Sweeney spoke with Nick Krewen about Storm Warning and the advantages of working with his spouse. Here's what he had to say:
But having two actors in the family can lead to a battle of wills... even unintentionally.
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| Erin MacKinnon and Sweeney MacArthur in Storm Warning. Photo by Aron Goss |
Studio Two is transformed into Canadian cottage country this August for Norm Foster's humorous and heartbreaking Storm Warning. Taking the lead as damaged WWII veteran Jack Forrester is fan favourite Sweeney MacArthur (Forever Plaid, The 39 Steps, Cabaret). Jack is jolted from his quiet existence by Emma, an amphetamine-popping big band chart writer, played by Sweeney's 'real-life' wife Erin MacKinnon (The 39 Steps, 7 Stories).
"Usually in rehearsals when you're working with someone you don't really know, you're spending the first couple of days just finding out what makes them tick. If you're throwing a ball to them are they going to catch it and throw it back? It's that sort of thing. So when you work with someone you know as well as your own wife, then you cut through all of that and go right to the heart of the piece.
But having two actors in the family can lead to a battle of wills... even unintentionally.
"We do have a tendency to want to direct each other," he laughs. "But we learned a long time ago, not to. There are subtle ways of getting around it, of course. I won't come out and say, 'Are you going to play the line that way?' I'll leave that to Danny our director. But Danny has worked with us before, so he knows how to handle us."
Storm Warning is on stage now until August 25. Click for details.
