 Saturday,
December 12, 1998
Back in
Avonlea for the holidays
By
SHANNON HAWKINS -- Ottawa Sun
The Christmas holidays can bring out the
sentimental side in all of us, but for actor Lally
Cadeau's character it has been a heart-wrenching time of
the year.
The reason is because her extended family -- the cast of
the Emmy award-winning TV series Road to Avonlea -- have
reunited for a CBC holiday special Happy Christmas, Miss
King airing tomorrow night at 8.
"It was so neat to be back and seeing all the old
familiar faces," says Cadeau from her home in
Stratford.
For Cadeau reprising her role as Janet King was done in a
whirlwind five days of shooting, while she was on a break
from her performances in the Stratford Festival.
"They picked me up at 3 a.m. and I was filming
everyday I was there," says Cadeau.
"It really helped to keep my energy levels up the
whole time."
One into role she found it easy to find her character
once again after her two year hiatus.
"It was a bit of a shock at first to put the corset
and turn of the century clothes back on again, but being
able to rediscover my character was a lot of fun.
"We've both grown a lot in the last two years."
Happy Christmas, Miss King is set in WWI, a time when
families were separated during the holidays.
The King clan too is struck with the atrocities of the
war when Felix (Zachary Bennett), the youngest son of
Janet, is reported missing in action on the front lines.
"The emotional quality of the scenes were so rich
that it was truly a different film experience," says
Cadeau.
"She was so differently written that it was just
nice (as an actor) to let go and communicate directly to
the camera."
With the fear of her son's death looming, Cadeau's
character becomes Avonlea's only pacifist.
During the two-hour special intermingling with the
central war theme are subplots that each of the main
characters face as Christmas draws near.
Hetty (Jackie Burroughs) faces retirement from teaching
and recovering from a detected tumour in her lower back;
Olivia (Mag Ruffman) is separated from her husband; and
Felicity (Gema Zamprogna) loses her foundling house and
must make some new career decisions.
Even though everything seems to be changing in Avonlea,
the focus remains the same -- family.
It was that sense of family spirit and wholesome
atmosphere that garnered Avonlea and producers, Sullivan
Entertainment, numerous awards in Canada and the United
States, making it staple Sunday night programming.
"Happy Christmas, Miss King is a heartwarming story
that focuses on the strength of family and friends in
turbulent times," says executive producer Kevin
Sullivan.
"It's an uplifting drama that shows hope in the
midst of suffering -- both personally and within the
world."
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