Any dream comes true!
28 years on, Jason’s back in Joseph ... but there’s a new kid in the technicolour coat – and it’s all thanks to the Daily Mail
JASON Donovan has returned to the theatre where he triumphed in Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat 28 years ago for a symbolic hand-over of the title role to an unknown drama student from the Welsh Valleys.
The Australian-born star went back to the London Palladium to welcome Jac Yarrow, 21, to the lead in the musical based on the Old Testament tale.
Donovan is himself taking part in the new production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice show, this time playing the Elvis Presley-like Pharaoh.
The latest version also features Sheridan Smith as the Narrator. Including the song Any Dream Will Do, a hit for Donovan in 1991, it runs for 11 weeks from June 27 and has sold over £4.5million worth of tickets.
The star, 50, seemed visibly moved ved to be back at the Palladium on Monday, where he remembered romping around the wide stage in a scanty loincloth as he played Joseph.
He said: ‘I was quite exhausted at the end of the show and I was half naked. I won’t be putting on a loincloth this time, that’s for sure.’
Laughing, he flexed his muscles and added: ‘Though I’m definitely in shape. I’m prepared for anything.’ Asked if he would ever step in as the new Joseph’s understudy, he chuckled and quickly replied: ‘Well, I know the songs.’
Donovan did not have a multicoloured coat to hand over to Yarrow but he had a few words of wisdom. He told him to ‘work hard, have fun’, adding: ‘And act. That’s essential to a good musical performance. You can’t just stand there and sing.
‘For people to love what you do or the character, you’ve got to be vulnerable and open as an actor.
‘Other than that, you’ve got eight shows a week. Turn up on time and keep fit and try and stay sober.’
Lloyd Webber and Rice had told producer Michael Harrison they wanted a 20-year-old ‘new discovery’ to play Joseph. Mr Harrison found his young star with the unwitting help of the Daily Mail.
He saw a tweet by this reporter celebrating the ‘ next generation of talent’ in the Disney musical Newsies seen at the Arts Educational School in London. The cast was led by one Jac Yarrow.
Mr Harrison said: ‘ That tweet got my attention. I went to see Newsies and found Jac.’ Yarrow was put through three tough auditions with director Laurence Connor. A video was sent to Lloyd Webber and Rice, who gave the thumbs- up and the drama student was told he had won the part on his 21st birthday.
After meeting Donovan, Yarrow said: ‘This is more than I can ever imagine. Let alone for my first job straight out of college and to be working with Sheridan and Jason. It’ll be like a masterclass.’
He said Donovan had been generous in his advice, adding: ‘Jason said it’s not rocket science. It’s being yourself in the role.’
Yarrow was raised in Creigiau, 20 minutes from Cardiff, which he described as ‘ a classic Welsh village – sheep and fields’.
He has already played Joseph – at the age of seven. ‘I was part of a stage group and we did a half-hour revue. I played Joseph and I’m sure my dreamcoat was made in five minutes,’ he said.
His new coat, designed by Morgan Large, will take another two months before it’s completed.
Yarrow said his home was filled with music as he was growing up. His family – mother Allison, a deputy headteacher, father John, who works for a homeless charity, and older sister Beth – enjoy singing.
On wearing a loincloth, Yarrow added: ‘I’m prepared. I’ve got gym membership and a trainer.’
There was excitement when Donovan, then known as a pop star and actor in TV soap Neighbours, was cast as Joseph in 1991. He admitted having ‘a bit of a wild time and a few twists and turns in the 90s’ but added: ‘I never lost my passion. I love performing. Your career wobbles but it’s how you jump back that’s important.’
The actor, who has been touring the UK with a show called The Amazing Midlife Crisis Tour, said: ‘I’m in a good place. I’ve got a great family and my wife and I are going strong. I’m very lucky. I’m grateful for that. And I’m happy.’