He stares out into the darkness before him, singing with passion and dancing with rhythm. The crowd erupts in a roar upon seeing his performance, and he knows in that moment that he is meant to perform for the rest of his life.

Senior William Hahn is in theater arts and participates in school and community theater performances. He was performing in a musical at Class Act Productions in the Woodlands when a local news station asked him to appear on their show.

“I was doing a musical called ‘Oliver’ based off of Charles Dickens’ ‘Oliver Twist’ in the Woodlands, and KPRC Local 2 was wanting me to go promote it,” Hahn said. “The director of the show just came up to me and asked if I wanted to be on TV. I was on ‘Houston Life,’ which is a talk show, and I was a part of a little five minute segment about what’s going on in Houston.”

While on KPRC Local 2, Hahn was interviewed and was asked questions about the musical he performed in.

“I was nervous,” Hahn said. “I do acting, so it wasn’t that bad, but I was definitely self-conscious. I was wearing this full beard, because I was acting like I was in the show, so I was trying not to touch it or do anything weird. I answered questions about where the show was and how much it cost to go to. It was basically an interview.”

According to Hahn, being on TV was an amazing experience unlike anything he had done before in school or community theater performances.

“My TV experience was awesome,” Hahn said. “I went downtown to the studios in The Galleria, and the people who work on the show set us up. I was in costume, I was mic’d up, the cameras were there and we talked about ‘Oliver.’ It was a real TV experience, and it was really fun.”

Hahn is an extremely talented actor, playwright and director, according to theater arts teacher Robin Welch Wood.

“I definitely believe Will has a future in theatre,” Welch Wood said. “It may be on the live stage, in TV or with film. He is not only a talented actor but also a playwright and director, so who knows where he’ll end up. But watch out. I really think you’ll be hearing the name Will Hahn one day.”

According to fellow actor junior Jacob Bautista, Hahn is a phenomenal actor and has a great future ahead of him.

“Will portrays every role as his own,” Bautista said. “He will always play a different character, whether he’s bearded and singing about riches or a violent son of a king. I believe he could make either the TV industry or musical theater, because honestly the man is well-rounded, talented and I consider him an inspiration to me.”

Hahn felt very different being in front of a camera as opposed to being on a stage performing for a crowd of people.

“When you’re acting on stage, everything is black, and nobody has a camera in your face, so you don’t have to worry about not making awkward eye-contact with anyone,” Hahn said. “It’s just blackness out there, and you’re 30 feet away. With TV though, the camera is right there and in your face, and anything you do is highlighted. There is more attention to detail on TV, and if I move two feet either way, I get out of the frame and mess it up.”

After shooting for KPRC Local 2, Hahn was thanked and told to come back on the show to advertise future community theater plays that he will perform in. Whether behind a camera or in front of a crowd, Hahn loves to perform.

“[Performing] legitimately is the best feeling ever,” Hahn said. “I love connecting with people, and any way I can do that is fantastic, whether it be by acting or talking to people. I think I’ll have to perform forever to not go insane, so I definitely think that I’ll end up doing this forever.”