When Alanis Morissette released the landmark album Jagged Little Pill in 1995, it was hard to imagine the edgy messiness of it being contained in a stage musical.
But become a musical it did, with its themes of addiction, sexual misconduct, mental health and personal self-actualization first hitting the stage at the American Repertory Theater in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 2018. For its COVID-shortened run on Broadway, which began in 2019, the jukebox musical won two Tony awards out of 15 nominations and a Grammy for Best Musical Theater Album.
In the move to Broadway though, the producers turned what audiences considered, in the original script by Diablo Cody, clearly a non-binary queer character, Jo, into someone more ambiguous. Controversy ensued and an apology was issued.
The North American touring production, which comes to Ottawa at the end of May, isn’t having any of that. The current script makes it explicit that Jo is navigating their family’s acceptance of their gender identity, as well as dealing with hurdles in their queer relationship.
Jade McLeod, who grew up in Pickering, Ontario, was cast as Jo for the touring production. A non-binary performer playing a non-binary character, the casting allows McLeod to bring their own life experiences—as well as their outstanding vocal talents—to the role.
With a background in Canadian regional theatre, this is McLeod’s first time on tour—and all the travelling has been intense. We asked them about the show and what helps them make it through such a gruelling touring schedule, which will last until at least September 2023.
What attracted you to the role of Jo in Jagged Little Pill?
There’s something that is special about the role. There’s not a lot like it in commercial theatre. Jo is queer and gender non-conforming, very much an old soul, exists in their own world and is brave enough to dance to the beat of their own drum. That’s so appealing to me because I feel very similarly. It’s also special because the last person who did it, Lauren Patten [the cisgender female performer who originated the role], won a Tony for it just a couple of years ago. So there are some big shoes to fill, which was exciting and scary. But I knew it would give me an opportunity to really connect with audiences as myself, the truest version of myself.
You get to sing what is probably the most iconic Alanis Morissette song, “You Oughta Know.”
More often than not, I start the first lyrics and I can hear the audience kind of gasp or there’s a murmur that ripples through, “Oh, it’s this song.” If I do my job right, the ending reaction is parallel to that.
The pleasure of live performance is that it can be so dynamic. How do you feel your character or performance is different from night to night?
What astounds me more than anything is that we’ve been eight months now on the road. I went back and watched a video from the archive of a show we did in Las Vegas, and realized how much I’ve grown with the show, how much all of us in the company have grown. Every night I find something new. I try to find a better laugh, find a slightly more sincere version of something.
There was a controversy around the show downplaying your character’s non-binary identity in its first run on Broadway, and around Patten, who is a cisgender woman, playing Jo. The non-binary references are back in the script for this touring production. What do you think of the show as it works now?
Lauren Patten and the creative team created a beautiful foundation for this role. They made an unreasonably lovable character, so well-written, so well-developed. Then I got to bring my own life experience into that world, which happens to be well-suited. I think it deepened it. I think it provided an opportunity to connect with audiences in a different way and have some representation on stage, which is exciting.
Do you think as a non-binary performer, that your casting is important to that role?
I do. I think that it’s important across the board that theatre is changing, that it makes sure that new stories are being told. I was not in the room on Broadway, but I do know that the creative team was incredibly kind, incredibly compassionate and so open to hearing what I had to bring to the table. In casting me and in letting me do that, it sent a message to some people that they were heard and that they were being listened to and that they mattered.
Have you been on a tour of this size before?
I’ve actually never toured before. Touring is an athletic feat. We don’t really have days off. We tend to travel the Monday and have shows from Tuesday to Sunday, then we’re on the bus or plane again Monday morning. I wasn’t sure I was going to be able to handle this, to live up to these demands. And then, am I going to make friends? Because that’s the other thing about touring—you’re all living and working and travelling together every day. You see how your colleagues navigate an airport every week. You learn a lot about people really quickly. I was nervous that I would be a weirdo and people wouldn’t want to hang out with me. But luckily, that hasn’t been the case.
What exactly are the mechanics of getting the production from place to place?
It depends on the distance we’re travelling. If it’s less than six hours, we typically take a bus. Anything more than that, we all jump on a plane. The connections can be weird. Next week we’re going from Lincoln, Nebraska, to Schenectady, New York. To get there, we have to do this insane layover moment. Our company managers definitely earn their pay cheques trying to transport, like 60 people across the country every week.
When you’re on the road are there certain things that you do to make yourself feel comfortable and at home?
I bring a blanket with me everywhere I go. I have a pillow that I travel with and a collapsible travel mug, which is genius, for those hotel coffees. Those are key. Getting some good snacking food, veggies and fruits, into my hotel fridge is important for me to feel more human.
Your blanket makes you sound like Linus from Peanuts.
I know, but it does make it different in making those beige hotel rooms look more homey. It smells like me and my life. Hotels get weird after a while.
With hotel rooms, are there things that make you think, “Thank God, they have this” or “Oh no, they have this”?
Yeah. If they have a kitchen, that’s a godsend. If they have any chair that’s not like an office chair, it feels really great to have somewhere to sit that’s not my bed. There’s a consensus across the company that we’re noticing a new trend where hotel rooms have half of a shower door. If someone wants to find me on Instagram and tell me why they exist, I need to know. They make no sense to me.
What’s been your favourite city so far and why?
I always get asked this question and I never have an answer. Every city we go to has really amazing qualities. I love them all in different ways. I really enjoyed Seattle. That was beautiful. The Pacific Northwest, generally, is a magical, magical place. L.A. was wonderful because being a performer in L.A. is kind of a dream come true. Hollywood is super busy, a bit overwhelming. Our audiences in Chicago were amazing, kind, supportive.
Do you have many opportunities to go out and be a tourist?
I’ve committed to one excursion a week. It is tricky. We’re doing this really intense job and a lot of time, we’re just in the hotel room trying to rest. But I try. In Chicago, I went to The Art Institute and saw “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” [by Georges Seurat] and the man with the guitar [Pablo Picasso’s “The Old Guitarist”]. Those are the moments on tour where you’re like, this is hard and I’m tired, but when else would I get an opportunity to see and do these things? For me, nightlife is not the vibe. I can’t really go out late because I’ve got to sing that song. A lot of our cast and company love, love the nightlife, especially fun, kitschy bars that give you a snapshot of the city.
If you’re not touring, what’s your personal approach to travel?
I love a road trip. That’s my favourite way to see something. I’ve driven across Canada a number of times. I’m not the best at travelling for fun because I get to travel so much for work. I’m just waiting for a job in Greece to pop up. That’s on my bucket list.
Are you more of an adventurous traveller or more the kind who wants to be pampered?
I’m an adventure person. I need to see some nature. I love the Rocky Mountains. That’s been the favourite place I’ve ever been, I’m not a lay-flat-on-the-beach person.
How does being non-binary figure in your travels? Do you have a spiel about your pronouns?
Our company is really great about putting our pronouns on everything: our dressing room tag, the instruction manuals, how to do our track. For me personally, because I’m meeting so many people, if people get it wrong, it is what it is. They don’t know me—they just met me two days ago. Especially in a place like Lincoln, Nebraska, they might not even know what non-binary means. It’s all good, we’re all learning. I’m getting better at gently correcting people—I’m Canadian and I don’t want to make anyone upset. There are some people we’ve run into that were like, okay, “Tell me more about that. What does that mean? I’ve never met somebody like you before.” Those are the moments that I love when I’m touring this show, where I get to introduce them to someone like me, who’s in a position of power, who has a lot of privilege, who can make it easier for the next trans and non-binary person they meet up.
You’re coming back to Canada for a run at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa this spring. Are you looking forward to that, taking the show back to Alanis’s homeland?
I’m so excited. My credit card will work, my phone will work properly. I talk about being Canadian all the time, so it’s a joke now in the company. I’ll say something about being from Canada and they’re like, “Oh, are you Canadian? You’ve never mentioned that before.”
Do you feel being Canadian gives you a different perspective?
Yeah. It’s not easy to break into the U.S. theatre world as a Canadian. It takes resilience. Everything is more complicated. U.S. commercial theatre is so big, so well organized. It’s a much bigger industry. Some of the cast on this tour are so used to it. They’ve grown up around Broadway, going to Broadway auditions. Going for my audition in New York, that was my first time ever being seen in New York City. And I booked it, which is crazy.
You’ve broken in.
I’ve had my eyes on Broadway since I was six-years-old. And it’s been so important to me to do a role like this where I get to bring my whole self to the table. I don’t necessarily want to put on heels and a dress anymore. I want to be me on stage and see how much that resonates with people. That feedback loop is priceless.
I’m from P.E.I., and you’re a Canadian musical performer, so I have to ask if you’ve ever been tempted by Anne of Green Gables at the Charlottetown Festival.
No slight to them, but I’m not exactly an Anne of Green Gables performer. It’s like, “Look at you, you have an undercut, you’re covered in tattoos. Where are you going to fit into ‘Anne of Frickin’ Green Gables?’” But I would play Gilbert, that would be fun.
Jagged Little Pill has a run in Ottawa from May 30 to June 4 as part of Broadway Across Canada’s 2022/2023 season. It then has dates in Buffalo, Boston, Kansas City, Minneapolis, Denver and several other U.S. cities before it comes back to Canada, hitting Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg and Toronto in the fall of 2023.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
