Celebrating Somerset's Creative & Cultural Practitioners – Alex Jackson

This month, we spoke with Dancer and Choreographer, Alex Jackson.  Originally from Yeovil, Alex has taken the dance industry by storm.  Working professionally under the name ‘Alex the Lion’ he’s worked across the West End appearing in Thriller Live and featured in Hollywood films including film adaptation of hit Broadway musical, The Prom, featuring stars such as Nicole Kidman and Meryl Streep.  During our talk we explored Alex’s pathway into the dance industry in the UK and America, particular highlights from his career so far, and advice for those looking into a career in Dance. 

Alex Jackson is known in the industry under the iconic name Alex the Lion.   When discussing the origin of the ferocious title he said, “I wanted to change my name and at the time, I had long, curly hair, and a guy was joking, he was like, ‘Yo, like, why don’t you change your name to, Alex the Lion!’  When I perform, I feel like my alter ego fierce, ferocious, and confident. I really identify with a lion when I perform.”   

When asked about his introduction to Dance, we went back to the roots of his love for movement.  Alex expressed he was very active growing up and used sport as a creative outlet, noting how his background in martial arts has influenced his choreography.  “I used to watch a lot of martial arts movies as a kid, so I was in love with movement and fight choreography.  I had a lot of energy my mum would always keep me out of the house doing athletics and martial arts. Even now as a choreographer. Sometimes you can draw inspiration from all those skills.” 

Alex also shared his passion for acting at Preston School.  “There was an audition at my school. We were doing a play of Romeo and Juliet, and there was a dance segment. 
My friends and I auditioned; we put together a Cheetah Girls dance from the 2006 film The Cheetah Girls 2 and we ate! It was the audience, the reaction that we got from the crowd, when we did that performance, I was like, oh, this is exactly what I want to do.” 

After school, Alex went onto study at Urdang Academy in London. Adapting from a rural area to city life Alex explains how inspiring his experience was. “The best way to describe it was like Harry Potter. Like in the first film, when Harry gets off the train and he goes to Hogwarts, Urdang had a big round hall like the great hall in Harry Potter.  Being around a concentrated group of kids that love to dance I was like a kid in a candy store. I had so much fun. It was one of most fun times of my life.” 

Attending drama school was the perfect environment for Alex to experiment with freedom to be bold ready to take on his professional career.  When asked if there was a certain project that has impacted his professional development, it was hard to pick just one. “You learn something different as you go along.” 

“I'd say the first couple years, I worked primarily as a commercial dancer in London, so I was dancing on X Factor and for a lot of artists that would come on there, like Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, and Rihanna. That taught me how to chill when you're freaking out working with these big artists, and you have a quick turnaround with a couple days to learn choreography, and then, before you know it, you're on stage. That really taught me to just lock in quickly and learn how to behave on set.” 

One job was a clear standout for Alex, “I danced for Mariah Carey two years ago.   As a dancer, that was one of the jobs where I felt like this was everything I've been training for, it was a big audition in LA that was held by Debbie Allen at her dance academy ‘DADA’, 400-500 boys handpicked to 10. We performed at Lovers and Friends in Vegas, and the lineup included Chris Brown, Usher, and Mariah. Right before we went on, I was looking at Chris Brown on the side of stage, I was like, ‘What. Is. My. Life!’ We also got to use all our technique as well - Hip Hop, Jazz, and Contemporary. I really felt like we got used well with all the dance training that we had.” 

Alex built up his commercial dance career in the UK, where Alex’s credits include working on two West End shows, Thriller Live and The Bodyguard the Musical.   Yet in 2018, Alex moved to the United States living in LA and New York.  When asked about his time in New York he stated, “New York is so alive, there's so much community. 
It's a tough place to live, but there's so much heart. A lot of dance culture started there, like Hip Hop originated there and Vogue. So, there's still a lot of the pioneers of that. I'd say overall New York was my favourite.” 

Alex has built his career as a strong performer and choreographer. When explaining his choreography process Alex said, “I always like to create a world for the song that I’m doing.” Using the current project he’s working on as a reference, he explains, “The song I'm choreographing now is a dance club song.  So, I think what world am I in? Maybe at a rave at 6am in New York City. So, it's very grungy. That's the world that we're in and that way, it keeps the whole piece very synchronised, and in the same world.” 

Alex grew up in Yeovil, attending Helen Laxton Dance Company, and has recently had a full-circle moment, coming back to is his hometown to run dance workshops with his childhood dance school and other dance academies in the surrounding area.  We asked Alex what message he wants to spread through his classes, specifically to young local dancers based in Somerset. “Just to let anyone know that it's possible. Maybe they've been told things, or they've been raised a certain way to have a veil of a certain life that they can live.  If you have a goal, then you build a little map, then it is so attainable. It takes work, and it doesn't come overnight.” 

Alex also highlighted the importance of building a business mindset for your craft. For any job, you need to do your research to progress within your industry.  Specifically for Dance, Alex suggests looking at the credits in theatre programmes or the end credits of a film. “In films, you’ll always have the end credits including the casting agents and managements.  Make note of those you want to work with who are currently in the industry.”

To conclude, Alex Jackson is a clear advocate of being your authentic self to shine within the dance industry. “If you want something. Go for it!”