When the Sacred Divinity church choir of Pacashau, Georgia, suddenly loses its director Bernard Sparrow (Kris Kristofferson) to a heart attack, the reigns are handed over to fiery Vi Rose Hill (Queen Latifah) to lead the group into the Joyful Noise gospel competition. This ruffles the feathers of fellow choir member (and Bernard’s widow) G.G. (Dolly Parton), with whom Vi Rose has had a longstanding feud. Not helping matters is the budding romance between G.G’s grandson Randy (Jeremy Jordan) and Vi Rose’s sheltered daughter Olivia (KeKe Palmer). Armed with little beyond stubborn opinions, the choir has to battle it out both onstage and off in the hopes of finally taking home the Joyful Noise trophy.
I spoke with Jeremy Jordan about the film Joyful Noise and his experience going from stage to set.
Music First
Always a singer, the acting was secondary for Jordan. “My mom tells people she discovered me singing in the shower,” he laughs. “She made me take a couple of voice lessons and eventually I joined choir. It was just a hobby for a while and then I started doing it a little bit more; eventually acting came along.”
So did Broadway. In an interesting turn of fate, Jordan's live performance is what sold him to Joyful Noise director and writer Todd Graff to fill the role of Randy Garrity. “I was doing my very first Broadway show, Rock of Ages, as an understudy, and I went on for the lead role,” he recalls. “The very first night that I went onstage, the director and writer of the movie, Todd Graff, had just finished writing it. He saw me up there and the rest is history…it’s one of those crazy, annoying magical stories!”
Todd Graff, Dolly Parton & Queen Latifah
Working with Todd Graff for his film debut definitely had its perks. “It was great because I’m a Broadway performer and this is my first movie; and Todd has a Broadway background,” says Jordan. “And because we have a lot of musical numbers in this film, we spent a whole month before we started shooting in rehearsal. We rehearsed all of the musical numbers and got to know each other…that’s rare for movies. Coming from a theatrical background, I think that was very important for Todd. And because he is a Broadway vet, he also understood where I was coming from; he could help me tweak things and adjust accordingly. It’s very easy to work with him.”
Jordan also enjoyed working with the film’s stars, Dolly Parton and Queen Latifah. “It wasn’t intimidating at all,” he says. “They were so humble and sweet and kind; very approachable and just lovely people. As soon as I met them, I was put at ease.”
Not Your Average Film
Joyful Noise certainly makes for a unique addition to the box office. The religious overtones extend beyond the soundtrack; like during a touching conversation when one of the characters, who has Asperger’s Syndrome, asks his mother how she could love a God who created him that way. There are also clear lines drawn in the parent-child relationship when Vi Rose puts a swift end to the sometimes mouthy Olivia’s verbal tirades.
“I thought the script was smart in how it dealt very realistically with things that happen in real life,” says Jordan. “And also in how it deals with the economic situation, teaching us that we have to find something in our lives that will help uplift our dull spirits. If we’re in a bad situation, there’s always something that we can look to; whether it’s God, or to other people, or to music…anything! In terms of how it’s going to be received, I think it’s going to be received very well. it’s really appealing to a lot of different demographics. You have the religious demographic and the ethnic demographic as well as the teenage demographic that’s going to love the love story and the country music lovers who love Dolly…it really does appeal to all sorts of shapes and sizes. There’s something for everyone in this movie.
“There are some really laugh out loud funny things,” he continues. “And it’s nothing that’s too racy or anything. It doesn’t rely on cheap jokes…it’s just real people going through real humorous situations.”
Back to Broadway...For Now
So what’s next for Jeremy?
“I’m about to start a new Broadway show called Newsies, which is going to open up March 29,” he says. “It’s a limited run (until June 10 at the Nederlander Theatre), so after that, hopefully some more TV and film stuff, if I can get my hands on it.”
Joyful Noise stars Dolly Parton, Queen Latifah, Jeremy Jordan and KeKe Palmer, and is now in theatres.
Ramona Zacharias - Ramona has been a freelance writer for ten years, focusing on arts, entertainment and pop culture, with a more recent dabbling in travel. ...
