VCUarts alum stars in Tyler Perry’s ‘A Jazzman’s Blues’

Peggy Stansbery, Contributing Writer

VCUarts alum Joshua Boone recently starred in his biggest production to date — Tyler Perry’s “A Jazzman’s Blues” that debuted on Netflix last month.

“I have always wanted film and TV more than anything in terms of storytelling,” Boone said. “But coming up through the public school system and my teachers getting me involved with theater, I developed a distinct love for the stage.”

This love was further cultivated at VCU, and he became inspired to pursue a path on Broadway, according to Boone. Boone said the university helped him grow and learn ideas that spoke to his work and the world. 

“VCU exposed me to life in a way that I saw the seeds of that exposure all around me when I left school,” Boone said.

Boone headed to New York after graduating in 2010 and pursued a career on Broadway, film and TV, according to Boone. There he eventually landed roles within those industries.

Boone said he was drawn to “A Jazzman’s Blues” because of its script and themes of humanity. 

“As a lesser known actor you want the opportunity to showcase what you can do, and this script offered that through and through,” Boone said. “I was grateful for the themes involved in the story that hopefully help humanity in the process, because that’s what it’s all about at the end of the day.”

People are focused on fighting for their specific cause without realizing they are helping promote a separatist culture, Boone said. He hopes the film shows how connected humans are. 

“We are further distancing ourselves from each other than finding the commonalities,” Boone said. “I hope this film helps us see our commonalities more.” 

Boone said he hopes the film will attract more work that aligns with his goals. 

Whatever form his art takes, Boone said he wants to “lead with love” and create art that makes people feel something unique. 

“The overarching goal is to have an impact on the human psyche, the human conscious and the human spirit through this work in a way that helps humanity on the grandest and largest scale,” Boone said. 

VCUarts Theatre Professor David Toney said Boone’s acting in “A Jazzman’s Blues” is acting that you don’t see everyday.

“I don’t think that you see acting like that everyday where the actor isn’t the most important thing, but the story is the most important thing,” Toney said. “What I liked a lot about what Josh did is that he was completely unselfconscious.”

Toney used the opening scenes of “A Jazzman’s Blues” for instruction in his class, he said. 

“I actually played it for my acting class so they could see what simple acting is, not in a sense of easy, but as in what it looks like to simply do what an actor does,” Toney said.

VCUarts theatre performance student Avery Johnson said Boone helps show VCU students that opportunities are out there. 

“It shows we are getting good training by coming to VCU,” Johnson said. “It really is inspiring to see someone else, especially a man of color, do it and be the leading man in a movie like that which has so much depth.”

There was a lot of buzz in his classes about Boone’s role in “A Jazzman’s Blues” and students felt excited to see a VCU alum starring in a Netflix film, Johnson said

“For the students, one of the things about becoming a professional actor is your feeling that you can do it,” Toney said. “Because this is a very tough profession, you really need to have faith in yourself. I think what Joshua represents is a signpost that I can do this too.”