Where Are They Now? | By Trimella Chaney

Periodically, we focus on young people from our region who have ventured out into the world and done amazing things. In this issue, we are checking in with

County native and theatre professional who is making a difference in Montana.

“I’m a die-hard Appalachian Mountain boy,” says Banner Elk native Dylan Wright when explaining why he has just begun to think of Missoula, Montana, as home after 20 years of working with the esteemed Missoula Children’s Theatre International Touring Company (MCT). Wright’s MCT career began as a one-year contract after graduating from the College of Charleston with a theatre degree and a desire for Broadway. The only child of John Wright and the late Marie Wright, his parents always supported and encouraged him, even when he chose not to pursue his family’s generational practice of law. “They wanted me to find joy in my work.”

His Broadway or Bust thinking became intense and narrow in focus. “I thought to be successful as an artist I had to get to Broadway.” His tour with MCT involved working with children in a different town each week to produce a show. “When taking a bow to roaring applause with 70 smiling kids so happy with the work they had just done, it hit me like a tidal wave. Right then I remembered the reason why I started doing theatre in the first place. It was for the joy of it! The kids helped me see that.”

While Wright has always possessed valuable people skills and always been a valuable ensemble member, MCT’s management soon recognized his gifts, as well, and he quickly became the Tour Manager, a position that often included counseling actors who were on the road and had conflicts. Even at Watauga High School, these traits were noticed by the late Guidance Counselor, Mary Moren, who started a trial “peer helper” program with Wright in its first group. He is mentioned later in her book, Wildflowers in a Kudzu World: Tales from a High School Guidance Office.

Dylan Wright’s creativity, his theatrical talent, and his concern for others have evolved into ground-breaking counseling techniques. Currently, Wright is pursuing a graduate degree in Counseling and has been awarded two very prestigious scholarships for his work at the University of Montana. He is developing a program to use theatre improvisation to regulate emotions and anxiety in students and has presented his work at professional conferences. He works to get students “comfortable with being uncomfortable.”

It is difficult to be uncomfortable around this 6’3” playful, big-hearted, easy smiling man who has an infectious laugh and has become quite a personality in Missoula. During the pandemic he volunteered time Zooming in virtual classrooms and playing Hagrid or Mad Eye Moody for school children. The volunteer spirit is deep within Wright. He is part of the Watershed Project in Montana which educates children on how water has affected the landscape of where they live. He teaches a class for adults entitled Strong Fathers, Strong Families at Families First MT. He, himself, is a strong father to his talented daughters, Evie and Bella. Partnering with the love of his life, Sage (who is a former touring partner), the Wright family shares numerous artistic gifts with the Missoula community.

Many folks in the theatre-rich counties of Avery and Watauga may remember Wright as the relationship-phobic Nathan Detroit in Guys and Dolls, or as the sarcastic but caring Hawkeye in MASH. As an incoming freshman in college, he immediately took the role of Action Jackson in the College of Charleston’s production of West Side Story. Whatever cast he is in, he becomes the spark—not a scene stealer but a scene mate—making the entire company’s performance better. It makes sense that Missoula County Public Schools have hired him as a theatre artist in their SPARK! arts program to go into the schools and build living histories with the students as part of a core curriculum. SPARK! is a national partner in the Kennedy Center’s Any Given Child Initiative, a growing network of communities working to transform learning and ensure access to the arts for every public school student.

A project Wright is most recently focused on is The Montana Happiness Project. The Project is designed to combat the suicide mentality prevalent in Montana by teaching professionals how to engage in suicide assessment, intervention and prevention. This work is tailor-made for Wright. When asked what his perfect job would be, he replies, “To make a difference in a lot of lives. To help the masses be happier and to help them live well.” Dylan Wright has found his joy!

To learn more about MCT, visit www. MCTinc.org.

By Trimella Chaney

Ms. Trimella Chaney is a veteran theatre arts teacher and founder of the Theatre Arts Department at Watauga High School. She currently teaches at Appalachian State University in the Department of Theatre and Dance, and is a local community theatre director.

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