KEEPING UP WITH JONESES, 9 TO 5

THE hit musical 9 to 5 starring Marina Prior, Eddie Perfect and Casey Donovan opens at QPAC in Brisbane tomorrow.

Among the supporting cast is a strong Gold Coast connection. Ethan Jones (above) is a former student from St Andrews Lutheran College and is thrilled to be back near his home town as part of the award-winning show.

st “My journey into performing came about because of an absolute legend, Cilla Scott, at school who got me along to do something at Spotlight Theatre.

“She inspired so many students to chart a different path and showed us that there is a career in performing. I loved it from the beginning and then kept doing shows at other local theatrical groups.

“I was studying at Bond uni but realised that I would much rather be painting sets for nothing than hitting the books. I became part of the Arts Centre Gold Coast development program through a Griffith University applied theatre course. Then through a friend I got a job at Universal Studios Singapore as a dance captain and I was on my way.

“Since then I have worked around the world and did further study at WAAPA. Getting this job is such a blessing because the run is almost a year and has a great cast. Everyone is so excited to be opening in Brisbane because the audiences have a fantastic reputation.

“The last few years have been tough for our industry but it has taught me a lot about mental health. How to control how you see your life and be forgiving when things aren’t completely right.

“As performers we always aim for perfection which isn’t always attainable.”

Curtain up tomorrow.