Everybody's Talking About Ivano Turco! Hot on the (literal) heels of starring as Prince Sebastian in the Original West End cast of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Cinderella, Ivano Turco is now staring as Jamie new in the new UK tour of Everybody's Talking About Jamie. We caught up with him ahead of the tour opening at The Lowry next month.
For those who haven’t got the ‘Jamie Memo’ can you tell us a little bit about the show and your character?
‘Everybody’s talking about Jamie’ is about a 16-year-old boy who has big dreams of leaving his small town and becoming a drag queen. We follow him as he navigates the journey of leaving school and finding his path in life.
Like thousands of others, I LOVE ‘Everybody’s Talking About Jamie’. What drew you to the role?
I guess what drew me to the role was the nature of the story. It’s an empowering queer role that doesn’t fall victim to his queerness but is otherwise powered by it and that is so refreshing. The music as well is a big plus for me. With it being a pop score it’s a sound that we can all identify with and enjoy.
Do you see any similarities to your own high school experience through any of the characters/the story itself?
Not so much, no. But I think what I can identify with is having a dream that’s separate to others my age at the time and the determination to see it through - so that’s kind of my way in to discovering this character.
How are you planning to make the role your own?
I think for me, the richness of the show falls into how realistic these characters are. As an actor; my artistic influences are very different so naturally we will find new ways of telling the story and presenting the songs. I mean my appearance alone is a new version of Jamie we haven’t seen before. But that all I will say without giving anything way!
With your last couple of shows being based solely in London, how does it feel to be swapping that life for going on tour? What are you looking forward to most on this tour?
It’s definitely a mix of emotions, I’m going to miss home of course and my family and friends, as everyone would, but I’m excited for this experience, to be on the road and playing in loads of different theatres and also different actors at different points of the run easily makes me feel like I’m apart of something so much bigger than myself; like a huge moment in time. I do love the West End and I will miss it until we return next year!! But I’m looking forward to being able to take this show to smaller cities, and to be able to share this story with people who otherwise wouldn’t get to experience it!
A question we like to ask everyone;
If there were no gender constraints and you could play ANY theatrical role, what would your dream role be?
I’m not too sure if I have a dream role anymore but one role I would like to try is maybe Aaron Burr in Hamilton.
Why should people get a ticket for ‘Everybody’s Talking About Jamie’?
Why should you get a ticket for Everybody’s Talking About Jamie you ask? Well I can promise you now, there is nothing like the show we have for you. No songs, no choreography and no story told like this. Especially with a cast like this - you definitely don’t want to miss out! If you love the show, if you’ve never seen it before or if you have, even if you didn’t like it, there’s something special waiting for you all and that’s all I’ll say…
If that isn't enough to get you excited about seeing Ivano in 'Everybody's Talking About Jamie', check out these rehearsal photos, fresh off the press!
'Everybody's Talking About Jamie' commences its UK tour on 7th September 2023 at The Lowry. Click below for full details: