Jakob Ehman is an extremely gifted Canadian actor. He is known as a fearless, exciting and raw performer who is often called upon to play extremely challenging roles that only few can.
Jakob started his career making a name for himself in the Toronto indie scene, then was quickly playing lead roles at TIFT, Tarragon, Passé Murielle, CanStage and Soulpepper until he found himself at the Stratford Festival where he performed in many shows including Nathan the Wise and Birds of a Kind.
Referred to as a chameleon, he continued his streak of wild roles this year with Roberto Zucco at Buddies in Bad Times and is currently starring as John in Mike Bartlett’s celebrated play Cock. The show is produced by Barrie’s Talk Is Free Theatre and after the Toronto run, it will tour to Kyoto, Japan. Cock meets Jakob at a serendipitous moment in his career. Originated by Ben Wishaw in the West End, the role of John requires Ehman to dive into a new part of himself as John must make one of the most difficult and complex decisions of his life.
-Written by cast mate (production of Cock), Tess Benger
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Which ’hood are you in?
The Annex! In the summer, I can hear a man beautifully playing the bassoon in Jean Sibelius Square. I walk the Spadina-St. George’s underground interchange pathway for pleasure. There are still a lot of charming, low-rise apartment buildings in the area. I don’t live in one of them, but I’d like to. Our current rehearsal space at B-Street Collaborative is a short walk from me, and I can stop at Summerhill Market on the way to buy some oranges.
What do you do?
Mostly perform in plays and movies. I’ve been doing that professionally since 2012, primarily in Toronto, with an extended stint in Stratford, and semi-regular dates in Barrie. I generally play troubled individuals with great spirit and energy, most recently, the serial killer Roberto Zucco—at Buddies in Bad Times theatre. I like physical roles and muscle memories. Theatre artists who live in Toronto are all just surviving, it’s a miracle any of us are left. I joined the armed forces once, looking for a way out of this life, and I’m sure I’ll have many more troubling ideas in the jobless future.
What are you currently working on?
The play is *Cock* by Mike Bartlett. I’m playing John, who is experiencing an identity crisis and has to reveal to his boyfriend that he’s fallen in love with a woman who may, or may not, be trying to kill him. It’s a fantastic and very clever play, and we have some of the city’s finest theatre creators working on it. I’m raising a little rascal Jack Russell terrier named Jim, as well. He’s 2 and is extremely willful and requires a lot of attention. Oh and a play, I’m writing a play again and I continue to write down a lot of ideas for inventions I’ll probably never follow through with.
Where can we find your work?
Unless you catch it live, you’ll have to take my word for it that I even do work at all. It all happens in the present.
Cock begins performances in Toronto on January 19th, and then we’ll take the show to Kyoto, Japan! Someone should make an app that gives you alerts when theatre artists you like sign Equity contracts—with reminders at previews, openings, and closings. It sounds invasive, but I think it’s harder than ever for people to know what theatre is happening every night these days. You could also go watch The Drawer Boy, a feature film I starred in a few years ago.
