Josh Piterman talks to J-Wire
Popular musical theatre performer Josh Piterman has just landed one of the roles of his life.
He spoke with J-wire’s Alex First.
Josh Piterman
AF: Hearty congratulations on landing the pivotal role of Valjean in the London production of Les Miserables. How did that come about … because you have been mighty busy with The Phantom of the Opera in both Sydney and Melbourne?
JP: Thank you so much. Yes, it’s true. I have been mighty busy with Phantom since (last) July. However, I actually auditioned for Les Misérables in London back in June and then did a subsequent video audition in Melbourne prior to the start of the Melbourne season. So, it really was all divine timing.
AF: Let’s go back to the beginning, Josh. When did you first become interested in musical theatre and then how did you go about trying to “make it” onto the big stage?
JP: I really first got into it properly in year 11, joining the school musical Fame. Then, the subsequent year 12 musical Jesus Christ Superstar the following year. So, it was around mid year 12 that I knew this is what I wanted to pursue. I then went to The University of Ballarat Arts’ Academy to study musical theatre. I have been working in showbiz on and off ever since. Thankfully there has been much more on.
AF: Was it straightforward for you or were there many setbacks along the way? If the latter, what were some of those hard luck stories?
JP: I think there’s always setbacks in the life and career of any performing artist. That’s sort of a given and I’m no exception to that theory. It’s a fragile and fickle industry and denying that is denying a level of truth that comes with the territory. However, in accepting it, I think it enables one and certainly myself to be both more resilient and equally non attached to outcomes, which is incredibly helpful. There have been too many “almost” and close audition stories to talk about. So, I won’t bore you with them. There’s been relationships that have come and gone in my personal life as I’ve struggled to balance my work and home life. There’s been the highs of playing The Phantom in London, then the lows of COVID hitting, before once again the joy of bringing that role and show back home. The path has never been linear and the graph never perfectly ascending. That’s life. Things aren’t perfect and I’m certainly not, but throughout all of it there’s been growth, learning, belief, love, passion, creativity, laughter, silliness, magic and plenty of the ineffable.
AF: What was your first big role? Do you remember how you felt when you landed it?
JP: Tony in West Side Story on the 2010/11 Australian tour. I was 24 and just completely beside myself.
AF: I presume it was easier after that to get your second and third jobs. Was it?
JP: Not at all! It’s always a hustle, a slog, hard work, diligence, keeping up training, auditioning unsuccessfully and trying to keep a healthy mindset. Things are rarely just handed to you in showbiz, they’re earned, which makes them so incredibly rewarding and wonderful.
AF: Do you now find yourself in the position of always being in work and having to turn down roles?
JP: Same as the above, really.
AF: Do you still have to audition for each new production or do producers look at your CV and say “we want him”?
JP: Definitely audition for all of them. The only exception to that rule was this production of Phantom in Australia. I’d already auditioned for the show successfully in London not that long ago.
AF: How did you handle the COVID lockdowns? What did you do to keep yourself busy?
JP: It was less about doing and more about being. I think in life we get caught up with the busyness of things and the incessant doing. I know I certainly do and there’s a time for that, but we aren’t human doings, we’re human beings and COVID (other than the heartache, terror, fear, death and loss) presented a gift of a time to come back that state of being. So, I did my meditation teacher training certification, which took about five months. Meditation has played a huge part in my life over a number of years and the course was an opportunity to further my own practice and qualify me to share meditation with more people around the world. I also did a fantastic men’s course called The Warriors Way by Asher Packman, which used myth, storytelling and poetry, as well as Jungian theories, to delve into the deeper parts of what it means to be human/a man. It was simply wonderful and I’d recommend it to all men, especially in this day and age. I trained physically, did a lot of meditation, formed a stronger relationship with nature and effectively found a lot of love for the things that weren’t dictated or affected by the circumstances we all faced.
AF: Getting back to Les Miserable, have you played in that musical before?
JP: I haven’t but it’s my all-time favourite show and the one I first fell in love with, so I can’t wait to get started.
AF: What are you expecting and what do you know about this London production?
JP: I’ve seen it. It’s the same production that came to Australia in 2014. I don’t have specific expectations and I’m just staying open to whatever is formed and created in the rehearsal room, but I think Jean Valjean is one of the most interesting and complex modern characters. He’s almost mythic in the sense that he undertakes arguably the quintessential hero’s journey. I’m looking forward to exploring all the components of that and finding his connection to my heart and soul. I’ll be taking over the role from March 27th.
AF: Are there any roles you have not yet played that you would dearly love to play? If so, which one or ones?
JP: Yes, of course. There’s many, but I’m quite excited by the prospect of new works and being part of the team that brings a production from its embryo stages to, hopefully, a fully formed and realised main stage production.
