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Dawson graduate Jake Cummings describes Houston theatre work, school productions
Summary
On Pearland ISD's Building Blocks podcast, Dawson High School alum Jake Cummings discussed his work as an actor and music director in Houston, touring children’s shows, directing a junior-high production, and plans to join a regional company for The Wizard of Oz.
On Pearland ISD’s Building Blocks podcast, Jake Cummings, a 2020 graduate of Dawson High School, described his work in the Houston theatre scene as an actor, music director and stage manager and recounted directing music for a two-and-a-half-hour junior high production of Hairspray and touring a children’s show with Main Street Theatre.
The superintendent who hosts the district podcast framed the episode as part of an alumni series “to give our listeners, parents, students, and staff an inside look at who or what is building Pearland proud,” underscoring the district’s intent to spotlight former students’ career paths.
Cummings said he earned a BFA in musical theatre from Sam Houston State University (graduation date not specified in the episode) and has since taken a range of roles in Houston productions: actor, music director, assistant director and dance captain. “I don't think people know this, but there is boundless opportunity in the Houston theater scene,” he said.
He described a touring children’s production of Elephant & Piggie through Main Street Theatre that ran from January into July, with Cummings noting he performed that role “today” and that his run there ends in June. He said he will move from that tour to a production of The Wizard of Oz with AD Players, beginning rehearsals in June and with public performances in July; the company’s run was described as lasting “about a month, like, July to August.” Cummings said his role in The Wizard of Oz will be in the ensemble.
Cummings also described serving as music director for a full production of Hairspray at Briscoe Junior High, teaching seventh- and eighth-graders the two-and-a-half-hour musical. He said the middle-school production rehearsed for several months under a director who began work in October. “They did the entire 2 and a half hour show,” Cummings said, describing the students’ preparation and performance.
On his path from Dawson, Cummings credited Ovation (Dawson’s theatre program) instructors who raised his expectations for craft and a senior-year performance in Hello, Dolly! that gave him confidence to pursue theatre in college. He also spoke about coping with burnout and rejection: “You are supposed to be exactly where you are right now,” he told students, urging rest and flexibility as part of sustaining a career in the arts.
The episode included practical details about Cummings’s recent workload: he said he has taken part in “about 9 different productions in, like, the 11 months” since graduating college and that the Elephant & Piggie touring schedule involved both day trips and overnight stays in cities such as Austin and Roma. He also described performing roughly “about a 20 shows so far” with Elephant & Piggie.
This podcast episode is an interview and does not record any formal actions, votes or policy changes by Pearland ISD. Listeners seeking performances cited in the episode are advised to check the producing theatres’ schedules for exact dates and ticketing information.
