It was once said that we are the product of our lived experiences. And for actress Dawn-Lyen Garnder, this couldn’t be truer. The “Queen Sugar” star recently sat down with us for an episode of “In This Room” where she offered a glimpse into the experiences that helped shape her into the woman she is today.
Gardner’s story begins in Los Angeles, California where her parents met as high school students.
“I grew up in LA — first-generation Los Angeles. My dad is from Alabama and my mom is from China. They both found their way to LA through the great movements of history; my dad with the Great Migration in the ’50s and my mom, also in the ’50s with her family,” she explained.
“They met each other in high school, fell in love through Chess. Over a few years, they just dated and eventually got married, and out came the two of us — my brother and myself. So from jump, it was unconventional,” the actress went on.
As with many families, Dawn-Lyen’s grandmother’s home was the central point for her family and where she spent much of her time.
“We sort of grew up all over LA, but mostly centered in South LA. My grandmother’s house was in western. It was the rock of the family. You were there all of the time, basically. And then we were always about 10 minutes away from each other — all of my aunts and uncles and my cousins. It was very much a village woven through LA and South LA. That’s what I remember and that’s what has borne out into my family.”
According to the 37-year-old actress, many factors from childhood helped to mold her identity — including the sibling-like relationship she formed with her cousins — but her experiences at the Taylor Tot Playhouse were life-changing. It’s where she truly learned to embrace the beauty of Blackness.
“I went to a very specific and wonderful school called Taylor Tot Playhouse in Los Angeles. It was, at the time, 100 percent Black,” she fondly recalled. “It was such an empowering experience. They only had images of Black storybook characters — all people of color. We did book reports on Sojourner Truth. It was a very early introduction to Black pride and to Black history.”
Historically, studies have shown that positive representation of Black characters in books and media have a profound impact on the social and emotional development of Black children.
“Of course, I was also living a cultural truth in my home where I had two cultures merging,” she went on. “All of those things really informed who I became. I look back at that time, especially my time at Taylor Tot Playhouse, as foundational soil for this sense of worthiness and self and purpose that I realize not everyone got. But I got it and my brother got it and it’s distinct.”
Even as adults, we are constantly evolving, which means our identities are forever shifting. And for the Julliard graduate, her role as Charley Bordelon West on “Queen Sugar” is also causing her to change as a person.
“Charley is unlike any character I’ve ever played. I think if there’s one lesson that she’s taught me, that I will take with me forever, it is to include all parts of yourself. The uncomfortable, shadow side, the side that really isn’t trying to make it okay for anyone else, the vulnerable side, the heartbroken side, the champion, the superhero, the Kyrptonite. You know all of the things in playing her, I’ve had to investigate all of those parts of myself. I had to go into land that I sort of didn’t want to send a ship to. I had to in order to take all of her in,” she confessed.
Garnder continued:
“I think it taught me that. That’s a hero journey. That’s an epic thing to do: to embrace and truly give love to all parts of yourself and leave none of you out. Beyond even that, she demands to be dealt with. That has been such an education for me. I think I tend to be the listener. The one who really wants to take in all of the information, process it, hear all and make sure all are heard. And then turn around and put my own experiences on the backburner. She demands that those are front and center,” she shared. “It’s an empowering space to embody.”
Apparently, the growth that Dawn-Lyen experienced on the set is two-fold. Not only has she learned to fully embrace herself, but starring in the Ava DuVerney-directed series has altered her outlook on womanhood. She partially attributes this to the fact that DuVerney has only hired women directors.
“Those themes, I think, have resonated the most with me and shifted not just my outlook, but what I will tolerate. What I will tolerate around how my womanness is being received, interpreted, assigned,” she revealed. “It was Ava’s choice and intention to create four seasons of all women directors. As an actor, it shifted my normal.”
The fourth season of “Queen Sugar” premieres Wednesday, June 12 on OWN.
