LEANING INTO THE SPARKLE WITH JASMINE JEAN SIM

The excitement is palpable as we welcome our newest production, Dolly!, with the radiant and talented Jasmine Jean Sim leading the ensemble.

With every new production at Can Can, there's an air of anticipation for what's to come – from the dazzling costumes and vibrant colors to the innovative apparatuses crafted by Jonny and the irresistible music that captures hearts. With rehearsals underway, and what I can only hope is a shimmering troupe of cowgirl hats being meticulously crafted as we speak, Jasmine sits down with us to give us just a little peek at what's in store for our warmer days ahead.

Drawing from her own experiences as a performer, Jasmine shares insights into the challenges she's faced and the strides she's made in embracing her unique identity. As a woman in the performing arts, she emphasizes the importance of celebrating girlhood and the journey of self-discovery that comes with it. Through Dolly!, Jasmine aims to inspire audiences to embrace their authentic selves and to find empowerment in their own stories, emphasizing the joyous and transformative aspects that coincide with it. 

This summer, please accept our invitation to embrace the joy of being alive, to celebrate womanhood, and to revel in the magic of theater.

THECANCAN.COM: This summer, Can Can welcomes its newest production, DOLLY! As our leading lady, what elements or moments in the show are you most excited for the audience to experience?
Jasmine Jean Sim: I'm always PERSONALLY excited for the new costumes, the sparkly new colors of each show, the new apparatuses that Jonny builds, and our new music, and I think audiences feel the same way.

The wonderful thing about Can Can productions is that each show really does feel thematically different- the music, the styling, the costumes, the colors, the lighting. So, I think that people are going to be excited about what that new feeling is going to be like. Dolly! is going to be so special for the summertime, a production that people can sing along to. The show will be an invitation for people to participate in the best music that we all know, those radio hits, classic songs, things that we all just want to sing out loud. And I’m hoping that people will participate!

THECANCAN.COM: As a performer and artist, how do you believe women's roles and representation in the arts have evolved over the years, particularly in the context of your upcoming show Dolly!?

Jasmine Jean Sim: I’ve been thrilled to see more stories highlighting women’s experiences, whether it’s in Hollywood, television, or even just our local theater communities, but there’s always room for improvement.

One of the things that is most important to me is not just sharing heartbreaking experiences. I think it's easy for us to talk about Oscar-bait movies that are horribly sad or something so profound, but there’s an equal benefit to featuring women’s stories about joy.

Usually, women's stories about joy also end up having those more grounded, realistic, often heartbreaking moments. I think stories like Dolly! are an appreciation of the joy of being a woman, of being feminine or expressing your femininity, whatever that might be.

It’s important to highlight stories about women celebrating girlhood and welcoming people into femininity, not just something that is difficult and showcasing struggle. It’s embracing who we are and who we can be and doing it with a bit of sparkle, you know?

THECANCAN.COM: Can you share any challenges you've faced as a woman in the performing arts industry, and how have you overcome them to thrive in your career?

Jasmine Jean Sim: As someone who has been more curvaceous my whole life, there’s a lot of outward judgment on having a body type that presents more sexually even when that’s not your intention. Theatrically, we’re put into our parts or caricatures, and I think my greatest success personally as an artist has been to harness my archetype. Can Can has been the culmination of that. I am taking what I know is an outward perception of my body, whatever it is, and feeling empowered about it.

Often, characters that women play are so much more general than their male counterparts; less intelligent or less varied than we truly are. I would do my best to bring those extra elements of care, extra personality traits that aren’t in the script. We want to make sure that our female characters are totally well-rounded and not just seen as a caricature of a woman.

I had the pleasure of being in the musical version of the movie “9 to 5” several years ago. The story of the character is that she is taken advantage of by her terrible creepy boss, and the show is about her and her friends getting revenge in this wonderfully humorous way. That was one of the first times I felt truly myself onstage, all of the things– intelligent, sexy, curvaceous, sometimes a little foolish and idiotic. The show was a celebration of the totality of a character not just a small part or perception.

Women have a harder time being accepted as multifaceted. We can be anything without ignoring one aspect or the other, and that’s one of the reasons I am thrilled to be doing a show like Dolly!

THECANCAN.COM: In what ways do you believe theater, specifically productions like Dolly!, can influence and inspire audiences to embrace and support women's stories and representation in the arts?

Jasmine Jean Sim: Well, one of my favorite parts about working at the Can Can is how often I have the joy of talking to the audience after the show and how often people tell us that seeing us on stage made them feel confident, made them feel sexy, maybe looking like them somehow or reminding them of a characteristic they have.

I’m hoping that people can take away from Dolly! that we all just need to allow ourselves to be a little bit more sparkly, a little bit more over the top, and to lighten up a little bit. It’s going to be summertime, the sun will be out in Seattle, which is rare, and we’re going to be wearing cowboy hats and chaps and sparkles and glitter. In moments when it doesn’t feel as natural or easy to be that lighthearted and sparkly, those things can always be there if you want them to be.

One of the things that Can Can does so beautifully, it keeps the sparkle in your life. Even in the darkest days, literally or figuratively in Seattle, whether it’s the 4 p.m. darkness or if it’s in your hardest week– having somewhere where you can feel relief and feel seen, but also let go of your troubles.

THECANCAN.COM: As a performer, how do you navigate and challenge traditional gender roles within your craft, both on and off stage?

Jasmine Jean Sim: It took me a little while as a young performer to figure out the pain and frustration I was feeling. I always loved performing Shakespeare, for example, but when someone looked at me, they wouldn’t make that assumption. And that was really frustrating especially when that was something I loved passionately. People didn’t take me seriously.

For a long time, it made me really angry, and I tried to actively fight against people’s perceptions. I remember at art school, my teachers were trying to advise me on what kinds of songs or monologues I should work on, and I always pushed back. I didn’t want to do a role where I was sexually empowered or where I was flirtatious or girly or feminine, even though those were the roles I was getting, because it almost felt like I was cheapening myself. A lot of women have had the experience of growing up feeling like they had to be less feminine and do less “girly” stuff because feminine was seen as bad, weak, or uninteresting. The older I’ve gotten, the more I’ve embraced that and feel thrilled to have a role like Dolly! where it’s a joyful celebration of femininity, whatever femininity might mean to you, whoever you are!

But even then, words like feminine are so old and so boring and uninspiring, so black and white. Saying one thing is feminine or masculine can put you in a box in that way. I’m always working to find new ways to clarify what I mean by “feminine”. Instead of saying I’m leaning into my femininity, I’m trying to say, “I’m leaning into my sexual power” or “I’m leaning into my childlike wonder.” Using a word like “feminine” or “masculine” can place such a strange gendered judgment on something when in actuality nothing is truly gendered at all!

For example, growing up pink had this connotation of negativity. Even I, myself, when I was younger would boast that I hated pink. Just in the last few years, we’d had a pink revolution! It’s just a color! The idea of pink being reclaimed is kind of how I feel about all things that have been deemed “girly” or “feminine”. Everyone regardless of gender can enjoy “girly things.” I hope that with more and more stories from marginalized perspectives, not just women’s, there will be more people who are comfortable expressing themselves in whatever way that feels genuine.

Change is built on the backs of people who are brave enough to do something about it, to make things uncomfortable, but who also have the courage to be joyful! I hope Dolly can be a place where people feel free to express themselves and maybe also get a little beautifully uncomfy!

Can Can’s original production Dolly! premiers May 26th. Reserve tickets now.