Interview: Lucie Jones Discusses Her Headline Christmas Shows

Lucie Jones has just finished a marathon stint playing Jenna Hunterson, most recently in the UK Tour of Waitress. She has hung up her apron and will perform two exclusive headline Christmas shows, Lucie Jones at Christmas, in Cardiff and London on 13 and 14 December, respectively.

We spoke with Jones about Waitress, Les Miserables, Christmas, and taking on the role of Elphaba in 2022.

How are you? How were your final shows at Waitress?

It's been very emotional, although I wasn't too bad on my last day. I thought I was just going to completely break down and not be able to do anything, but I managed - just about!

I laughed a lot in my last matinee. The guys did a lot to pull me along, especially Matt [Willis] - he was fantastic. George Crawford, our Ogie, was too; they both got me on two separate occasions. That was a really fun show.

I think I'm a little bit in denial - Waitress has been such a ride. But I do feel ready to do something else, and I'm so excited to be Elphaba.

What has playing Jenna taught you?

Playing Jenna changed the way I think about relationships and what people want and deserve instead of what they actually deserve. She's a very thought-provoking character, and I've spent a lot of time in her shoes.

I've loved every single show I've done as Jenna. It's been amazing, even when I'm exhausted. She's brilliant to play.

I loved working with Matt on the tour and David [Hunter] in London, just building those relationships with people on- and offstage. They're all really good friends. It's just been an amazing experience, and I'll probably mourn it forever!

Waitress deals with a few really unhappy subjects, unwanted pregnancy and all that kind of stuff, so it's very important for many people. We used to get in a circle at the start of every show; I'd get everyone together, and we'd talk about whatever we needed from the cast and crew that day - just a little moment to check in on each other. I'd read out some of the emails we received from people about what the show meant to them, people who've been in abusive relationships, all sorts.

Instead of having a well-deserved break in December, you've got some Christmas gigs scheduled! What can we expect at your London and Cardiff Lucie Jones at Christmas shows?

Basically, I wanted to do something because last year was not a classic Christmas. People were by themselves all over the country. Nobody was really where they expected to be. So I just wanted to do something to bring some joy and get loads of people in a room together, to celebrate the fact that we can!

I want to just get together in a room full of like-minded people, tell some stories, have some laughs, not take anything too seriously and officially start Christmas. It's going to be a properly joyful, musical evening. I'm going to do some musical theatre, but I'm also planning to do a couple of songs you might not expect to hear from me.

I'm really looking forward to the concerts. It feels really important; I feel like I need it for me. I know that I'm not the only one who feels like they need some Christmas joy and spirit this year, after last year.

And you have John Owen-Jones joining you as your special guest!

Yes, I'll have the lovely John Owen-Jones with me in the second half. We did a recording together for my live album. I just love having John around; he's such a clown.

Gigs like these can get quite stressful, and it's great to have someone around who you know really well, who can have a laugh, make fun of you, and not make you feel bad things. He's an absolute angel. I think it's really important to have those kinds of people around you.

What do you think makes a good Christmas song, and has that helped shape your concert setlist?

I love Christmas music; I love Slade and everything joyous and raucous, but I also really like music that moves you in a different way. This isn't an easy time of year for everyone. It's important to make people feel something; it doesn't just have to be about presents and sparkling lights.

I love the standards, like "The Christmas Song", "Chestnuts roasting on an open fire..." etc., it's such a classic. Yes, I want to hear a bit of that this year, but it's also been a hard year. I want to sing about things like wanting to go home.

Saying that, my absolute favourite Christmas song is "Fairytale of New York" - what's the category for that one?! There are a few different types of Christmas songs that I personally respond to, and I've put them all into the set for my concerts.

Then I hear you're going green in 2022...

Yes, it's crazy. I've auditioned for Wicked for a long time, a really long time. I'm really looking forward to it; I'm very excited.

I feel honoured that they've given me the opportunity to put on the hat and step into those shoes. I love Wicked. I've seen it so many times with so many different Elphabas, but I still just love it. It's never the same.

I'm excited to put my spin on certain moments, within reason - my Elphaba's not going to be Welsh or anything like that, although I might give it a go and see what they say! I'm looking forward to playing my version of the events on the Apollo Victoria stage. I think it will be really quite special, having been a fan for so many years.

Speaking of putting your own stamp on a song, what's your experience of figuring that out with the creative team of a long-running show? Take your rendition of "I Dreamed a Dream" when you played Fantine, for example - did you have to get sign-off on some of your choices, particularly in that last verse?

That particular emphasis on "not" came about because I think that's the most important word in that phrase, "There are dreams that cannot be", rather than, "There are dreams that cannot be" - you'd never say it that way. Vocally, it's also kind of easier to sing it that way too.

I had been playing around with that particular idea with the musical director around the time when we did the filmed performance of the Les Mis concert for The One Show. Cameron [Mackintosh] was in the room when we did the recording.

He came up to Shan [Ako] and me after our first take and said, "Girls, I want you to sing this your own way." I thought, "What, really? Are we getting the freedom to do that? Okay, great. Let's do it then."

So when we did the next take, I remember getting to "And still I dream he'll come to me...", looking at Cameron and seeing him getting as excited as I was, so I decided to go for it, and he gave me a big thumbs up when I hit the note!

Then, the One Show episode went out, and it turned out people really liked it - not everyone, obviously, but that's okay. And then, the following day, I spoke with Claude-Michel [Schönberg] to ask, "Can I do this in the concert and the show?" and he replied, "I thought you already were. It's good", which was really awesome.

You have to remember that you're in a show with a musical director, and everything has to be from a storytelling perspective. That said, I'm always excited about trying things my way, not necessarily a huge riff every five seconds, but telling the story in the way my heart feels that story best.

Are there any moments in Wicked that you're particularly excited about performing?

I love all the songs. Elphaba goes through so much in the show in terms of story.

Obviously, "Defying Gravity" is such a moment of change. It just makes me sob; I don't know how I'm going to do it every night!

She goes through so much in that song; you can physically see that change as it happens. I don't think there's anything more exciting to see on a stage than physically watching someone make a decision and change the way they're going to live the rest of their life.

I just think it's so exciting, and honestly, when I sing, "I can't want it anymore..." for the first time before that *dun dun-dun-dun dun* intro, oh my God, I'm going to sob! And the first time I get in that lift, I'm going to scream! I'm so excited.

Why should people come to Lucie Jones at Christmas?

They're going to be two really nice, chilled evenings full of musical theatre and stories. I just want to celebrate with people, and I want everyone coming to have the opportunity to celebrate because they maybe didn't get to do so last year.

Lucie Jones at Christmas at St David's Hall, Cardiff, on Monday 13 December and Her Majesty's Theatre, London, on Tuesday, 14 December

Photo Credit: Johan Persson (Les Mis image)