When Calls The Heart Essay

While there have been various new children added to the cast of “When Calls the Heart” this season, there are those few children who have been a thriving part of the cast since season one. It is remarkable to realize that one such actress is Gracyn Shinyei. At the age of nine, she has already won multiple awards (including young artist's awards, award for excellence, etc.), and it seems as though her star is definitely on the rapid ascent. I was honored to speak with her recently, and we discussed her WCTH experience as well as some of her other upcoming works.

What inspired you to become an actress?

When I saw my brother acting, I knew I really wanted to act. I started doing commercials at the age of 3, and then I started taking dance lessons around the age of 4. And by the time I was 5, I was acting on TV.
I got this message about auditioning for Emily, and so I studied hard so I could hopefully book this role. I got one callback, and then I found out I got the role.

What do you like best about being on the set of WCTH? Do you have any favorite actor/actress on the set?

I like having the new kids on the show this season. It’s so much fun. My favorite actresses are Genea Charpentier (we knew each other before and were already friends) and another actress you will meet a little later in the season. Although the script called for me to take Ava (Cooper) by the hand and watch out for her, we became really good friends and I loved spending time with her, too.

Tell us a little about the adult cast of WCTH.

Everyone on set is just treats us kids so well. I love working with Erin (Krakow), Daniel (Lissing), and Pascale (Hutton). They are so wonderful, but Erin is probably my favorite because she is just so great with all of us kids. She is warm and welcoming and helps us out with our scenes. She’s a lot like her character, Miss Thatcher.

How does schooling work for