David LeReaney’s career as a professional actor spans 37 years and over 300 stage and media productions. He recently appeared in King Kirby at Sage Theatre, Of Mice and Men for Spirit Fire Theatre, played Nanki Poo in Calgary Opera’s The Mikado, and directed Hess for the BraggArts Society. David is a recipient of the 1993 Best Actor and 2007 Best Narrator AMPIAS, the 2000 Cohen Award, and the 2010 Supporting Actor Betty Mitchell Award. He is a dialect coach (most notably on Fargo season 2). For more, visit David LeReaney on IMDB and www.davidlereaney.com

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Where do you call home? Any best kept local secrets?‍

Calgary has been home since 1983. I don’t know if there are ANY local secrets… but I don’t think many people in Canada or even in Calgary are aware that Calgary probably has the most vibrant and active theatre community in the whole country.‍

Is this your first time in Rosebud? What do you do with your free time?‍

It is my first time performing here and I haven’t had a lot of free time because I have been working so much on learning the lines but I have golfed a few times here and in Drumheller. I am also trying to catch up on a few unwatched DVDs because I don’t have television here and the internet is a tad sketchy!‍

What’s your must-have morning ritual?‍

Big tall glass of water with herbal supplements followed by a couple cups of coffee while catching up on the news. (I’m a news junkie). Reading and answering e-mail…and if I have the time a bit of Scrabble and Facebook.‍

In ‘Valley Song’, you play a character who’s wrestling with a family member following their dreams. As a professional artist, are there dreams you’re chasing?  Any roles still on your bucket list?‍

I don’t have big professional dreams, just to keep working on good roles and plays till I’m too old and sick and stupid to do it anymore. I’ve just been so fortunate to have [already] had a rich and varied career as an actor and now a dialect coach.

I’d love to land a regular role on a TV series or a good part in a classic movie that would be remembered for ages. Roles I’ve always wanted to play are Tevye in Fiddler on the Roof and Fagin in Oliver! I’d also love a shot at some of the great character roles in Shakespeare like Polonius in Hamlet or the apothecary in Romeo and Juliet.‍

You’re a master of dialects… Do you have a personal favorite? How difficult is South African?‍

Scots dialect is my favourite – it’s so rich and musical. A delicious dialect. I’ve always said the Afrikaans South African is the most difficult dialect to emulate and now having taken it on as an actor in a play I can verify that. I’m still wrestling with it, trying to perfect it.‍

What’s the best advice you were ever given?‍

“Find something you love to do, figure out a way to get paid for it, and you’ll never ‘work’ a day in your life.”‍

What song always picks up your spirits?‍

Anything from Paul Simon’s GRACELAND.‍

Lastly, what keeps you grounded?‍

Perspective. Remembering not to sweat the small stuff. As Buks says in Valley Song, “Don’t you sometimes stop and stand still and look around at all of them [the mountains] and think how small you are?  I do.