As half of the inseparable Hobbit pair of Merry and Pippin, Dylan Roberts need look no further than his own living room to see what a pair of mischievous little people can get up to: He’s the father of twin two-year-old boys.

“I get to go home and play with Merry and Pippin every night,” said the 34-year-old Kitchener-Waterloo native.

A regular in Toronto theatre and Canadian television, Roberts said Merry is more of a straight man to the antics of Pippin, played by Irishman Owen Sharpe.

“(Merry) is a little older than the other Hobbits, he’s a little more mature,” he said.

The four actors playing the core quartet of Hobbits (Roberts, Sharpe, Peter Howe as Sam and James Loye as Frodo) have bonded like old pals, said Roberts, and that chemistry will be apparent on the stage.

“The relationships in the book are so strong, I think they were looking for people who can connect.”