As a child, Jeff was interested in magic, puppets, and studied acting with Heights Youtheatre (a childrens afterschool program).  In 1977 he performed a magic act with The Great American Mime Experiment, and soon developed an interest in mime too.  From there, he worked at various street fairs, and with the special events department at Halle's Department Store.  During those years he was hired by Benzle' Entertainment, and soon became their top mime, performing at private parties and trade shows all over Ohio.  A local newspaper eventually named him "Cleveland's Best Known Mime."

            After graduating High School, he taught mime, magic and creative movement with Pioneer Theater and the Jerry Leonard Youtheater (the same theater program he studied with as a child).The Lorain County Arts Council hired him for their Artist-In-Residence program, where he presented mime workshop/assemblies at elementary, high schools and local colleges for two years.

     He taught adult education classes for nineteen communities in the Cleveland area, and spent a year teaching at The Fairmount Center of Performing Arts (which led to a guest artist residency with the Cuyahoga Community College theater department).  Other teaching credits include; The Cleveland Museum of Art  and the Summer theater program at Lakeland Community College.

       Jeff continued to perform mime too!  He entertained guests at Sea World and Six Flags Magic Mountain theme parks.  Some of his numerous television appearances include The Disney Channel's first variety show Comin' On! and five stories on the nationally syndicated TV show P.M. Magazine.  The Stouffer's Company employed him for numerous industrials, and Jeff has appeared internationally on greeting cards, posters and a performing arts calendar for American Greetings Corporation.
    
       In 1985 he moved to Cape Cod, Mass., to pursue night club/cabaret work.  "While playing ragtime piano for the tourists at the Provincetown Inn, I started doing stand-up comedy and impressions at other clubs."  But when he filled-in for a pianist in an impersonators revue, audience members  started telling him that he looked and sounded just like Pee-wee Herman.  "So after some research, I added the character to my list of impressions, and it soon became an audience favorite."  By the end of the summer, Jeff had a full act as a Pee-wee impersonator." 

       That Fall back in Cleveland, he introduced his Pee-wee impersonation at Hilarities Comedy Club (now located at Pickwick & Frolic), working regularly for them as an opening act and M.C.

       In the Spring of 1987, Sea World Theme Parks hired Jeff  to host their newest attraction (a twice nightly 30 minute laser and fireworks show), and to perform mime during the day at the sea lion and otter show.  He was asked to be the media spokesman for Sea World's new Summer Nights program too!  When the Vice President of entertainment saw Jeff's show, he signed him to a two-year contract.  During the winter, they sent Jeff to the San Diego park (appearing daily as Pee-wee in the City Streets show, and as the comic nerdy tourist in the "Muscle Beach High Dive Show").  

       His impersonation was so convincing, Paramount Studios brought him to Los Angeles to body double the real Pee-wee for the movie poster of "Big Top Pee-wee".  The next year back at the Ohio park, Jeff was  amazed to find 500 hundred new seats built onto the stadium where his laser show was performed, due to the overwhelming response from the park's guests!  Jeff's performance as Maestro Pee-wee  remains one of the most popular shows in the history of Sea World!  In October of 1988, Jeff moved to Los Angeles continuing his successful Pee-wee impersonation act...appearing at various comedy clubs, and touring nationally with The World of Wheels Custom Car Show.  But, after the real Pee-wee's infamous arrest, Jeff returned to his musical roots.

     In 1989, the sketch comedy troupe The Hilarions: Gladiators of Comedy, hired him as their musical director/pianist (for their 3 1/2 year run at Hollywood's Theater/Theatre).  Their 1990 Christmas revue, The Ho-Ho Hilarions, received rave reviews for it's second act original musical, "All About Christmas Eve" (which featured songs by Jeff and his new writing partner Bill Fagan).   From 1990-94, Jeff also worked as pianist for The Sirens of Satire (the hottest stand-up showcase for female comedians at The Improv in Hollywood).  In 1995 he became, and still is, the main pianist at The World Famous Comedy Store on the Sunset Strip (accompanying such comic celebrities as Dom Irrera, Jeff Ross, Kip Adotta, Pam Matteson, Dave Chapelle, Willie Tyler & Lester, and Andrew “Dice” Clay to name a few).  And from 1993-2000 he worked as staff-composer for Premiere Radio Networks (providing monthly comedy/jingles/parody music for radio stations nationwide).

     The final show from The Hilarions, "The 27th Annual P.L.A.T.E. Awards", was a high-camp parody of community theater awards shows.  This show presented Jeff the perfect venue to return to performing.  Combining all his talents, he became Mr. Del Arte'  (an 86 year old vaudeville magician), prompting one reviewer to say; "...making Jeff Scott the countries first senior- impersonator!"  Their audiences enjoyed Del so much, that when the play closed Jeff returned to stand-up comedy.  For six months in 1994 he hosted the weekly show Del Arte's Vaudeville Palace, at the Checca Bar & Caffe  in West Hollywood.  During 1997, he was Victoria Jackson’s opening act & pianist at Just For Laughs comedy club at the Reno Hilton (headlining at the club during the week).   Del was the emcee for a vaudeville evening with Theatre NEO in Los Angeles (which may become an annual show for the company).   His one-act play: "I'm Getting My Act Together...Before I Die!", premiered as part of "O Solo Neo" at The Hudson Avenue Theatre (BACKSTAGE WEST: “Younger than he looks, thanks to his great makeup job, Jeff Scott offers an amusing, ultimately touching portrait of [86 year old Del Arte'] an old-time entertainer valiantly trying to cope with his encroaching senescene and redundancy in a changing world").   Click here to visit Del's web site for "his" complete bio. And most recently, Del returned to Hilarities Comedy Club to open/MC for comic legend Don Irrera.

       Jeff and his writing partner Bill formed Mayday Productions in 1992.  Their first work was the comedic musical revue "Bombed A Lot! The Music of Peter Buoy Wryder" (which has had several staged readings, and a workshop production at Theater/Theatre during the Fall of 1996).   Their next project was the big-book musical "Til Death Do Us Start" (which has had several staged readings at Dvorak & Co.,  The Melrose Theatre, Theatre Geo).  Their final project (before Bill's untimely passing on January 1, 2005) was "I Was A Teenage Homo! A Scary Fairy Tale" (a disco-encrusted musical which crosses one young mans coming out story with the classic 1950's B werewolf movie). The award winning Theatre Neo produced the world premiere in October of 2007.

       In the Fall of 1999,  Jeff joined Theatre NEO (as their music & sound designer, and ocassional actor too).  He's composed original music and created the sound design for NEO production's: "Bipolar By Thursday" (BACKSTAGE WEST: “Jeff Scott’s original music does a marvelous job of establishing the light-hearted tenor of the evening.”), Twisted Neo" (BACKSTAGE WEST: “...and, most especially, exceptionally fine original music composed by Jeff Scott, whose haunting motif introducing {the play} Reunion lingers in the mind.”), Open All Night, A View Of The Dome, Obsessions & Confessions", "Love & Losses", Neo A La Carte., and Coming Attractions .  Jeff co- produced, and played piano for NEO Sings!, and Neo Vaudeville.   Also at The Hudson Avenue Theatre, his original music/sound design has been heard in Steve Silverman's plays "All About Steve" and the campy haunted house romp "666 Westbourne Drive".

       During the summers of 2000-2001, Jeff worked as a sound stage manager on all the live stage shows at Universal Studios Hollywood.  And, besides creating and hosting www.AmericanMusicals.com (L.A.’s premiere musical theater networking site),  Jeff was honored to be invited to audition, and accepted into the world famous French-Canadian circus Cirque du Soleil’s talent pool (for future productions).

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