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The stage made its call loud and clear to AMJ practically
from the beginning. His most memorable role in grade school was Linus
in a reworked version of It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown (renamed
Pineapple because he lived in Hawai'i at the time). During high
school in Florida, he performed in Regional, District, and State drama competitions,
bringing home several awards. His turn as Grandpa in You Can't Take It
With You became a bit notorious when some in the audience found his performance
so convincing they thought a 75-year-old was playing the role instead of
the teenage AMJ!
But adulthood didn't allow him to tread the boards again until 1997,
when he lucked into Steve Oakley's The Ballad of Bobby Rae, which
ran at The Playhouse of the Foothills in Tujunga, California. During a
rehearsal, AMJ jokingly overplayed his role of gay confidant Randy because
AMJ found the character too stereotypical. Oakley liked AMJ's additions
so much that they ended up in the script! 
In 1999, AMJ returned to the Playhouse, this time as a dimwitted mobster in Oakley's Festival Fever. With slicked-back hair and a thick Brooklyn accent, AMJ played Luigi with his usual aplomb. One night, the actor playing his brother Angelo had a family emergency, which the cast found out about 10 minutes before curtain. Since he and AMJ always appeared together, AMJ combined Angelo's dialogue with Luigi's and performed the two brothers as one character. "He can do anything," Oakley said of AMJ after the show. |
In 2002, a co-worker recruited AMJ to join Aerospace Players' production
of Oklahoma! just as the cast went into its first reading. He ended
up in the role of Slim, who, aside from being part of the chorus, had
just seven lines. But when the director saw what AMJ could do, Slim ended
up hoofing it through several of the show's production numbers as well.
AMJ came to rehearsals in his cowboy boots so he could learn how to move
in them. His dedication paid off in another way the second night of the
show when he came down with a horrible cold but went on anyway, downing throat
lozenges whenever he could. The director complimented his performance, saying
he couldn't tell at all that he was sick! |
AMJ's next foray into theatre went beyond just acting - this time he
was also responsible for the book and lyrics! The Nine Lives of L.M. Montgomery
is a musical biography which AMJ created with Emmy-nominated composer
Leo Marchildon in 2006, chronicling the life of the "Anne of Green Gables"
author while bringing her fictional heroines to life to help tell it. A
year of exhaustive research went into it, during which AMJ read every single
L.M. Montgomery novel and all her published journals, not to mention several
books about the author herself. AMJ and Leo also interviewed many L.M. Montgomery
scholars to help make the musical as accurate as possible. 
Amid much fanfare, it saw its world premiere at Kings Playhouse on LMM's native
Prince Edward Island in Canada 20 June 2008, the exact 100th anniversary
of the publication of her signature work "Anne of Green Gables" - with press
coverage ranging from local papers to Japanese network
NHK. AMJ had the unique opportunity to appear during this inaugural run
in a series of peripheral roles. In fall 2008, AMJ and Leo released
The Nine Lives of L.M. Montgomery: Original Cast Album, to
which AMJ also lent his voice (it can be found in the Store!).
Nine Lives returned for a second season in 2009, this time at
the Carrefour Theatre in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. AMJ and
Leo had improved the show, making it more colourful and concise. AMJ also
stepped into the role of director for this production. And, although he
hadn't planned on appearing in the show a second time, circumstances found
him picking up the meatier role of L.M. Montgomery's wayward son Chester,
which had him dancing the jitterbug (and gtetting slapped!). While being in a show you've both written
and directed isn't traditionally done, AMJ loved the experience of performing
in it and also felt it gave him a unique perspective into how the show worked
both on stage and backstage. The Nine Lives of L.M. Montgomery has many more lives
to live - news of upcoming productions will break right here at AMJ.com!
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AMJ got the chance to play a historical
figure instead of writing about one in a workshop of . Trudeaumania, a new musical by
Wade Lynch and Don Fraser, held 8-9 February 2010 at the Confederation
Centre in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. AMJ was cast as
Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Elliott Trudeau. The reading didn't require
the stage's usual theatricality, but AMJ still worked to
emulate Trudeau in look and sound. He considered it a chance to stretch
himself as a performer and do something entirely different on stage.A concert version of The Nine Lives of L.M. Montgomery toured across L.M. Montgomery's native Prince Edward Island for eight nights during July 2010. Images from this unique concert event - in which AMJ sang and played narrator - will soon be made available! |
| This fall, AMJ tackles what may
be his biggest theatrical challenge yet - the demanding (but incredibly
fun!) role of the over-the-top Pirelli in ACT's production of Sweeney Todd,
which opens 27 October 2011 at the Carrefour Theatre in Charlottetown,
Prince Edward Island. Rehearsals are underway and has spent much of his
summer studying with a vocal coach in preparation. More details to
follow as the time comes to open the curtain on this gothic
extravaganza! In the meantime, be sure to visit the Gallery for even more photos of AMJ's adventures on stage! |