Adolyn H. Dar – ACTRA Toronto Diversity Showcase

About Adolyn H. Dar

Adolyn H. Dar is an actor, writer and cognitive science professional who divides his time between being on stage, on screen or on the spot answering questions about things like unconscious bias. Uh…err… cogito ergo actum, whew, that’s Latin so it must sound smart. He can currently be seen as a series lead on CBC’s hit new drama Allegiance and recurring in the upcoming Hollywood Suite show Potluck Ladies. His writing credits include IPF-approved projects (MOBA Girls) and comedy sketches for Second City, YouTube (Brainiac 200k followers), and he is actively working on children’s book. He can also be seen on BIPOC TV/Film’s advisory board and works with at-risk youth building mental health programs. Select TV/Film credits: The Expanse (Prime), Superman and Lois (CW), Designated Survivor (Netflix). Theatre: Disgraced (ATP), Mahabharata (Why Not/Shaw).

Watch Showcase Reel

What Inspired you to pursue acting?

The inspiration hasn’t stopped. Obviously, I was inspired by the predictable career path, stability, clear upward trajectory and my… self-esteem… ha. ha. ha.

To be honest, acting wasn’t something I grew up thinking I wanted to do. I didn’t even realize you could pursue acting. That’s the challenge with under representation, if you don’t see it, you don’t believe it. You don’t believe it can happen for you. So, I didn’t pursue it. I regret not starting sooner but also am so lucky and privileged to even be able to pursue it. So, honestly inspiration and luck don’t feel that separate to me.

And yet, I was probably just meant to do this, because I can’t imagine anything else. I have always been enamored with stories. I was reading before I was walking (I just couldn’t use words to tell people I was reading). I loved books, movies and TV and sincerely believed it wasn’t possible for a mere human to be a part of it. And then I started writing hundreds of silly stories, which then eventually led me to doing it on stage and I was hooked. And now, I find inspiration in every part of this career. From the struggle to the successes. From everyone around me who is so passionate about telling stories. From believing that one day someone will watch me up there and think they too can have the stability, an upward trajectory and belief to say, “I truly belong doing this.” Well, maybe just the last part.

What is your dream role?

I have two dream roles. One is to be part of a comedy ensemble series. I’ve spent so much of my career improvising, writing sketches and laughing (often at my own jokes) that going to work every day to create laughter sounds like a dream. The other is to be the lead on a period piece (film or TV) and by period piece I secretly mean a fantasy show like LOTR, Rings of Power or Game of Thrones. But if I sincerely ask myself deeply, I care less about the ‘dream role’ and more about the dream project and working with people who continue to dream that anything is possible and that there’s good in the world and it’s worth fighting for and…ah dammit I’m starting to quote Samwise again.