With his sharp features and dark hair Jeff Irving may look young for his age, but the 29-year-old actor is no Canadian theatre novice.But, even this award-winning actor is excited about his latest part in the Ross Petty Production of Robin Hood, the EnvironMental Family Musical.
"There are some very funny people in it: Dan Chameroy and Jessica Holmes," Irving said. "And Colin Heath...he is brilliant."
Robin Hood, the EnvironMental Family Musical is directed by Ted Dykstra, choreography by Tracey Flye and the music direction is by Robert Foster.
"They are all really big names in Canadian theatre," Irving said. "And I get to play Robin Hood. That's pretty cool."
Irving, who lives at Dundas Street West and Dovercourt Road, is originally from Regina, but has been living in Ontario for nearly seven years. He moved to the province to work at the Shaw Festival, a major Canadian theatre festival in Niagara-on-the-Lake.
"I started as an apprentice there and ended up spending five years," he said. "I worked with amazing artists and could sit and watch rehearsals and watch some of the best actors in North America."
His first major role with the Shaw Festival was in his second year in the play Ah! Wilderness.
"I kept on the lower end of roles there, but all the while trying to hone my skills and trying to figure out acting," Irving said.
He said he is extremely grateful for that experience.
When the time came to leave it was a tough decision to make.
"I got a great part in this three-person play in Edmonton and Toronto called December Man," he said "It won a Governor General Award and our production won a Dora for Best Production of a Play."
The piece was about the Montreal Massacre at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique, which Irving described as dark and sad and a really good challenge for him as an actor.
"I try not to get my head caught up in winning this award or that award," he said. "I just want to keep my eyes on the prize of continually growing as an actor. That is the goal of it all."
Following his work in December Man Irving played Rolf in The Sound of Music in Toronto for a year.
"It was a great experience," he said. "I was afraid it was going to be clone stamp of exactly what they did in London...but they let us find our own way."
He performed 342 shows of The Sound of Music, the longest run of a production he has ever done.
"When I first got the show I had decided I only wanted to do a year," he said.
He finished his contract in the Sound of Music and then went on to perform in The Diary of Ann Frank in Hamilton before beginning rehearsals to play the chivalrous eco-warrior in the Ross Petty Production.
In Robin Hood, the EnvironMental Family Musical, Maid Marian, played by recording artist and 2006 Canadian Idol winner Eva Avila, is the guardian of Sherwood Forest Wilderness Preserve. She sends Robin Hood and his Merry Men packing when she discovers them living in her beloved forest.
The Prince of Thieves must win over Marian while continuing to elude the Sheriff Of Nottingham, played by Ross Petty.
Tickets to Robin Hood, the EnvironMental Family Musical can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.ca, by phone 416-872-5555 or at the Elgin Theatre Box office, 189 Yonge St. The show runs from Nov. 26 to Jan. 3, 2010 at the Elgin Theatre.