We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Jax Jackman. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Jax below.

Hi Jax, thanks for joining us today. We’d love to hear about a project that you’ve worked on that’s meant a lot to you.

I have been a professional theatre artist for over 20 years. I have done multiple World, New York and Regional premieres throughout my career that I am proud to be a part of. I am multifaceted as a theatre artist as I am a stage manager, actor, choreographer, director and designer. I have also utilized the skills I have learned in theatre and expanded my talents to perform and produce drag and variety shows, I have been fortunate to work different major projects like managing the Broadway performances for the Macy’s Thanksgiving Parade to curating the entertainment for Salt Lake City’s inaugural grassroots community pride festival, SLC Pride.
The type of projects that have been meaningful to me have been the shows/events I have help create that truly elevates the local communities I have had the privilege to be a part of. I am a biracial, bisexual, nonbinary person. I have been active in especially the Queer and Trans community and have found people that support, love and enrich my life every day.
I have been dedicating my talents to bring unheard voices and stories to the forefront. Creating shows and events where people can show off their talents, find and support their loved ones or just get on stage and face their fears has been truly magical. I have found so much joy in seeing people shine on stage, backstage and in the audience. Creating spaces for people to be their true selves has been very rewarding.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Theatre is a big part of my family history which inspired me to find a place in the theatre where I could thrive. I started acting and singing at a very young age. I found my voice, literally, on any stage I was able to step on. I did every activity that gave me a chance to perform. I also loved painting, crafting and getting a chance to be apart of the backstage management. It wasn’t until my college years that I found my love for stage management. Stage management gave me a chance to harness my talents of multi-tasking, organizing and leading the production. I quickly moved to the NYC to pursue my ever growing career in theatre. I hustled to make my dreams come true and found joy beyond accomplishing my dreams by using my stage management talents in other forms of performing arts such as Drag. I became a drag performer for many years while also managing and producing shows in Salt Lake City. Now, I focus my energy on creating better performing spaces for the sober queer community and the trans community here in Utah. I can’t wait what magic I can help create in the future.

How can we best help foster a strong, supportive environment for artists and creatives?

Society needs art. We are nothing without the flow of stories, music and dance. When we lose our ability to express ourselves through art, we lose the very fabric of community. Artists need people to support in any way possible to combat the constant threat of losing our freedom. We live in a world that wants to keep us isolated and scared to be ourselves. The best way to fight that is through art. Buy art, go to shows, start a dance club! Give ourself a chance to feel the euphoria of being a collective pursuing the joy of art. Then and only then can we be better to combat the constant hatred.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

The most rewarding part of being an artist, for me, is the freedom and joy I feel when I am able to share my art with others. I love seeing the pure bliss on their faces when they get to escape reality for a moment and just exist.