Musical genes

Published 4:17 pm Wednesday, April 23, 2008

davidl@cullmantimes



Grandmothers usually do not need a particularly good reason to be proud of their grandchildren. Nonetheless, Cullman resident Jan Sayle has one.

Sayle’s 11-year-old grandson, Zachary Sayle, an up-and-coming actor whose career has skyrocketed during the past year, is currently cast in a Broadway Asia production of “The Sound of Music.”

While perusing publicity photos of Zachary taken during his performances in plays put on in Birmingham, Jan talked about the newest stage of Zachary’s career.

Currently, she said he is in Chongquing, China. “It’s twice as big as New York City,” said the 69-year-old, who admitted she had never heard of the metropolis before now. The production’s tour will take him throughout the country, including a stop in Beijing.

The troop will also go to Malaysia, Thailand and the Phillipines during the tour.

Jan said getting in touch with her grandson can be tricky because of his work load and the time difference.

“They’re 13 hours ahead of us,” she said.

Before getting the job in China, Zachary sang in the Birmingham Boys Choir for two years and starred in several community theater productions, including “A Christmas Carol,” “A Christmas Story” and “Les Miserables”.

Zachary is not the only musical member of the Sayles family. Jan was the chorus instructor at Cullman High School for 18 years before retiring about a decade ago.

Also, Zachary’s father, Carter, has a master’s degree in music.

“His mother is very talented too,” Jan said.

Jan said when Zachary asked his father if he could try out for the Asia production, he allowed it, knowing the chances of him getting a part were a long shot.

He was right. Jan said 650 children showed up for the audition held in New York, which was held in addition to a tryout in Chicago.

“There were lots and lots of children,” Jan said.

Despite the odds, Zachary got the part of Kurt von Trapp.

When he got the news, Jan said Zachary nearly fainted.

“He turned white as a sheep,” Jan said about Zachary’s initial reaction to the news. “The next thing (Zachary’s mom) knew he was running around screaming.”

Jan said she was equally shocked when she was told about her grandson’s good fortune while shopping at Wal-Mart. “I couldn’t even shop anymore,” she said.

Before Zachary left, he got a March 2 sendoff in Birmingham that Jan attended. “They gave him a big party,” she said. “He was really excited.”

After hearing about China from her grandson, Jan said she now wants to visit the country. “He loves it,” she said.

She said the family had some concern the country’s cuisine might pose a culture shock for Zachary. However, Jan said, “The food hasn’t been a problem,” said Jan who added the country has restaurants like McDonalds.

Despite the country’s westernizaton, Jan said Zachary has made a point to sample the country’s culture. Jan said he has even picked up a little of the language.

A video of Zachary singing “Do-Re-Mi”, one of the better known songs from “The Sound of Music”, is posted at Youtube.com. Photos of Zachary on stage can be found at zacharyinasia.blogspot.com.