I attempt to ensure that I interview every young actor who appears on the popular Hallmark Channel show When Calls the Heart, but in the case of Kadence Roach, I missed the opportunity and didn’t even realize she had been involved since season one until I met her at the Hearties Family Reunion this October! Thankfully, she and I connected, and she agreed to chat with me prior to the premiere of When Calls the Heart: The Christmas Wishing Tree that will be shown on the Hallmark Channel in the US today (December 25th) and on the Super Channel in Canada tomorrow (December 26th)! Additionally, I’m ecstatic that I found the time to share our interview before the official debut of this new holiday classic!
RH: Kadence, so glad to talk with you today, and I’m really glad we got to meet at HFR.
KR: Thanks, it was great to see you, too.
Kadence taking direction from Michael Landon Jr on the set of When Calls the Heart – Season 1
I’m also glad we get to do an interview since you were one of the original kids on When Calls the Heart. So how did you get started in acting?
When I was about three, I told my parents that I wanted to be an actor. My aunt works in the film industry, and about two years later, she set me up with an agent who pretty much accepted me right away.
Okay, so when you were about five or so, you started acting?
Yes, I started when I was in kindergarten.
How have you been able to keep up your schooling when you are on set?
Well, I go to a public school, and when I’m on set for a certain amount of time, I work with a tutor on set so that I can keep up with school and my homework. And my school is really understanding when I have to miss for filming.
What was the first thing you ever booked?
I booked a movie first, but the first thing I filmed was a commercial because the filming for the commercial happened before the filming for the movie. That first commercial was a My Real Baby commercial for Mattel.
Cool. It seems like Mattel is often the first commercial for a lot of kids I talk to. {pause} So what was this first movie you were in?
Kadence Roach with her sister Paiten Roach, Nia Vardalos and Jade Pettyjohn during filming of McKenna Shoots For the Stars.
It was an American Girl film called McKenna Shoots For the Stars. It was about this girl Mckenna who is involved in gymnastics. We filmed this movie during the summer, and I was five at the time, turning six. So I didn’t have to miss school to film that one.
Do you have any special memories from that film?
I remember that we had to fly to Winnipeg to film it. I remember we were filming at this place that had a big fountain, and we filmed a guitar scene there where all of us were playing instruments.
So you flew to Winnipeg for your first film? That’s pretty cool! I don’t think I’ve talked to any other kids who flew somewhere like that to film their first movie or show. Most of them film their first thing in Vancouver.
It was pretty cool.
Kadence with Lauren McNamara, Christopher Pearce and Director Vic Sarin on the set of A Sister’s Nightmare.
I think your next project listed was a Lifetime film.
Yes, A Sister’s Nightmare. I had a small role in that film, and it was a flashback scene.
Kadence with Kelly Rutherford at the wrap party for A Sister’s Nightmare
I have talked to other kids who have done Lifetime films, and sometimes those films don’t deal with the best subjects for kids, but the crew always seem to work it out. Were there any issues with filming this movie since you are a kid?
When I was filming the flashbacks, there was no content that I had to hear that was bad or anything. It was just a little contact between me and my sisters.
Since your first Hallmark project was When Calls the Heart, how did you get cast for that role?
It was just a normal audition. I did the audition, and I think I may have done a callback, but I can’t remember for sure. And then I got the part, and they called me in to film it.
With Erin Krakow When Calls the Heart season 1
When you got on set, did you know anybody involved with the show?
No, I was pretty new.
How was the experience of filming When Calls the Heart that first day?
It was awesome. I got to meet a lot of new people in the business. And I got to meet Erin {Krakow}, which was awesome.
She’s always so good with the kids.
Yes, she sure is.
Since you’ve been on since the beginning of the show–with the exception of season two when we didn’t really see the kids all that much–who on the set have you bonded with the most?
Imogen {Tear}. She’s actually two years older than me, but she came on season three, and we just clicked. And that was my first season back since season one.
I think you and Imogen both play kind of the mean girl part at times, right?
Yes, my character, Anna, is sometimes a meaner character. You might remember how I wasn’t very nice to Cody {Carter Ryan Evancic}.
Kadence with Gracyn Shinyei, Ava Grace Cooper, Genea Charpentier and some of the other kids keeping warm in between shots.
Is there an episode that you have filmed that has been your favorite so far?
I think my favorite episode that I filmed was the baseball one. I just loved getting to play baseball. It was a great experience for me.
Do you like playing sports?
Um, not really, but playing baseball on the show opened me up a bit more to doing sports. I like sports just a bit more now.
I remember you in the baseball one, and it did seem like the kids really liked the baseball one from what I could tell. I think a lot of the kids mentioned at HFR how much they liked that episode. I think they requested more sports in the show. And you kids had a very prominent role in that one, so that was nice.
I’m also hoping for another dance. I think that would be really cool. We’ve done it before, and it is always such a fun time.
Well, you never know. We’ll have to see what this season brings.
with Meghan Ory, Dashing Through the Snow
I also had a small role in Dashing Through the Snow. I was only on at the very beginning with Meghan Ory’s character. I played Chloe, and I was talking with her in the beginning.
Dashing Through the Snow
Oh, that’s right! I remember you now! Hallmark Movies & Mysteries has been showing Christmas movies and they will continue through New Year’s Day. So not only can we see you in the upcoming When Calls the Heart Christmas movie, but we may get to see you in Dashing Through the Snow if we haven’t already this season.
I was also in season one of Riverdale.
Oh, I remember you telling me this at HFR! My daughter and I never miss an episode. So how did you get the chance to be on Riverdale?
With Tiera Skovbye at the Joey Awards
Well, it was just a little audition. I actually met the girl who plays the older Polly–I played the younger Polly. I met Tiera Skovbye on When Calls the Heart because her sister Ali {Skovbye} is on the show. And I saw her again at the Joey Awards.
How many episodes were you on?
Two episodes in season one.
Well, since it was a flashback scene, you never know. They could ask you to come back.
That would be so cool if they did!
Riverdale set
So you’ve worked with Lifetime, Hallmark, and the CW. What was it like doing Riverdale?
Oh, I was so excited because my dad loved the Archie comics, and I had read a few of them. And one of my favorite childhood shows was The Suite Life of Zack and Cody and getting to be in a show where Cole Sprouse was in it was pretty exciting. I was sad that I didn’t get to meet him, but it was an awesome experience.
And when you filmed that, you had no idea how popular that show was going to become. Now that show has a strong following. And we can only hope they bring you back.
I watch the show too, and I would love to come back!
Ava Cooper, Liam Hughes, Kadence Roach, Hannah Zirke, Genea Charpentier, Imogen Tear, Jaiven Natt, Callum Seagram Airlie Credit: Copyright 2017 Crown Media United States LLC/Photographer: Bettina Strauss
So with When Calls the Heart: The Christmas Wishing Tree, is there anything you can tell us about what we can expect without revealing too much?
Some of the characters do a really big gesture for some of the other characters in the show.
Handled like a pro, Kadence, you did that quite well.
Thank you.
And all the kids are coming back?
Yes, basically all of the kids. I think one or two didn’t, but almost all of us are in the Christmas movie.
I think it’s so great that they have kept you on for as long as they have. {pause} You said there is someone else in your family who is involved in film?
Yes, my sister. She used to act, but she quit a few years ago.
Is she older?
We’re twins actually. She’s only sixteen minutes older.
Oh my goodness, I did not know that! Are you identical twins?
No, fraternal twins. She’s involved with other things right now, but maybe someday she’ll come back to acting.
I so wish they could get her on the show for like one episode! I think that would just blow people’s minds, but that’s just my way of thinking. Anyway, it’s cool that you are twins. I had no idea.
On the show, I really have close relationships with the other girls. Genea is like a sister to me, and Ava looks up to me. It’s kind of cool to have that kind of relationship.
I loved seeing you with Ava at HFR. You kept jumping in and trying to help her with her responses, and it is clear that she looked up to both you and Genea. Actually, I was impressed with you because you seem really confident in who you are, and I loved how much you interacted with me when we didn’t even know each other before HFR3. You were great.
Why, thank you.
How old are you?
I’m twelve.
Okay, that’s what I thought. That makes me even more impressed. {pause} Besides When Calls the Heart, is there anything else upcoming that you can mention?
Honestly, my main thing is When Calls the Heart. I have done a couple of auditions, but there is nothing else coming up right now.
That’s kind of what I thought. So, Kadence, what other kinds of things do you like to do when you’re not acting or doing schoolwork?
I love gymnastics. I do rhythm and acro-gymnastics. I really enjoy that. My parents are very supportive of my acting and my gymnastics, and I couldn’t do all that I do without them.
Kadence, thank you so much for chatting with me today.
Ruth, it was great getting to talk with you. I hope all the Hearties enjoy the Christmas movie and season five!
with Erin, Ava, and Ali {Skovbye}
I would say that after chatting with Kadence a couple of times now as well as meeting her in person, she is definitely one to watch in the upcoming years. She recognizes what she wants in life, and her maturity far exceeds most of the other adolescent girls her own age. While she can still revel and romp with her other friends on and off the set, she is confident in her abilities and not afraid to jump in and state what she thinks. In fact, something tells me that she can be rather competitive (in a good way) if she so chooses, and she would definitely make a viable opponent. She is a girl who is not to be underestimated, and if there is anything she genuinely wants to do, she will work as hard as necessary to accomplish her goals. And if someone doubts her abilities, I would almost bet my bottom dollar that she would set out to prove them wrong. She has the support of her family and her co-workers and friends on set and at school, and though she is an ambitious young lady, she is never willfully arrogant nor rude. She enjoys life, and she tends to gravitate towards those with a positive, humorous spirit.
Therefore, please be sure to tune to the Hallmark Channel later on today (December 25th) for the premiere of When Calls the Heart: The Christmas Wishing Tree, and then don’t forget to watch for the return of the show on that same network beginning again on February 18th. Furthermore, I would invite all of you to investigate Kadence at the links below and maybe follow her and/or look up her previous works. This is a young lady who continues to strive towards her goals while remaining grounded and sweet, and I can only hope that in the years to come as she proceeds to mature personally and professionally that she will be afforded even more opportunities to excel in her artistic pursuits.
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