Sarah Booth Co-Stars in a
Haunting, Mesmerizing Mini-Series
Now Streaming on CBC Gem
Story by Matthew St. Amand
Photography by Lauren Vandenbrook
Have you ever wished you could change your life? That you could go back in time—a week, a month, a year, or more—and make a different decision at a crucial crossroad that would steer you around some nuisance or catastrophe and hone your happiness in the present?
The CBC mini-series, Plan B, starring Windsor’s Sarah Booth, offers up the possibility of people doing just this. The fascinating aspect of this series is that just because people go back in time for a “do over” doesn’t mean they make good decisions when they have that chance.
Meeting actress Sarah Booth is like stepping into the multiple timelines of Plan B. One might know her as agent, Yvette Nicole, in the Prime series Three Pines, or as Winnifred in the film Rent Do, or Beth in the movie Last Call, or any of the characters she has portrayed in shows like Murdoch Mysteries, Pretty Hard Cases and Star Trek: Discovery.
In this corner of reality, she is Sarah.
Born and raised in Ormstown, Quebec—an hour outside of Montreal—Sarah lived with her family: Gregg Hansen, Anne Manseau and her brother Tim, who is older by eighteen months.
Acting was not Sarah’s first aspiration, but over the course of years it became her Plan B.
“I grew up with a family that wasn’t into media or film and I didn’t realize acting was a possibility for me,” she explains. “I was always onstage as a child, dancing mostly. Our town had a dance school. That was my way of releasing my passion at the time.”
During those childhood years, Sarah was also an avid horseback rider, competing at area equestrian events.
“I had an uncle who was a spokesman for Audi, which sponsored some of these events,” Sarah remembers. “He would show up and give a short speech, hand out trophies, and I guess seeing the collaboration between one of my passions—horseback riding—and public speaking, made it seem like something I could do.”
Sports was the primary extracurricular activity in Sarah’s high school. Toward the end of her time there, an arts program began. That was time enough.
“It was only after I was cast in a play that I stood back and thought: ‘Oh, this all makes sense,’” she recalls. “I wasn’t a singer. Wasn’t good enough to be a dancer. But acting? That was something I could do.”
One of the first creative projects the arts program undertook was the stage musical, Fame. Sarah auditioned as a ballerina, but her drama teacher wanted her to play the lead, Carmen.
“For me, being artistic was just an extracurricular activity,” Sarah says. “I never thought it could lead me to my career… the whole path of my life. When my teachers took me seriously, that framed it differently… made it seem possible.”
After graduating high school, Sarah attended the Professional Theatre (Acting) Program at Dawson College in Montreal. That was her first experience with the audition process.
“I was never so terrified!” she says. “We had to audition to get into Dawson. I had to perform a song, recite a sonnet and deliver a monologue. I was terrified that I would just blank! When it was over, I had no idea how I did. Then I found out I got in!”
In her program at Dawson College, Sarah learned what a life devoted to acting required of a person.
“It was a shock when I learned what it was all about,” she says. “I was at school two to three times longer than anyone else, attending my classes, personal rehearsals and working on plays. I realized all the extra hustle behind this career that a lot of people don’t see. You’ve got to want it.”
And then, in a flash right out of the CBC Gem show, Plan B, Sarah finds herself a successful working actress who has earned dozens of screen credits.
She married filmmaker Gavin Michael Booth on Christmas Eve 2012. Together, they have collaborated on several film projects, most notably the 2014 horror movie The Scarehouse, was picked up by NBC/Universal. In 2019, they collaborated on the feature-length drama Last Call where Sarah portrayed a night janitor who receives a wrong-number telephone call from a desperate man trying to reach a suicide prevention hotline. If that premise is not sufficiently gripping, the movie occurs in split screen, following both characters in real-time, no cuts. The resulting film is a multi-faceted tour-de-force.
Sarah was awarded the ACTRA Performer of the Year for her portrayal of Beth in Last Call.
For a working actress, the auditions never end. In July 2023, Sarah auditioned for a role in Season Two of the English version of the Quebecois TV series, Plan B, for CBC Gem.
“I have an agent who submits me for roles they think I’m suitable for,” she explains. “The casting directors for Plan B were from Montreal and knew my work. I heard there was interest in me, and I was called for a ‘chemistry read.’ I happened to be visiting my parents at that time. They were choosing the actor who would play the husband of the character they were considering me for. He had been in Three Pines, and we knew each other. Our chemistry read went really well.”
A week after auditioning for Plan B, Sarah got the news: the role was hers.
Filming began in August last year and production wrapped in February.
The second season of Plan B stars Vinessa Antoine as police officer Mia Coleman who seeks to change her actions after her intervention in a domestic dispute goes disastrously wrong. Sarah’s character is at the center of the abusive relationship. The series is dark and challenging, involving a time-travel subplot. The resulting six episodes are a haunting, mesmerizing experience.
What does Sarah think of the final product?
“I’m very happy with it,” she says. “I’m really impressed with the whole production. It’s shot beautifully.”
There is no rest for the working actor. Sarah’s next role is in the Fox medical drama, Doc, starring Molly Parker.
Reflecting on her career, Sarah says: “I’m extremely privileged to do this job. I go to a gym here in Windsor where everyone next to me are police officers, firefighters, nurses, teachers… I find it very fun that people are fascinated by my job, but I also find it really crazy because the people around me are the ones I take from. They’re my inspiration. And that’s why I love living in Windsor because these are the people that I play.”
Plan B is streaming now on CBC Gem. To see the breadth and depth of roles Sarah has played throughout her career, check out her actor showcase at: www.vimeo.com/showcase/5650335.
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