Q&A: Jay Laga'aia

New Zealand-Australian actor and singer, Jay Laga'aia is best known internationally for his role as Captain Typho in the films Star Wars: Episode II – Attack of the Clones and Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith. He is currently starring in the Australian production of Grease the Musical. We sat down with Jay in between shows to talk Grease, bucket list travel and his perfect day in Sydney. 

INTERVIEW BY VANESSA MULQUINEY. PHOTO: JEFF BUSBY

NAME: JAY LAGA'AIA

OCCUPATION: ACTOR AND SINGER

HOME TOWN: SYDNEY

Congratulations on your role as Vince Fontaine in Grease! What was the first thing you did when you found out the role was yours?

I informed my family and they were excited that their dad would be finally out of the house!

How did you prepare for the role?

I love the era of the 50’s and 60’s and with TV still in its infancy, radio DJs were king makers. I wanted to pay homage to iconic [radio DJ] names like Alan Freed, Dick Clark, Wolfman Jack and Casey Kasem. I studied how they would create vocal pictures using just their voices and I applied that to my character.

It’s safe to say Grease—both on and off the stage—is iconic! What are you most excited for audiences to see?

What a lot of writers have missed about our show is the filmic nature of this piece (spoiler alert: it is very much like The Lion King in its approach). Our director, Luke Joslin, wanted folks to feel like they were going to a picture theatre, so we project ads from the era up onto a screen as the audience enter. You can hear songs from the 50s being played throughout the theatre. The costumes and colours are vibrant and that was a deliberate choice by our set and costume designer,James Browne. Unlike most shows we try to completely immerse our audience in the nostalgia and genre of the era as soon as they walk into the theatre and by the time they’re engaged, the curtain slides up and Grease is the word!

Describe your perfect day in your hometown of Sydney?

Sydney is a great town but unlike other places, it is a large area to cover. Make sure you check social pages and the Sydney tourism page to see what’s on because things are always happening. I do recommend checking out our local art and theatre scene. Also don’t be afraid to travel west to check out some great eats and wonderfully diverse markets, too.

Where are you headed on your next holiday?

I don’t take holidays. I love staying at home and maybe one day finding a homestead out in the countryside where I can just have a huge barn and some land. I can then set up my projects that I’ve put off for years, like building my own R2D2 robot (from Star Wars,) and tinker away to my heart's content.

What is your once-in-a-lifetime bucket list destination?

The moon. As an astronaut myself, (check out Star Wars Episode 2, Attack of the Clones), I have always been fascinated by the night sky.

What’s next for you?

I will be joining the cast of The Heartbreak Choir which will rehearse and be performed at The Ensemble, Sydney at the end of November 2024.