to be able to tap onstage with Tommy Tune every night. Uhm, I I got to be a tap dancing sock monkey. Uh, because there's a. Yeah, there's a point in the story where Doctor Dolittle goes to Monkey Monkey Island where he meets, you know, the little friend that that he a little monkey that he, you know, be friends and and follows him on his journeys. And so the concept was that all of the inhabitants of the island were sock monkeys. So we had. Costumes that were crocheted for us. We had honest to God like sock monkey costumes. It was hilarious. So yeah, so that that was quite a highlight from that and then some of the other things is been able to work at some really wonderful. Theaters from Arena Stage and DC to the. To Walnut Street theater in Philly where I worked a lot. Pittsburgh Public theater in Pittsburgh Cielo where I just moved from. So yeah, some really wonderful places to work, and I think the other highlight not only working at those places with was being able to work with amazing people right from directors and choreographers. Two other artists that I respect and have, you know grown to really appreciate.
Katherine Stewart
Wonderful wonderful so. You mentioned how exciting it is to be able to impart all of this experience and knowledge that you've gotten. What are you? Teaching this semester and maybe next semester. If you know yet.
Joe Jackson
Yeah I do, so I am my official title is instructions. I'm sorry. I'm actually looking at it as I speak. That's so long. I am an instructional. Assistant professor of musical theater. So it's a long way to get around to saying. I get to. Dance and it's awesome. I get to teach. And I always tell people it's the best job ever and I I really try to bring that into every class that I that I teach. And I I hope my students would would echo that sentiment. I I like to have fun in class I. I like to think I'm a fun person in general, but. Uhm, you know class is where we learn and we grow and it's you have to create an environment. That students feel comfortable taking risks and if if I come in with you know an iron fist. And no, we're going to do XYZ, then you know the students aren't going to want to give their all you know and or at least they're going to be hesitant, I think. And so providing an environment that they can have fun. Again, and and and an environment to explore and to learn new things I think is important. So the classes that excuse me, the classes that I ioffer that we can have fun in. When I do, I am teaching three classes this semester and then three next semester. The first class is called dance fundamentals, and in that class we we start with very basic rudimentary movement forms, and even when I talk about like you know when you're born, you don't know how to move yet. You're figuring things out and we explore. You know how the body. Trains itself to do movement patterns and then those movement patterns are things like we eventually start to walk, and then we eventually, you know, figure out how to you know, hold a cup of coffee, or how to brush our teeth right? These are all movement things that our body is trained to do, but then that same idea we want to apply to learning dance. Right, and so as long as we condition our body and train it and do things the correct way, we can train ourselves to be able to. Do you know tap steps and you know a pirouette? Turn in ballet. So dance fundamentals is that basic fundamental class where we are learning a. A lot of a lot of basic technique things that students will carry into other classes that they take while they are here and so that dense fundamentals is running this semester. And it's also going to run next semester. The other class I'm teaching right now is contemporary dance contemporary 1. Which is a fun class for me because growing up I was not a contemporary dancer. It was a style that I did not have a lot of experience in. Then and it was probably if you asked me before the school year started. What class or what I was most afraid of. I would say teaching that contemporary class because you never want to walk into a room and have the students feel like they know more than you and I made it very clear. Day one I said listen, a lot of you probably have a lot more experience in this style than I do, but I'm still going to. You know we're going to learn and we're going to have fun as we go, and I've been able to bring something new to their learning because a lot of them said that they really had no idea of the history component of contemporary or modern dance. And being able to have class the way that I've I've structured it is that we've learned we learn about the the dance, the modern dance pioneers, and we. We research what movements they you know what, what, what, it was that that they brought to modern dance and a lot of them are making connections of like oh. My dance teacher back home would always teach this. Now I know where that came from, you know, and so it's been a really fun class that I no longer I'm afraid of of. And I think that the students and I we. All have a really cool. Bond really cool connection in class because again we keep it fun. We keep it light. We work hard though. You know the. Some of the combinations we're doing are challenging. We're rolling around the floor throwing our bodies all over the place and jumping and spinning, and you know, and it's it's. It's fun. It's fun to create and explore with them, so that's the second class I teach. The third class I teach is called Theater Dance 1 and that is. Besides the contemporary class being like a class, I was a little nervous about teaching. That's the class I'm most excited to teach. I think that's sort of my jam. You know, that's what I do. It's it's it's it's in my it's in my wheelhouse and I, I really love it. I love the students that I get to teach. They're they're. All theater majors and. All in the class with this desire. To improve, they're all there to better themselves, and they are bringing such wonderful energy that it makes my job super easy. 'cause I get to say OK, here are the things you're going to want to know. You might need to know as you continue a career in this business. So that's theater dance. One in the spring I'll teach theater, Dance 2 and the way that that's. Different is in theater dance 1. We cover a lot of different styles of theater dance, right? We've done a ballet unit we did, you know, we're right. Now we're in our ballroom unit, so we're learning how to waltz, how to do salsa today in class. They're going to work on salsa, and then you know, swing, dance, and then we'll actually touch on. Jazz style like theater, dance, jazz, and then we'll get into a little bit of tap as well. And then in the theater dance two class. In the spring. What that class? Will be designed to do is now that they have that basic understanding of different styles of theater dance. We're going to focus on certain choreographers, right? So there's going to be a unit on Fosse, a unit on Jerome Robbins, a unit on, you know, you know. Kathleen Marshall and or whatever you know major choreographer Tommy Tune, right? So that they get to know how certain shows. What the choreography is for? Shows and you know, there's always standards that you're going to want to know if you go into an audition like the opening of a chorus line is so standard and everybody needs. If you're a musical theater person, you might ever audition for a chorus line. You should know when they say 5678, you know what to do right after that, so. So yeah, so that's those are my classes that I teach now. Next semester. Like I said, I'll teach dance fundamentals. I'll teach theater, Dance 2 and then instead of contemporary, we're going to. I'm going to teach jazz.
Katherine Stewart
It all sounds like so much fun, so you I'm just just for my own curiosity. You mentioned that contemporary was not your favorite style. What is your favorite style? Do you have one?
Joe Jackson
Well, and I mean. Not that it's not my favorite 'cause. I I I love. That it's been so it's been something that I was nervous about, right? And so it it was something that I've wrote throughout the last. Like I think we're in Week 9 right now over the last nine weeks I have grown such an appreciation for it. Right, because I've been teaching it now and it's it's really becoming. Such a fun. Style for me, but my one of my favorite styles is theater dance, but also tap. I'm a big Tapper and so I look forward to, you know, being able to offer tap at the university. It is being offered. Sorry it's being taught by Renee Pulliam. And Renee crazy full circle is Renee was my tap teacher when I was here. So it's it's it's crazy. I know every Monday, Wednesday, Friday our ships pass and we get to to say hi and it feels like I'm still that like 18 year old student. You know with her as my my my teacher, even though now we're contemporaries, it's it's. It's really a bizarre kind of thing, but Renee still teaches one class. A semester as an emeritus professor, and so you know, definitely, you know, that's that's her. Her sort of niche and her her baby, so she's going to continue that. And then at some point if down the road I have the opportunity to teach tap I, I definitely will will ***** ** the TAP shoes and be excited to do that.
Katherine Stewart
I love it. I love it well, since I you had mentioned a couple of Times Now that you aren't alone and I did want to know what it's like for you being back aside from running into your former professor and now colleague.
Joe Jackson
It's crazy, yeah, it's super weird. You know it's very full circle. The university still feels the same even though the university itself has grown. You know, when I when I walk around campus, it still feels the same. Oxford in general, though, has grown right. It's gotten much bigger. Uhm, you know it's also different coming in. As you know a you know a wide eyed. You know freshman 18 years old into Oxford. And now I'm in my Florida, you know, and considerably older, but I'm coming at it. You know, with a family I've got a, you know wife and two kids. And a cat and a dog. And you know, we're looking for a place to live, whereas when I was here when I. As a student, yeah, it it. I didn't have to. Worry about all of that. You know in my life who just got to be on campus. And and you know, being able to experience the university and then a little bit of what Oxford has now. It's like I, you know, I'm like my kids are going to Oxford Middle School and you know my wife is here like you know, trying to find her like niche as well. She's working remotely since she still has her job back in Pittsburgh. It's just. It's a much. Different feel right? It's much different vibe than when I was here as a student, so I I think one of the other crazy things is when I was here, all of the theater offices and spaces were in Bryant Hall, so the third floor or the.
Katherine Stewart
That's fine thanks yes.
Joe Jackson
Yeah, the 2nd. Floor in Bryant. The upstairs part was where all the. Theater offices and there. Was a. Small like not a black box, but it was like a small theater there where I did half of the shows while I was here so that no longer being there or it's still there but no longer being having offices and classes. There is is is new. To me, so I've really embraced Isom Hall and where my office is and where the some of the acting classes are here is great, but. Then Fulton Chapel is still where we're performing, and so it's it that is also a very like full circle. Kind of surreal thing to be sitting out in the audience, like as a director, choreographer, watching. Students on stage instead of me being the one that that was up there. That's definitely definitely an an interesting sort of, you know, flipping of the coin if you will.
Katherine Stewart
Well and speaking again of Fulton, Chappell, and choreographing and watching students on stage. So you have choreographed our big fall musical into the woods. You tell us a little bit about that about your your concept in the process, and it's anything about the choreography for that show.
Joe Jackson
Absolutely so into the woods is, you know one of those classic standard musical theater pieces, sondheim's you know, really one of his master masterworks. It's always, you know, Sondheim to performers. You're all performers would always be so excited to do Sondheim because it's so challenging. And yet there's this daunting thing about performing it because it's so challenging, so that also goes into choreographing, you know, as a choreographer, one of the first things I do is I. I listen to the music over and over. I really get us in. I read the script over and over and I really get a sense of what the story is. What you know the music is is what the feel of the music is, what it, what's the story that we're trying to tell? So and then as I go deeper into it, I I look at the score and I look at, you know how is how are the measures written? How is the music? Come composed and Sondheim is challenging, you know, the the counts. The meters are. They're always changing, it's it's. It's a really. It's a really challenging thing for choreographer as well as a music director you know to be. Able to have. To be able to get their students get the cast to do what we are, we're hoping them. So I think for me you know the other. The other interesting thing is because it's into the woods. There's not a lot of quote, UN quote dance, right? I know last year the university did Legally Blonde and that's known for being a huge dance show, right? So hours and hours of rehearsal is going to be dedicated to mastering. All these dance numbers well into the woods isn't like that. There's very little you know, official, like, quote, UN quote dance in the show. So coming into the process, I worked with Dan Stearns or director to really try to get an understanding of you know what are, what does he need from me, right? What does the the show need that I can provide as the yes, the choreographer, but I also look at it as I'm sort of the movement coach. A little bit, you know, things like. Little red, you know, how does she skip around the woods? You know how does what is her movement like you know so I'm trying to help her or help the different characters. Make sure that they're they're making interesting choices and correct choices for what? The characters are. But then also you know the moments where there there is dance. How do we? How do we? How do we tell the story effectively? Because this is a challenging piece. There's a. A lot of. Different characters that have different status, right? So we think of Cinderella sprints and Rapunzel prints and you know they they're they're. They're going to be onstage, carrying themselves in a different way than the Baker, and the Baker's wife, right? So being able to play that and being able to make sure that the audience. Knows that and the actors are portraying that correctly is also, I think, a little bit of what I've I've been doing throughout work.
Katherine Stewart
How interesting do you have any favorite numbers from that show?
Joe Jackson
Oh, they're also good.
Speaker
Yeah, I know.
Joe Jackson
Uhm, yeah. I mean, I think I, you know, I enjoyed working with the actors that are portraying wolf and little red on when they do the number. Hello little girl. That's that definitely was. That was one of the first things that I knew I was going to choreograph 'cause the director said. You know, I want it to feel like, you know, dance. In that moment, so we got to create, you know, again, looking at the storytelling aspect of it, it was, you know, we decided. The wolf wants to disorient red so that he can send her on a different path in the woods so that he can take the correct path to Grandmother house, 'cause he gets there. Spoiler alert if you don't know he gets there before little red and then, well, we all know what happens with you. Know the actual fairy tale so. It was fun to create movement and dance that tells that story right? How can they? Wolf dance with her in a way to disorient her and send her on a different, different path. So I think that that that number is definitely one of my favorites. And then there's some really fun big group numbers in the show, and they're all called different things like first midnight second, midnight, and then it's just like Act 2 finale. Right, so it's not like they have really fun numbers necessarily, but all the times that the cast is onstage, getting to dance and have fun is always a is always a highlight for me.
Katherine Stewart
Absolutely well, I can't wait to see it. Yeah, it's going to be wonderful. Well, is there anything else you'd like to share about the show or yourself or anything that we? Didn't touch on.
Joe Jackson
That's a great question. I'd just say come, come, see it. You know it's definitely a different version of into the woods, right? The director and creative team. You know chose to set it in a in a nontraditional way, and I think cast not cast it necessarily. But like how the actors you know. Uhm, let's just say the direction is a nontraditional into the woods, right? And so I don't want to give too much away. I'll let the audience come in and experience it fresh, but I think that that's that's one of the fun things about it is taking a very standard kind of classic piece and trying to look at it from a different perspective and bring something fresh.
Katherine Stewart
Wonderful fantastic. Well thank you so much Joe. It's been wonderful getting. To visit with you.
Joe Jackson
Thank you, it's it was. It was awesome chatting with you and I hope that you have a great rest of your day and a wonderful year.
Katherine Stewart
Fantastic, I hope you do too and I hope to see you at the show or at the. Opening night reception.
Joe Jackson
Yeah, and maybe we'll do one of these. 'cause I'm choreographing little shop later in the spring so you know we'll come back then and, you know, have another chat.
Katherine Stewart
Oh, definitely. Absolutely I would love it.
Joe Jackson
Wonderful, take care.
Katherine Stewart
Alright, well I'll talk to you soon, thanks.
Once again, that was Joe Jackson, our new Instructional Assistant professor of Musical Theatre Dance. We are so happy to have him, so Don’t forget to check the show notes for more information about Joe.
Until Next time, this is stage & Screen.