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Wednesday, May 5,1999 THE OAKVILLE BEAVER C7 But she'd rather be a wretched wench By Carol Baldwin ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR S he'd rather be a pirate, and a mean one at that, but for now 10-year-old Jamie McRoberts will have to be content with her role as Isabel in Gilbert and Sullivan's The Pirates o f Penzance. This operetta is new venture for the Oakville singer/actor who recently decided to give up her position with the Toronto Children's Choir (TCC) for a spot in the Canadian Children's Opera Chorus. "I was just bored with singing the same songs. I would have had to stay at the same level that I was in (in the TCC). And I already knew most of the songs," says the precocious young singer. "I just wanted to try opera, and I'm happy that I'm going to stay. They do plays, operas I should say, at the end of the year...And there's more age range in the Canadian C hildren's Opera Chorus than in the TCC." As the youngest member of the Children's Opera Chorus, Jamie is delighted to have a part in the end-of- the-season operetta - her first. And she is looking forward to playing Isabel, whom Jamie describes as "spaced out.. .She's always dreaming of princes and princesses and kings and queens and dragons. She's always got her head in a book." Jamie, of course, participates in all the songs sung by the chorus. But she also sings in a duet, and has a few lines. However, her major role right now is that of Mary Lennox in Hamilton Theatre Inc.'s production of The Secret Garden - a part she loves because Mary is "a brat. She's snooty," explains Jamie, adding that she likes being mean, on stage that is. "I never usually act mean, sometimes I get a little grumpy, but I never really express it. It feels good to get it all out. But it's a hard role to act. It's hard to be mean when you're usually not mean." However, Jamie does love the chal­ lenge of that role, not just because it's out of character for her, but because she has about 15 different costume changes - from dresses to nightgowns, adding or subtracting cloaks and jack­ ets, and even changing hair ribbons. And she had pages and pages of lines to learn for this role. The costumes changes she likes, and the lines, she says, took her about two weeks to learn. "I just keep saying them over and over and over. And I just remember them. I practice them a lot, and I just have fun." Fun seems to be the key to this young performer's success. She loves what she's doing, and she has no inten­ tion of giving it up now or in the future. The Grade 5 student is planning to pur­ sue a career in the theatre, despite the hectic pace it can sometimes entail. For example, Jamie is currently involved in both the previously men­ tioned productions which are running simultaneously, one in Toronto and the other in Hamilton. With intense rehearsals and performances, life is so hectic right now that her parents, who are hypno-therapists, have given her a tape to relax her on the commute between the two cities. "I take hypnotic sleeps," she says quite calmly. "(In the car) I eat my din­ ner first and then I go to sleep for 40 minutes, at least. But it feels like I've had three or four hours sleep." Consequently, Jamie says, when the curtain falls for the final performance on May 9th, she plans to "rest, rest, rest...for a week or so" before she starts the audition circuit again, a cir­ cuit that the would-be star says is not the least intimidating. And she's hoping for more stage roles than television commercials, which, she says, involve too much rep­ etition. "I like the stage better. There's more acting involved... And the stage is not a one-shot deal," she says, adding, "And commercials choose you for your looks." Jamie will be in the The Pirates o f Penzance at the du Maurier Theatre Centre, Harbourffont, for three perfor­ mances only - Saturday at 2 and 7: 30 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are $19.50, or $12 for seniors and students, and are available by calling the box office at (416) 973- 4000. The last two performances of The Secret Garden will be on stage in the Sir John A. Macdonald auditorium, Hamilton, May 7th and 8th. Call (905) 522-3032 for tickets. Plants. There's No Better Place. W ATERD0W N Highway 5, Just east of Waterdown Tel. (905) 689-4631 Fax (905) 689-3554 CONNON NURSERIES C. B. VANDERKRUK HOLDINGS LTD. Hours: DAILY 8 a.m. till Dark Saturdays 8-5, Closed Sundays Photo by Riziero Vertolli Jamie McRoberts is all dressed up for her part as Isabel in the The Pirates of Penzance, which will be on stage at the du Mau­ rier Theatre Centre, Har- bourfront, for three perfor­ mances only - Saturday, May 8th at 2 and 7: 30 p.m. and Sun­ day, May 9th at 2 p.m. Tickets are $19.50, or $12 for seniors and students, and are available by calling the box office at (416) 973-4000. This Oakville singer is also in the Hamilton produc­ tion of The Secret Garden which ends this weekend at the Sir John A. Macdonald auditori­ um. Call (905) 522-3032 for tickets for Saturday or Sunday. CINEPLEX O D EO N CINEM AGUIDE Mum times effective M » 7 - Mat 13 1999 OAKVILLE MEWS jtra 171 SPEERS ST KERR STREET 844-4800 " T H E D E E P E N D O F T H E O C E A N (PG) F it, Mon.-Thurs. 6:50,9:10, Sat.-Sun. 1:20,3:50,6:50, 9:10 8 M M (R) F it, Mon.-Thurs. 7:10, 9:40, Sat-Sun. 1:30, 4:10 7:10,9:40 R U S H M O R E (AA) • Fri., Mon.-Thurs. 7:30,9:50, Sat.-Sun. 1:40,4:00,7:30, 9:50 T R U E C R IM E (R) Fri., Mon.-Thurs. 7:00, 9:30, Sat.-Sun. 1:00, 3:40,7:00 9:30 T H E C O R R U P T O R (AA) Fri., Mon.-Thurs. 7:20,9:20, Sat.-Sun. 1:50,4:20, 7:20, 9:20 Take control ofyour investment decisions 1999 - The Year for Living Prosperously Speaker: Satish Rai CFA - Vice President and Managing Director, TD Asset Management Inc. TOPICS WILL INCLUDE: • Global economy • Inflation outlook • North American equity and bond markets DATE & TIME: Wednesday, May 12,1999. 7:00pm - 9:00pm LOCATION Ramada Inn & Convention Centre 360 Oakville Place Dr., Oakville (QEW & Trafalgar Rd) RSVP: (905) 337-3779 or 1-800-279-4401 G r e e n L i n e C a n a d a 's d i s c o u n t b r o k e r ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ ■ I Shopping Centre Green Line Investment Services is a division o f TD Securities Inc. ('TD Sl") Trade Mark of TD Bank. TDSL a subsidiary, is a licensed user. TDSI - member CIPF T H E C O L O U R O F M O N E Y E V C hoose fro m FOUR FLOORS < Sale-Priced Floor Models and Save the GST! a m pring Savings Custom orders also on sale S t P l S S I N T E R I O R S ltix 217 Lakeshore Rd. E. 844-3530 DOWNTOWN OAKVILLE SINCE 1953 ■ I K ! ' al l the EVERYDAY SH O PPING & SERVICES Jo in us S a t , M ay 8! Ultra Mart Food & Drug lGi30am to 3pm • Bar-b-que fundraiser for the Hospital of Sick Children • Featuring Daisy the Clown, face painting & balloons for the kids IXxielaiid Jazz! J h 1 H)0pm to 4pm • • Featuring Ross Wooldridge & The Dixie Demons Second Cup Grand Opening Party 1:00pm to 4pm Balloon artist, face painter Two for One Special: Lattes and Cappucinos, free coffee samples, free cake, $2.00 off one pound of coffee beans • Kids can check out a brand new fire truck courtesy of The Oakville Fire Department Tin? Uddtad Pepper Pdb Grand Opening Party Hours: Mon.-Thurs 9:30-6 p.m. Fri. 9:30-9 p.m., Sat. 9:30-5 p.m. -- ..... r & Give-A-Ways Food & Drink Specials 1011 Upper Middle Rd. E. • Karaoke at Eighth Line *Patio °Pen