We’d be surprised if you hadn’t heard of or seen this actor and producer’s work in the­atres across Tasmania and beyond. Hobart’s John X is set to appear in the Australian premiere of Broadway’s WAITRESS in Melbourne next month.

Where did you grow up and where do you live now? I grew up in Geilston Bay, on the eastern shore of Hobart and now I live in Bellerive.

You’re about to star in the Australian premiere of WAITRESS, a Broadway hit, in Melbourne. Tell us about that. WAITRESS is a beautiful show that people will relate to quite strongly. It is soooo well written. It has all the feels in it. The fact it’s the first time this show has been on in Australia, and I’m getting the opportunity to originate my character Cal, is very special. The fortunate opportunity that I find myself in is never lost on me. The cast are exceptional and small, so we will become a very strong and tight en­semble family. Word-of-mouth will travel very well with this show once people see it and tell their friends about it. It’s going to be a must see and I look forward to sharing it with a lot of Tasmanians who I already know have booked tickets and are flying over. I look forward to seeing them at the stage door.

You also produce your own shows – how does that style of involvement differ for you? Is it more stressful? Oh yes, great question! Yes it is quite stressful. I find it quite difficult to compartmentalise my performing side to my producing side and sometimes I’ll be doing one while I’m thinking of the other, and vice versa. This is why I have two amazing co-pro­ducers in my wife Cassie and my good friend Ben Armitage. I always pick up a lot and learn a lot by doing shows on the mainland and I try to implement some of those techniques, policies and ways of doing things into our local shows that we produce. I try sometimes to not be in the shows, but my creative team makes the point that, because I’m so suited to certain roles and because I am essentially a professional, it will be detrimental to that show if I wasn’t in a certain role. Saying that makes it sound like I am a bit up myself I guess but, we want the show to be the best it possibly can!

I think my performance, especially in the later weeks before we open, during rehearsals does suffer a bit and I’m always chasing my tail to be ready for opening night because there are so many things going on in my head but it is what it is. I have gotten away with it for quite a while now so…

Where do you feel the Tasmania the­atre scene is at right now? The theatre scene is not good. But at the same time it’s not bad. There are two types of theatre in Tasmania. About 98% of it is community or amateur theatre where people don’t get paid, and the rest is professional usually funded theatre by the government. Now funded theatre, where they pay everyone, seems to only be able to afford to run shows for three or four days, whereas the community theatre tends to be for two to three weeks. This means the audience reach in the community shows is 80% bigger than what they get in the small professional shows, which are primarily just plays. Longer seasons allow people who see the show early to tell their friends and create a buzz so that people start booking tickets and coming to see the rest of the season. They have a much bigger audience reach.

I can talk forever on this, and the govern­ment does not support the Arts here as it does in other states, especially commercial shows. The funding body refuses to fund commercial shows that bring in big audi­ences and make venues like the Theatre Royal generate bigger incomes. But at the same time they don’t fund the only two companies now that are left, to be able to do shows longer and more, and plan for shows in the future. The whole funding system is broken and is causing a lot of division between the different factions in Tasmanian Performing Arts. So when John X Presents does a professional com­mercial musical like Rocky Horror, we take all the risk, and we are not assisted by the government or anyone else other than a few small sponsors. Huge shout out to GSD – a business consulting and transformation company that sponsors our productions. And that production of Rocky Horror broke every single theatre record in Tasmania that ever existed. Maybe the government need to look at inspiring companies to take a bit more of a risk by offering some support or some kind of guarantee against loss, because no one really has the balls that we do to take a big risk on a big professional show.

What advice would you give someone trying to get involved in theatre at the moment? The only advice I can give is what I did as a young person. Try and do as much as you can without over commit­ting yourself. Get in touch with various companies and ask when they are audi­tioning for shows, or if you’re backstage offer to help in those areas. We’re always looking for people in those areas. Try and build resilience. You won’t always be right for every show, you need to hang in there. This whole industry is built on dealing with rejection. But eventually you will get into a show and the more shows you do the more people you get to know and the easier it becomes. Never be afraid to ask for advice or help from people in the industry. We were once like you and we love to help you join us in the only job where thousands of people clap and cheer at the end of your day. You don’t get that working for the Commonwealth Bank.

Who do you admire? I really admire first responders. Police, ambulance, doctors, nurses, people who spend their entire lives helping other people who are in trouble or can’t help themselves for one reason or another. People who work in aged care for example I think they are amazing, they are my heroes.

Favourite podcast or tv show? Don’t really listen to podcasts, yet. I’m a bit of a late developer in that area. But a lot of my friends do and they’re probably gonna eventually get me into it. When I get a chance, I like to watch shows like Land­man, Tulsa King, and my guilty pleasure are shows about sport and AFL, and of course I LOVE LOVE LOVE watching sport.

Secret vice? I love pizza. I would eat it every day for every meal. It’s my favour­ite, so I have to pace myself.

What are you reading now? I’m reading the a script of the latest show I’m doing on the mainland, WAITRESS. But on the side, and once I learn my WAITRESS lines, I am in the middle of Bruny by Heather Rose and The Boys Club By Michael Warner.

What was your first job? My first job was working in my dad’s shop from about the age of five, and then when I was 17 or 18, I borrowed some money from my dad and opened up a video shop so I could have some kind of regular income while I practiced trying to be an actor. I did my first professional show at the end of 1994 at the age of 24.

What are your daily news/social media habits? Oh dear, I’m sorry to admit that I get up in the morning and check all my social media, and reply to people and react to comments on my posts. I get online and check the Mercury newspaper and I turn on the Sunrise show. And in the evening when I get home from the theatre I usually watch the late night news services on all the free to air channels and of course check my social media again. Which em­barrassingly I also do during the day.

Your favourite place for…

Breakfast: Bear with Me (when I can actually get there)

Lunch: Parthenon Souvlaki in Derwent Park

Dinner: Shoreline Hotel

Dream holiday destination? New York and Greece, I have relatives there.

Favourite Tasmanian secret? It would have to be the wilderness and regional Tasmania. I’m always surprised how many people have never been to visit their own state. And once you do you realise how special it is and how much a secret it is the rest of the world and other Tasma­nians.

Parting words? People often ask me why I never left to live in a big city on the mainland. And one of the reasons is I established a life here before my professional career in musical theatre took off, so I was already embedded in my hometown and my home state. I love this state so much. Of course, now that I’ve had children with my wife Cassie, it’s all about them and I don’t think there’s a better place for kids to grow up in than Tasmania. That’s why I’m so passionate about growing the state and creating opportunities in the future for our kids to be able to stay here and have lives and careers doing whatever they want.

WAITRESS opens at Her Majesty’s Theatre in Melbourne in 1 May. Tickets at www.waitressthemusical.com.au.