A New Westminster mother-and-son acting duo are planning to climb another mountain as they share the stage in The Sound of Music at the Gateway Theatre this month.
While Colleen Winton and Sayer Roberts hone their performances in anticipation of opening night, the two actors discussed Roberts' route to the stage.
Somewhat adrift in high school, Roberts founds himself in theatre during 12th grade.
"For some reason, I took drama," he recalled, adding that he wasn't sure just why he took the course.
"I can tell you why he took drama," Winton said.
Roberts, now 21, had just been enthralled by The Prestige, which featured Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale as duelling magicians, according to Winton.
"He wanted to be a magician," Winton said, explaining that Roberts felt acting training could help his command of the stage while sawing women in half and making things disappear.
"I have through my life been very fickle with my interests," Robert said, a statement his mother disagreed with strongly
"When he does pursue something, he doesn't take it lightly," she said.
As a teenager, Winton said, Roberts was so taken by Errol Flynn's classic version of The Adventures of Robin Hood that he became fascinated with archery.
Set on learning the same skill that allowed the famed outlaw to plot thefts from Sherwood Forest, Roberts practised his skill with a traditional English bow.
Despite his love of movies, Roberts didn't seem destined for a life on stage.
He'd danced his way out of the tap lessons his parents tried to make him take as a child, and despite both his parents making a living as actors, he said he was unimpressed.
Discussing growing up in an acting family, Roberts said his mindset was simply: "That's their job, there's nothing special about it."
But when he finally appeared on stage, Winton said she knew there was another actor in the family.
"You're not sure how much you encourage and how much you dissuade your offspring from following in your footsteps," she said. "It would've been almost easier if the poor lamb hadn't had much talent."
Joining the cast of Nazis, nuns and von Trapps in The Sound of Music, both mother and son are happy with their roles.
The tension between Rolf's ethics and his impressionable nature amid the daily deluge of Nazi propaganda make the character fascinating for Roberts.
"He doesn't just have this pretty little song," Roberts said of Rolf. "He has this huge journey."
Besides singing the operatic Climb Ev'ry Mountain, Winton said she can see elements of herself in the Mother Superior character, advising the young postulant Maria.
"Maria's a person who is in crisis," she said. "I've had the experience of trying to counsel your children without getting emotionally drawn in."
Winton also had an opportunity to gain additional insight into a character, thanks to an incident that would seem contrived in a soap opera.
Shortly after rehearsals began in November, Winton said she was at the emergency room at the Royal Columbian Hospital.
She locked eyes with a woman across the room who said, "'It's all going to be all right, isn't it? It's all going to be fine.'"
The two women talked, and Winton soon discovered she was talking to a nun.
Unable to resist, Winton asked every question that had been on her mind about life in a convent.
"'Make it about love, that's how we try to live our life,'" the woman advised, according to Winton.
"God bless that nun," Winton said.
The Sound of Music is on at Gateway Theatre from Dec. 8 to 31.
Call 604-270-1812 or see www.gatewaytheatre.com for tickets and information.
