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Jack Easton joined BRB in 2022, and has since been in a variety of BRB classics, such as The Nutcracker and Swan Lake. Jack was born in Florida and trained with The Royal Ballet School, during which time he performed with BRB in Carlos Acosta's Don Quixote.
What first attracted you to ballet, and what do you love about it?
Initially I thought ballet was too feminine and I shied away from it when I was just starting to dance. After I went to a summer course in San Francisco, my point of view completely changed. When summer was over, I came back to ballet with a new understanding and love for it, so from there I committed myself to ballet completely.
What I love about ballet is that you can never be perfect. You will always have to fix or correct something and while you can strive for perfection, you can always make things better. Along with that, ballet, and dance in general, allows you to show yourself and let the audience know who you are as an artist and as a human. So I think it’s really special to work on finding yourself technically and emotionally every day.
Image: Jack Easton © Johan Persson
If you could pick one role to perform, what would it be and why?
I think my dream ballet role would be Romeo in Romeo and Juliet because it’s such a harmonious ballet. In MacMillan's version the steps are so technical and musical so it suits Prokofiev’s score so well and I think that’s why it’s so iconic. I always cry when I watch the balcony pas de deux and I think it would be really special to make people feel the same way. It’s really difficult to tell a story and be completely honest and raw so I would like to do a challenging role like Romeo.
Image: Brandon Lawrence and Céline Gittens for Romeo and Juliet.
Recent Graduate of The Royal Ballet School, Jack Easton, has been delighting audiences and critics during the first leg of BRB2’s inaugural season. Jack’s delightful stage presence and considerable technical skills are particularly evident in my Dying Swans, which I have reworked as a duet especially for BRB2.Carlos Acosta
What’s your experience been like on the first BRB2 tour?
On this first tour, the energy that we have all created amongst each other is really positive and uplifting. It’s also been quite physically demanding which has been great to stay in shape. I think this is a really good chance to gain some experience adapting to different stages and venues alongside dealing with adrenaline and nerves before getting on stage. We’ve gained a lot of knowledge in a such a short time so it’s been really beneficial.
Image: Jack Easton and Frieda Kaden in the recent BRB2 gala tour. © Johan Persson.
What are you most looking forward to in 2023?
I am most looking forward to The Nutcracker. Sir Peter Wright's is probably one of my favourite versions of this ballet so I always enjoy it the most. Mainly because there is so many different roles you can do, so it’s a good way of learning how to get in and out of character quickly. This will be my third Nutcracker with the Company so I’m excited to try and develop my artistic approach to each role.
Image: King Rat in Sir Peter Wright's The Nutcracker. © Bill Cooper.
Birmingham What’s On said that your attention to detail during your performance of Dying Swans was ‘truly breathtaking’ – how does that make you feel?
I feel really flattered and happy to hear that my performance was received well. I have been working really hard so, to know that someone actually thought it was good makes me feel satisfied. I think that statements like that help to further motivate the work that we all do.
Image: Jack Easton and Regan Hutsell performing Dying Swans in BRB2's inaugural tour. © Johan Persson.
