This local actor credits New West for his success

Ryan Fisher is fashionable and fabulous: I show up to our Zoom call in a T-shirt, he has a starched collar—and I suddenly feel very underdressed. I apologize for my appearance, and he graciously explains to me he’s just finished an audition. We laugh about the entire discussion, and it’s easy to tell Fisher has a gift for making people smile.

It quickly becomes obvious why Fisher is the creative force behind Dandy, a Bridgerton-esque, larger-than-life drag person who runs the Lavender Society: because you can’t help but feel joy when he speaks with you.

“When you come into the room, usually it’s straight audiences. And I’d pin lavender on them. I’m like, ‘You’re here for the meeting, right?’ Then…[they’re] like, ‘What is the meeting for the lavender society for?’ [And it’s for] a society of homosexuals…and it’s like, ‘Well, you’re wearing the band [with lavender]. I don’t know what to tell you. You’re gay now!’”

Fisher’s character was indirectly inspired by a variety of experiences, including a love of Shakespeare and The Rocky Horror Picture Show. But it was after some quick-thinking moments when Dandy was really born: Fisher had been asked to put together two eight-minute acts for a cabaret group in Los Angeles. The group was looking for something a bit more traditional.

“I found some old vaudevillian song from the turn of the century that fit [Dandy]. Very clunky piano, change the lyrics, create some innuendo, and it started to become very gay,” says Fisher. He added a powdered wig and some make-up to create the character that more than a half-million followers on TikTok and nearly 44,000 on Instagram have grown to love and adore.

"One of my co-hosts [at a show I performed at] called me the walking gay agenda, and I think that pretty much sums Dandy up.”

Another word: joy. It’s what inspired Fisher to host the LOLGBT Comedy Workshop for Youth at the Massey Theatre. Fisher wanted to be able to provide spaces for young queer people to grow, laugh, and have a good time. While it’s important to have safe spaces where queer people can talk about trauma, Fisher says there also needs to be safe spaces for them to have fun.

“It’s just room to crack jokes and be silly,” says Fisher, “[the kids would say] ‘this is so much more useful and impactful,’ and it was that moment when they would all come out of their shells talking about queer stuff, [they’d say] ‘I talk about this thing with my friends and my straight friends never understand.’”

While there have been strides, Fisher says there’s still so much work to do, and whatever he can do to help uplift the generations ahead is what’s important for him.

“There’s still a huge stigma against HIV, donating blood, the trans issue, Black Lives Matter. That’s so intertwined with the gay rights movement and the trans rights movement,” he says. “[With Dandy], I [wanted] to do something that expresses that.” After conversations with mentors, he realized his strength was joy. “They’d go, ‘You really don’t need to add that stuff into what you do, because all you are is this energy, this pure joy.’ And sometimes joy is enough.”

With Pride in full swing, Fisher will be at the helm of some New West events, including the Youth Pride Dayt this Thursday that’s open to those aged 12 to 18. “I just love these kids. They told me exactly what they wanted: drag queens, karaoke, Mario Kart, and punch.” Fisher adds some of the kids from LOLGBT will perform sketches.

If you really want to get to know Dandy intimately, you’ll be able to see him perform this Friday at Dandy: Man of the Year. Fisher says he’s always been grateful to spaces like the Massey Theatre and the Anvil Centre for offering spaces for him to shine.

“It’s only one hour; it’s a one-act original musical essentially going back to my rooms of the Lavender Society meeting. There’s a fun little drama in there. There’s plenty of singing and songs, all original music,” says Fisher.

To keep up with all things Dandy, be sure to follow him on Instagram and TikTok.