Meet Jes Washington | Actor & Human

We had the good fortune of connecting with Jes Washington and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Jes, what makes you happy? Why?
I make me happy. I’m aware of how that may sound but I’ll explain. For a long time, I thought happiness was something given from an outside source or person. And I realized that I was one of those people that romanticized happiness and created this fairy tale ribbon and box, that it would come to me wrapped in. I quickly found through trial and error that happiness is me. Not that happiness is within me…HAPPINESS IS ME! It’s in being content with the weird way I walk with a slightly deformed right leg. LOL exaggeration. It’s in my blemishes and discoloration. It’s in the acceptance of admitting what I don’t know, and being relieved that there is someone in the room that knows more than me. Happiness became less of something I had to pull out of myself and more of accepting just what is. Then, understanding that because I have the will power and the curiosity, ‘what is’ will grow into everything I ever imagined. Now, do I think this heroically every second of every day? Absolutely not. Some days it takes the return of Jesus to get my mindset back on track. However, I’ve recently learned that just knowing, that when those negative thoughts come, I have the ability to bring myself back into alignment; that is happiness, because before I wasn’t even able to do that.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I’m an actress! Every time I say it I become excited because for a long time I was afraid to tell people that this is what I wanted to do. As a teen, Tyler Perry was coming up and everyone was buying his plays on VHS. I’m dating myself. When I was home alone, this is embarrassing, I would play one of the videos from the beginning (“Diary of A Mad Black Woman or Family Reunion, etc), pick a character (regardless of gender), and perform their role from start to finish. I knew their lines, how they said their lines, their songs, their entrances, their exits, overlaps, vocal inflections, and when to stop for audience laughter. My living room transformed into a stage with an elaborate set. Then, at the end, I’d rewind to the beginning, pick another character, and perform again. I tell this embarrassing story of a girl home alone, to explain how I believe I set myself apart from other actors. I have always paid careful attention to the little details. I’ve carried that distinctive sense of play into my career. Now, when I’m creating a character, I do the important character questions that all others do, but eventually I get down into the walk, the posture, and even the little personal gestures or ticks the character possesses. My time in grad school at Actors Studio Drama School helped to define these features as well.

From that teen girl in the living room, to my first paid play with Victoria Jackson Productions, to grad school, and to an internationally acclaimed one-woman show called “Who Will Sing For Lena”, I have had quite a bit of fun on this success journey. I forget that sometimes. This has truly been an enlightening journey thus far, and my dreams are so vivid that they have no choice but to come true. Now, not all of the journey has been easy and it still, to this day, has its rough patches. After undergrad I had to live in a friend’s apartment for quite some time because I had nowhere else to go. While living in Boston, pursuing medicine, I didn’t have the money to pay rent and with that, I had the great idea to move to NYC to attend grad school for acting. Grad school wasn’t easy either. I had to face a lot of hard life lessons, one in particular that almost broke me down completely. I graduated during the pandemic, and missed two years of networking and advancement opportunities (as did everyone else).

The hardest of all is the waiting. When the world opened up and my industry was back in full swing, I went out and auditioned and prepared and showed up and would receive no opportunities. I’ve been rejected for every acting job and just had to wait because there was nothing else to do. Now, there is a longer waiting period because my industry has multiple, necessary, strikes going on right now and I stand by them and their efforts.

All the obstacles before this have prepared me for the ones I face now. I’ve always been resilient and I don’t really have a back up plan. Without a plan B, plan A is all there is, by any means necessary. My friends and I have made a pact to remind each other, as often as we can, why we are doing this and about the impact we will individually make on this world. I want others to say that I am someone who gave her all to the very end and then paved a path for others to follow. I want to use my art and my personal experiences to advocate for those who can’t advocate for themselves and tell some really great theatrical stories! And I want to have fun doing life!

Any places to eat or things to do that you can share with our readers? If they have a friend visiting town, what are some spots they could take them to?
I’m an adventure/nature girl, but most of my friends are not! It’s the summertime, so my friends and I enjoy rooftop parties and lounges. Good dance music. I’m in love with old school music like Motown, old Columbia records, or Stax, so my friends indulge me sometimes.

We enjoy good drinks and cocktails at Rooftop Bar at 230 5th. They have a great brunch deal with mimosas. I know a few up and coming comedians, so we go to their sets and laugh. This is the party, exciting side to my friends and I. There’s also Museum of Ice Cream. Museum of Sex. Central Park. We may bowl at the bowling alley at 42nd and 9th. Since I’m adventurous and competitive, we’ve done black ops laser tag in Brooklyn and I hope to try indoor rock climbing in NJ. Already conquered skydiving in MA.

We’re also a little nerdy, so we spend time at different exhibits at the Natural History Museum. The Harry Potter store and the Cauldron were you can pay to make and consume your own potion. We spend a lot of time at AMC theaters because we have the A List membership for movies. We spend time at Times Square and near Broadway theaters praying and dreaming. I’d like to try the Museum of Illusions.

We’re foodies, so we try different places around the city to eat. I personally love Jacob’s Pickles. We recently tried Sweet Chick. A treasured spot called The Pickle Guys. Obao in midtown. Honestly, I’m a Five Guys girl. I need to explore more of the city.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?

There are many people and entities that I would love to thank for their contribution, professionally or personally, to my success. So I don’t forget anyone, I’ll give an umbrella shoutout of gratitude. Thank you so much!

However, some deserve special acknowledgement. Importantly, there is none greater than God. The relationship I’ve been building with Him is what has kept me encouraged for this long and for however long there is to come.

My family, who when I gave up medicine to pursue acting, were only upset for about two weeks before being the most supportive people in my corner LOL! Thank you!

I’ve been blessed to have WONDERFUL friends, some for a lifetime and others more recent, that help me through my good days and the bad ones. They have chosen to accept the person I am, regardless of the season I’m in, and allow me to do the same for them.

Last, but not least, though it may be weird to some, I’d love to thank me, for stepping up to every challenge and not allowing the obstacles to stop progress. I thank my body for its strength through constant activity, my mind for its curiosity regardless of fatigue, my spirit for its tenacity through rejection, and my soul for its gentleness in a world that can be difficult. Thank you!

Website: www.jeswashington.com

Instagram: jeswashington