Jake Sharp plays the lead role of Dewey Finn in School of Rock - The Musical and talks to RTÉ Entertainment's John Byrne ahead of the show’s arrival in Dublin.
School of Rock has been nothing short of a box office phenomenon since it went from screen to stage in the hands of musical theatre legend Andrew Lloyd Webber nearly a decade ago.
After its successful Broadway debut in 2015, it ran for more than three year and picked up four Tony nominations. It arrived in London’s West End a year later and won an Olivier Award for Outstanding Achievement in Music.
Now the hit show’s on tour and will have its Irish premiere at Dublin’s Bord Gáis Energy Theatre on June 21 in a run that continues up to July 2.
The key cast members are Jake Sharp (who plays Dewey Finn), Rebecca Lock (Rosalie) and Irish actress Joanna O’Hare.
You probably know the story, but here goes: wannabe rock star Dewey Finn is cast out by his bandmates and finds himself in desperate need of cash.
Posing as a substitute music teacher at an elite prep school, he exposes his students to the rock gods he idolises, with the aim of transforming them into a mind-blowing rock band.
Featuring 14 new songs from Andrew Lloyd Webber, as well as original songs from the movie, and a band of kids that play live every show, School of Rock is essentially a guaranteed great night out.
English actor Jake Sharp - a former teacher himself - played the role of Dewey in the West End production and will lead the cast when the show hits Dublin. So who better to get the rundown from?
John Byrne: This must be a great role to play?
Jake Sharp: Yeah, it’s incredible. I’m very fortunate. It’s got such a following already from the movie. I’ve always been a fan of Jack Black - so even to do my own kind of nod to him, I’m very honoured.
And even now with the show itself, what’s started to happen is that there’s a fanbase that’s more about the show than the film. That in itself is kind of incredible. It’s just an amazing part in and such an uplifting show to be involved in.
The film’s almost 20 years old now . . .
I feel like, because of the kids who’ve seen the show have said to me at the stage door, and they almost see the film as like this ancient scripture. They’ve been told that was back when their parents were young.
It’s unbelievable that it’s found this whole new lease of life. It’s kind of a daft story when you say it pout loud, but it just works so well as a thing to watch. And I love the fact that you go to see something that you know where the story’s going - it’s just a great experience.
It's a very energetic role. You must come off the stage every night knackered and go straight to bed?
It’s exhausting! I put a FitBit on during rehearsals when we’re on stage in costume, when you’re sweating and all the lights are on you. And I burn 4,000 calories in the show. It’s nuts! It’s incredibly physical and I’ve got to change my whole lifestyle, knock the drink on the head. I can’t do it. I might change that slightly in Dublin, but we’ll see.
Have you been in Dublin before?
I haven’t been for years. I went as a kid. We’ve got a lot of connections with Ireland and some of my best pals are from Ireland and Dublin. I’m really looking forward to it.
I’ve got some pals and family who are thinking of coming across, so I’m really looking forward to it.
You’re from Birmingham?
Yeah, not far from Birmingham. More kind of like Wolverhampton. I’m a Wolves’ fan - but we don’t talk about that at the moment!
We’ll get back to music then! As well as being School of Rock, it’s School of Rock with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s musical fingerprints all over it.
It’s a combination that a lot of people doubted - definitely questioned. But it’s a marriage that works super well. He’s written this incredible rock score that runs throughout the show.
The thing is that Lloyd Webber is a super fan of rock music in general, and music from the era that Dewey Finn loves. And he's also a supporter of teaching kids instruments and how music should be in education, and everyone should have access to it.
So, in fact this whole musical is a real passion project of his. He’s been to see it on this tour, and he came not in his capacity as Lloyd Webber, the person who wrote the show, he came for a night out. He loves it.
And I think that is really cool. That he would go, 'You know what? I’m going to go out and watch School of Rock’ without any pretence other than because he likes it. He’s a big fan.
Of course, in this show most of your on-stage is spent with a group of schoolchildren. What’s that like for you as an actor and performer?
The majority of this is just me and 12 kids on stage. And anything could go wrong at any time. And you’re the one they’re going to look to if something happens.
But the beauty of it is that they also have an outrageous amount of energy, and they’ve no fear, and everything that they do - when they go out there, they have, like, nerves, but really they’re just excited.
And they just go out and they have an energy in abundance that you just have to match. And if you don’t, you feel that you’re letting them down. And I don’t want that to happen.
It’s got to be an unusual dynamic for a show, especially when you go on tour?
They kind of carry the show. It’s all really about them and me there almost as just a supporting actor. I kind of make sure everything’s alright for them. And then I’m always exhausted because of the nature of it, so I’m the least fun person on the road.
It’s not kind of like the rock ’n’ roll tour bus that I expected it was going to be, really.
Tickets for School of Rock - The Musical are available now at Ticketmaster.ie
