Jayne Peters 'so excited' to take on Anne role in Anne and Gilbert

Jayne Peters is still having a little trouble believing that she will play the role of Anne of Green Gables in Anne and Gilbert: The Musical this summer.

"When you finally reach a dream that you've always wanted since you were a little girl it kind of takes you off guard a little bit, that it's actually happening," Peters told Mainstreet P.E.I.

"Anne is so close to my heart, that I just knew it was such an honour and it was such a special thing to be given the opportunity to do."

Born in Charlottetown with parents from Souris, P.E.I, Peters grew up with Anne. Even though she moved to Nova Scotia when she was five (reversing the path Anne herself took), she spent her summers on the Island.

From Toronto to Charlottetown

This is not the first time Peters has played Anne.

She was in the role at the Lower Ossington Theatre in Toronto last spring, and added to her Anne experience when she joined the Anne and Gilbert production in Charlottetown.

Unexpectedly, she was asked to fill in as Anne a few shows in last year's Anne and Gilbert production, and given a week to prepare.

"I was so excited to get the opportunity to do it that the thing driving me was just the happiness of actually getting to go on and be her," said Peters.

Peters impressed audiences in her brief run, but she was more focused on her own personal feelings about her performance.

"I had fun, and because I had fun I knew that I did Anne justice, and that was all I wanted to do," she said.

'A powerful girl'

While Anne's story is more than a century old, Peters believes she is still an important role model for girls today.

"I love that she is not afraid to be herself. It's something I struggle with and a lot of girls struggle with," she said.

"She always speaks her mind and she's intelligent and she doesn't apologize for that She's such a powerful girl, even though I think she doesn't know she is."

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