These days, we can see the actress in the skin of Françoise, an ex-tennis player, in the series Turn: Double fault. At the beginning of March, she will resume her character of the mythical Sylvie d’A boy a girl the time of four episodes. The perfect opportunity to talk to the actress regarding these two roles and regarding her almost five decades of career.
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Sylvie, what can we say regarding Françoise from the Virage: Double Fault series?
He is a character who has his nuances, even if the line is thin. Yes, she is a controlling mother who projects the career she did not have in that of her son Charles. Yes, she criticizes him a lot, but she loves him deeply and believes in him. It is this paradoxical relationship that we wanted to bring to the fore.
This series is regarding tennis. What is your relationship to this sport?
I’m a huge tennis fan! I go to the National Bank Open every year, I watch all the grand slams and tournaments, and I know the players. My parents played tennis, and I got hooked. I love this sport, of course, but I also love the psychological aspect that comes with it. I find it beautiful, it’s a sport of great power and incredible elegance. The funny thing regarding all this is that I don’t play tennis!
It’s your daughter, Camille, who plays your role, younger, in the series, isn’t it?
Yes! It makes me happy and it amuses me at the same time. It is true that the resemblance between us is great and this is the second time that we are on the same project. We have already performed in a show at the Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui. We are very close and accomplices. It is a joy for me to play with my daughter and to see her develop in this profession. She goes her own way, she doesn’t follow in my footsteps, and that’s as important to me as it is to her. I am very proud of Camille.
We’ll see you this winter in the big return of Un gar, une fille for the 25th anniversary of the series. How did the filming go?
Very well! We finished filming in early December, and now I’m on vacation for a few weeks before promoting the four episodes of the series. I am very happy with this beautiful return. Honestly, it felt like, following shooting the first scene, that we had only stopped for a summer.
You often said no to Guy A. Lepage when he arrived with proposals to bring back A boy a girl. Why did you accept this time?
This series is the story of a couple, and I think that all the time our characters had children at home, it would not have been interesting. The children having left the nest, we find the intimacy of Sylvie and Guy, and it becomes interesting once more. And then, it had been 25 years, and we wanted to underline it. We thought of a one-hour special, but Radio-Canada asked for four episodes rather than one, and we realized we had something to say.
What does this character represent for you?
It is very important, first because I created it and I take it where I want. I have a lot of freedom with this one and I love it. I am often told that this character resembles me. I say yes, on certain points, but on others, I am so much the opposite of Sylvie! From the beginning, I wanted to give importance to the archetype of 35-year-old women in all their contradictions.
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Tell me regarding your great bond with Guy A. Lepage…
Guy A. is a dear friend. He is even more than a brother to me, he is a soul mate. I love working with him. We understand each other, and it’s always fun.
You are 67 years old and almost 50 years of career. How does that feel to you?
I am proud of my career and of having been able to learn my trade on sets such as Gable Street, among others. As a kid, I used to watch this show. So when I found myself in it, I mightn’t believe it! It was a great school, with the grown-ups. I’ve been doing this job for 47 years, and the desire to be an actress has never “appeared” in me, it’s always been there. I was born to do this job. Already, young, it was clear that I was going to be an actress. I never had any doubts regarding that.
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Did you have a specific career plan?
No. I always say that I don’t “do” that job, that I “am” that. I never had any idea where all this was going to lead me. I told myself that the role I was going to play was going to be the one I was going to be offered. I never had a career plan. I don’t say yes to everything, but, for example, the role of Françoise in the series Turn: Double fault interested me, because I had never played this type of mother. I would like to play many more things: someone who suffers internally and mentally, or a fool. I loved playing Madeleine in Let go because I don’t inspire that in life and so it was a nice composition role. If I hadn’t been an actress, I would have liked to have been a psychologist.
Have you ever missed work?
No. There were years when I decided to work less, by choice and because I wanted to be a present mother. I therefore refused, for example, to
do theater and television at the same time. There, I don’t know what my next mandate will be, I’m on vacation and I’m enjoying it. I don’t worry too much, I know that the right role will arrive at the right time.
Turn: Double fault, Tuesday 8 p.m., at Noovo. new episodes ofA boy a girl will be online from March 9, on Tou.tv Extra.
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