HAIR The Musical – Luke Jarvis
- Tell us a bit about yourself:
Alright here we go: I’m an actor currently working around Australia on HAIR which is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. I grew up in Newcastle (Newy) which is about two hours north of Sydney – a little coastal town with the BEST beaches (naturally I’m biased) As for my age… at least buy me a drink first! (Just kidding, mid twenties)
- Were you always interested in Drama and performing as a child, or did you pursue it later in life?
Actually my mum got me into it. I was offensively competitive as a kid and wasn’t all that great at team sports so wasn’t a fan of them at the time. I was about seven or eight when Mum asked me if I wanted to start drama classes. Initially I said no, but I think she’d had enough by that point and said “well, you’re doing it anyway.” I think I started taking it a bit more seriously once I was a teenager and knew it was something I wanted to do. So I threw myself into it as much as I could from that point.
- Tell us about your journey on stage, how did it come about?
My grandmother was a massive inspiration for me. She was a Music Theatre performer and singer all her life, didn’t really leave Newcastle because of her family, but she never worked a normal job. Theatre was her life. We used to listen to The Chicago soundtrack on tape in the car wherever we drove and her and I used to dance to the film the living room. And her voice… my god. I only heard the best of it after she’d passed away on tapes but she sounded like a young Shirley Bassey.
It’s a shame she never got to see me begin my career but I like to think I carry her with me in everything I do.
- How does it feel to have been involved in so many iconic Musicals? (Priscilla, West Side Story, HAIR, and more)
Look, I definitely can’t complain. I’ve been pretty lucky since graduating from uni and definitely have taken something special away from each of these shows. Each have had their specific challenges but the rewards and gifts they’ve given have been so worth it. And they’re all completely different which is very exciting as a performer.
- Who is the industry, living or not, inspires you?
Oh damn, that’s hard! There’s too many! The main ones are the people who continue to deliver incredible work night after night, scene after scene. People who work their ass (can I say that?) off and constantly want to better themselves. It’s so easy to slack off once you’re in a good position but when someone is continuing to push themselves, it reads.
As for life idols, I love Bowie and have a mild obsession with Freddie Mercury…
- How do you believe that HAIR, now celebrating it’s 50th anniversary, is still relevant today – especially in Australia?
The content the show deals with is scarily still so relevant. We still have racism. We still have war – to which most of us don’t even know why. We still have fear over sexuality. Our planet is still facing continual and catastrophic environmental damage that will have serious ramifications in our lifetime. Sure, the piece is set in the context of the Vietnam war (which a lot of Australians can still relate to) and stems from the birth of the 60s sexual and spiritual revolution, but more so than ever we are seeing all of these fears in our own time.
The final song of the show “Let the Sunshine In” – kind of known as this hippy lovey-dovey flower song – is actually a war cry. It’s peaceful protest, asking whoever hears it to wake up – to stand up. To actually do something to make this world a better place. When you have a group of people who accept each other unconditionally despite their differences, come together and send that message out to an audience, it’s really powerful.
- Who is someone you dream of working with one day?
One of my mates who is over in the States at the moment absolutely killing it, Geraldine Viswanathan – we went to school together – I just reckon it would be cool if someday our paths crossed – who knows? It would be so much fun!
- What musical/stage production that you have worked in was your favourite and why?
Probably West Side Story so far: I’d always wanted to do that show because the music and the choreography is breathtaking together when done right. I never thought I’d be a good enough dancer to do it though so when I found out I was doing it I was both over the moon and terrified. And I mean, it was outdoors on a huge stage overlooking the Sydney Opera House and the Harbour Bridge – I had to pinch myself, A LOT – still got bruises… dancing those steps to that music, sometimes in the RAIN, I’ll never forget it. But HAIR is a very close second!
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Photo by Mladen Blagogevic Photography -
