At the root of a community is the people in it. Each cycle, one student from our community is chosen to be our root. Today’s root is Dylan Weir, a junior and devoted drama student. 

Hannah Herbst: What has junior year been like for you so far?

Dylan Weir: On the work side, fairly relaxing – not too stressful. [Advanced Placement United States History] has actually been a lot easier than [Advanced Placement European History], for whatever reason. Above all, I’ve heard more about drama going on between people [this year]. 

HH: Interesting. So, let’s switch gears to a different type of drama. I know you do theater at Redwood. Tell me a bit about that.

DW: I suppose drama is the closest that you can get to in-class therapy at Redwood, if you’re willing to open up to that kind of stuff. I opened up during my sophomore year. I kind of spilled my guts a bit during class about all of my [personal] drama. It’s a very supportive community. I’ve actually begun to realize that I quite enjoy [acting]. I’m doing after-school shows. Currently, we’re doing “Alice in Wonderland” in school. I’m not going to spoil anything, but I get to do some eccentric stuff.                                 

HH: And you like that?

DW: Yeah, it’s fun. I’ve done a range of characters. I was just in “Heathers,” where I had multiple roles: Veronica’s dad, coach, students [and a few others]. I sang a solo called “Dead Gay Son.” On that note, I will say I have noticed that a surprising amount of people upon meeting me for the first time – and this is especially prevalent in classes where I’m less uptight – think I’m gay. 

HH: Really? 

DW: Yeah, it’s very fun. I mean, I don’t know why I find it hilarious. I apparently act in very feminine ways.

HH: So, do you feel like you’re breaking a stereotype? How does that affect you?

DW: I’m an Asian American. Well, half Asian, half white. So I both conform to stereotypes and break quite a few as well. I think I very much fit the Asian stereotype. But I mean, at the same time, I do theater, and I’m a guy. You don’t really see many boys in drama.

HH: So do you feel like participating in drama brings out a different side of you?

DW: To a certain extent, yes. I was bullied from about third grade to eighth grade. It only ended because of COVID-19 and distance learning. For a very long time, I had already been rejecting the idea of toxic masculinity. And of course, I did this in the most unhealthy way possible: just yelling and screaming. Pretty awful. I was a pretty bad person, but at least I’m better now. 

HH: I think it’s inspiring you went through that and were able to emerge a better person. 

DW: I mean, theater did really help me. It gave me an outlet. Before high school, I was incredibly introverted, because [of] bullying. High school theater is an inherently social class. My drama class sophomore year was very tight–knit, and everyone supported each other a lot. I kind of gradually became more and more extroverted as a person, which was really great.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity.