This is Jay Northcott
I had to buy a domain.
My very presence in this province is inherently political.
After not reaching an agreement with a theatre company on the content of my bio, I’ve decided to share my authentic voice here on the internet, where I feel free to express myself fully.
This is a call to action:
The temporary ceasefire in Gaza does not mean we stop demanding justice. We must continue to call for accountability for the war crimes and genocidal actions of the Israeli government and demand that Benjamin Netanyahu and the Israeli military be investigated for their continued propaganda and unlawful violence.
If you’re interested, I’ve included links here to donate to Palestinian relief.
During this contract I will be paid just under $10,000 for 8 weeks of work. I am donating a total of 5% on that to Palestinian relief.
*Receipt of donation will be added some are at the bottom of this page.
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Leaders need to be accountable.
Arts and culture leadership, their policies, and mandates should be held to the same standards of transparency expected of them. We can be aware of our biases and can choose whether our company is led by our moral code or create systems to ensure our biases don’t affect the culture or mandate of the company without the knowledge of the city it is supposed to reflect.
JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) should inspire cross-cultural learning, make all people aware of their own biases, allow time for success and failure, and acknowledge and uphold the values and intentions set at the beginning of this complex work, ensuring these values are still present when things get difficult.
Trust is earned.
When I was young, a wise man once said to me, “Don’t ask for teachings you aren’t ready for.”
This is where you can learn about, see, and support me as an artist, separate from where you may be right now. Because you may or may not be in front of a stage that I may or may not be about to walk on. You may be at home now reading this after you followed a link in a playbill.
I hope you share this story. I hope this webpage will reach people who couldn’t see the show I may or may not have acted in.
This impact report provides insight into what the goals of a company think they have achieved.
The Bio,
or,
I have to write this because my very clear “asks” regarding which parts of myself are allowed to be part of my contract were ignored again. This bio explains, once again, that I do the work to ensure a certain amount of safety for myself, so who I am and who the company is doesn’t become inconvenient for either party. This is the bio I have to write because of the lack of clarity and because people allow their biases to get in the way of fairness. This is a living document, so check back later for updates.
I sometimes compromise my values, my art, and my identity because I believe we need to be more accountable to ourselves. We must hold some parts of ourselves closer; every complex thoughts or feelings, every facet of our identity—these are mine to share with whom I choose. I have an impossible task, though, trying to hide my queerness, the “faggotry” of my gestures or the Blackness of my skin. I tried to keep it quiet, trying to make it seem “less important,” but somehow someone always perceives it; they even welcome it, begging for it. If you ask me to bring those parts of myself forward, I received handshakes and conversations that welcome them, but then people are surprised when my values, thoughts, and memories connected to them come along as well.
Oppression is choosing to see my differences as something that makes me less than.
(That was just the title of the bio)
I tried to suppress being loudly queer and hyper-political, thinking I could do it—but I couldn’t compromise who I am, not because I couldn’t, but because others could not. The leaders of a company said; who you are in not political, land Acknowledgments aren’t political, Trans right are not political. Include all of that in your bio.
Asking for a free Palestine was deemed political.
I want to extend a heartfelt thanks to Lauren Acheson, an amazing set designer, who truly supported and honored me throughout this journey, and I know they feel the same way. I’m also grateful to this entire cast and crew—we shared many good times and will continue to do so throughout the run.
Sometimes we have to navigate environments with differing beliefs to make progress. I did have to give up a little bit of myself to get through the door, but I haven’t given up on myself. Now that I’m here, I see what I can do to effect change from within. I was told that who I am would be lifted up, and every person in this room did that, as much as they could. A company, and the leadership of a company, should never make a contractor afraid of termination because their values don’t align with the person in the driver’s seat. That would be wrong if someone did that, right?
My body, my Blackness, my Indigeneity, and my Queerness were welcomed, allowing this theatre, among others in my past, to appear encompassing of many different identities. On December 6, 2024, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith chose to attack less than 1% of Albertans—children who are just trying to find themselves, free of judgment. She chose hate over the safety of young people.
I thought coming back here, being, and living out and proud as a trans non-binary artist for the past 10 years, that this homecoming could be the biggest fuck you to that horrible fucking person.
I thought this theatre that contracted me wanted that too. They were going to stand behind me. Instead, I was told that they didn’t believe what brought me here was political; they didn’t even think about it. Which means they didn’t think about my safety once, what it means to put my pronouns in their playbill, and that a land acknowledgment is just as political as my right to ask our government to stop giving guns to a government that kills children across the Middle East.
I also thought maybe this time I wasn’t going to have to put in the fucking work.
I did miss Calgary, I missed my family, I am so happy to be back. If you have question or would like to work with me in the future, or just have a little chat.
please reach out.
