Balancing a life on stage and inside the enclosures at the National Zoo and Aquarium, actor and zookeeper Will Tran has mastered the craft of juggling.

A self-confessed drama kid, pursuing a career in the performing arts wasn’t on the cards for Will when he finished high school as his family expected he would pursue a more academic path. A well-meaning drama teacher offered Will some questionable advice.

“She basically told me there would be no work for me because I’m Asian. In the context of where we are now, it’s possibly not very kosher, but in that time, I take it as she was looking out for me and didn’t want to see me fail,” Will says.

Unable to forget about performance completely, Will put all his energy into dance. Coming to the art form later than most at 17, he wanted to catch up and spent as much time as he could practising and watching YouTube videos.

“I would take two buses from Civic down to Lanyon to learn how to dance and tell my folks I was studying at the National Library. It wasn’t until Mum scoped out the library one night and I was dancing down in Lanyon that it came out.

“It was like a P.I. thing, she told me she just parked in front of the National Library and sat there in the car until like ten. It was a massive blow-up, but it was all for the best,” he smiles.

After his mother’s spy mission, Will’s family begrudgingly accepted that dance was a passion that he wanted to pursue and allowed the budding dancer to attend classes.

“That old chestnut with migrant families, it’s all about creating stability for when kids are older, so they didn’t see value in any performing arts. But they still supported me, which actually means more because they completely disagreed with it but are still so supportive because it makes me happy.”

Will continued his studies while pursuing dance as an option, and was a contestant on So You Think Can Dance?, making the Australian top 80. Throughout his early 20s, Will travelled and taught dance around Europe and undertook workshops in New York. As much as he loves dance, it wasn’t a financially viable option.

“I got booked for an ad for one day and realised that the cost of value for work being put in for that stuff is very different from being a dancer, which is arguably the most underpaid art form. You spend tireless hours in the studio creating, perfecting and get paid tuppence performance-wise.”

The Stage

From one ad, the work grew into ad campaigns for global brands like HP and Microsoft to parts in TV shows like The Heights on ABC and Paper Dolls, which is about to air on Network Ten. Recently, the passionate performer undertook his largest mainstage role to date, playing Quang in Queensland Theatre’s production of Vietgone.

“Quang is a hero, he is a helicopter pilot for the Republic of Vietnam Air Force, he has been displaced at the fall of Saigon in 1975. He has a choice to go and take a helicopter and pick up his wife and two kids or save a bunch of refugees with his best mate,” says Will.

Mixing kung fu, rapping, dancing and, at times, swinging from billboards, the role was the most challenging experience of his life. The production was a meaningful one for Will who has Vietnamese heritage, and it was also the first time his father would see him perform. Discussions between the cast, producers and crew made Will reflect on the choices made by his parents.

“It makes me appreciate the sacrifices my parents and their generation made to give me an opportunity and anyone like me the chance to just do this and be free to have a really beautiful life,” he says. “To come to a country where there is no language, no money and make an opportunity, it puts everything in perspective, the sacrifices my parents made to allow me to be me.”

The story of Vietgone has given Will a deep appreciation for the migrant experience. It is a show that would resonate with all children of migrants, he says.

“The life we have lived in the in-between space, between respecting where we came from and knowing what that means and also trying to assimilate into Australian culture and identity, it’s a very challenging place to be.”

The zoo

Along with his passion for performing arts, Will has been fostering his passion for animals since year nine when he started working in a vet clinic as a receptionist. In his early 20s, while juggling his arts/law degree ahead of his dance career taking off, he worked in an aquarium helping customers care for their pets.

Working as a TV presenter, his program was axed, and while living off modelling and acting contracts, Will saw a position for an aquarist role at the National Zoo and Aquarium in Canberra. Making it through a few rounds of interviews, he thought it would be best to be upfront about his intentions.

“I made it clear to the company that I really wish to pursue a career in the arts industry and I’ve accrued all these wonderful accolades in doing so.”

While he wasn’t offered the aquarist role, Will was offered a role as an education officer, where he ran tours for the zoo and Jamala. From there, he was moved into a causal keeping role in the aquarium before being placed with the native animals. He remains the natives’ zookeeper and is also the zoo’s vet clinic manager.

“I’m so passionate about the work I do at the zoo and the company, an iconic Canberra establishment. Our job is to make people smile and walk away with just a shred of conservation that they can permeate into the greater community,” he says.

Grateful to be in the position he is, Will says that the team at the National Zoo has always been supportive of his acting achievements, celebrating all the wins alongside him.

“It speaks volumes for the family-run business that the zoo is, when I told them they said ‘We are so proud of you, go. We will see you when you come back’.”

Working with Australian animals, Will says their cognitive function is not on par with something like the primates, but hopes they know and love him. He says the feeling of familiarity and love is not in any doubt, particularly when it comes to one of the dingoes.

“There’s a girl called Misha that has my heart; Misha is my favourite animal. I don’t really sit down for lunch I just keep working because I love my job and if I ever want to take a break, I just go sit with Misha. I adore her wholeheartedly,” he smiles.

A man of many loves, Will tries to spend as much of his spare time with his wife and family as possible. He also takes every chance available to tell people about his love for his hometown.

“I would never want to move, Canberra is my home, I love it. I feel so happy to be in Canberra and I get bailed up about it everywhere I go and I never back down, it is the perfect city for me, I love it. I’m just really proud that I can pursue a career in the arts industry being Canberran.”

Wanting to remain here, Will is calling on locals to continue to support the local arts in any capacity they can. He says when supporting venues that host live music and live art, a little bit can go a long way.

“Canberra is growing and we have some amazing facilities for performances – The Street Theatre, Canberra Theatre Centre, The Q. There is so much we can support in our hometown and if people continue to support the industry in Canberra, the more we will build and grow.”

From a young man passionate about the arts, who was told there was no place for him, to continuing to create and uncover that place, Will hopes that he can inspire others like him. He says while he doesn’t disagree with what he was told, nowadays there is far greater representation on our screens and stages. 

“I think it is a very different industry now for anyone to enter into because what was once minimised for your differences – for me being Asian, wanting to be an acting, loving drama at school – is now celebrated.”

Back in high school, Will started to feel society as a whole shifting to embrace differences rather than isolate people for them.

“We’ve definitely shifted and it’s for the better. I would hope that we’re not minimised for what we eat, the way we speak or the differences in our households, now that these are nuances that are celebrated not only in our local sphere but on the TV and in the movies.”

Follow Will Tran on Instagram; instagram.com/willtran90

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