When you attend Chinese schools, like Mirabel ’26 did for most of her life, public speaking is paramount: “A lot of the classes were about using English in writing plays, acting in plays,” she says. “You have kids read these short essays in their Mandarin textbooks with as much emotion as they can. So it's something I've picked up.” “Picked up” is putting it mildly. Since coming to Commonwealth, Mirabel has been a theater mainstay and a decorated public speaker. Keep reading to discover how this senior spends her time outside the spotlight, including her celestial interests, the darkly comic reason why Shakespeare always makes her laugh, and the paradox that’s “terrifying to think about.”

Getting to Know You

What is bringing you joy right now? 

Biking. Now I get the satisfaction of being able to bike to a place in one hour instead of previously needing two hours. 

What are your favorite comfort foods?

Egg and tomato noodles. 

What is your favorite book (or a book you’ve re-read)? 

It's so hard to choose. For a recent one I've read, I think it's called The May Fourth Movement [Intellectual Revolution In Modern China, by Chow Tse-Tsung], and it's pretty well translated and well written and well researched. They have some good student quotations. It's really fun to read.

What do you think is the most intriguing paradox? 

I don't know my paradoxes well. I need to know more about paradoxes. But I'd say Fermi's because, one, I'm a huge fan of The Three-Body Problem [by Liu Cixin]. And, two, because there are so many answers, ranging from wacky to serious, and from more scientific to obvious. Like, in The Three-Body Problem you have the Dark Forest Theory, which is basically the idea that aliens don't want to reveal themselves to anyone because they’re afraid that doing so would expose them to hostilities from more advanced civilizations. I try not to think about the Dark Forest Theory beyond sci-fi novels, because it's kind of terrifying.

What was/is your favorite class (at Commonwealth or elsewhere)? 

My answer probably would vary depending on what unit [of a class] I'm in. When we were talking about hybridization, it was definitely chemistry class. I really like the Gilded Age, so during that period, history was my favorite class. But it switches around a lot. 

When do you feel the most enjoyably challenged?

CS [computer science] class—finishing a homework by yourself, because you get immediate proof of whether you got a question right or not. And it just feels nice to be able to get the definitive affirmation that you're right after you've been working on something for two hours.

What never fails to make you laugh?

Every single time I read Shakespeare, and at some point one of the characters dies and they go, “Oh, I am slain!” I can just imagine this guy in a Shakespearean-era costume falling onto the stage dramatically and some random guy all the way in the back like, “What?!” I find that really funny. 

What are people surprised to learn about you?

I do astro-photography, mostly Milky Way shots, general sky shots, and star trails, because those are easy, with minimal editing involved. I mostly do stuff that doesn't require super-advanced equipment but definitely requires more attention. Like finding the thing I'm trying to photograph—the Andromeda Galaxy, for example. If it’s dark enough, you can spot it. I found it during Hancock this fall, but it's really hard to get your camera on it. I spend around one hour trying to get my camera on the target, and then I try to take photos. I should probably spend more time editing them, but I don't really like the staring-at-the-computer aspect of photography all that much. I just like going out and seeing the stars.

Pen or pencil? 

Definitely pen, unless I'm incredibly stuck on a question, then it's pencil. Pencil’s usually reserved for physics, because I run out of space, or I get something wrong and I have to erase everything. But I like pens. I like taking my notes in multiple colors, and I like not having to sharpen my writing utensils. They don’t get blunt and smudgey halfway through class, you know? 

Fall, winter, spring, or summer?

Not summer, because it's so hot and it feels like the sun wants to splatter you across the asphalt. But all the others are pretty nice. 

Life as a Commonwealth Student (and Beyond)

What was your first impression of Commonwealth and how has it mapped to your experience?

My first impression was that everyone was so nice. You know, when strangers turn out to be nicer than you expect? And you almost feel nervous because you're like, “Oh, wow, everyone's so nice…. What if I say something weird?!” 

Using metrics besides grades, how do you define “success” in your classes?

I’d say liking a class and wanting to learn more about stuff related to that class outside of school. It's terrible showing up to a class and hating everything that's happening, and, luckily, that hasn't happened during my high-school career. It's nice to be able to show up to a class and be excited. 

You’ve made a name for yourself as a public speaker and performer—placing in National History Day (with Chloe ’27) and Poetry Out Loud, as well as participating in Shakespeare competitions, Debate Club, and theater productions at Commonwealth. What drew you to this work? How has it impacted you? 

Theater is something I've been doing for a while, since fifth grade. I went to a Chinese middle school where they taught English through writing plays and acting in plays, so I wrote bad adaptations and silly little stories with a friend. I think I wrote one about a walrus who wanted to fit in and a lady who sells really bad tea to English soccer teams? Wacky stuff like that. There's also this teaching method in Chinese elementary schools where you have kids read these short essays in their Mandarin textbooks with as much emotion as they can. I probably picked up interpretive reading that way. As for Commonwealth plays, it started when I showed up for the fall play auditions in tenth grade. It was fun, and I just decided to keep doing it. 

It was actually Chloe who first told me about the NHD competition. My first thought was ancient Chinese history, but we eventually decided to do the May 4 Movement, which is recent-ish. And it was a lot of fun, because we got to write our own script and do our own set design. Around the same time, I was feeling particularly guilty about forgetting to sign up for the Shakespeare competition, so I signed up for Poetry Out Loud [performing "Ode for the American Dead in Asia" by Thomas McGrath]. And it was really fun. 

Debate’s interesting too. It teaches you how to thread information together in a short amount of time. And also how to balance the emotional appeals and logical stuff. You learn a lot about history, economics, politics, and obscure facts when you're doing a debate tournament. I'd say our current strategy is to know more about current affairs and how the government works. The more you get into debate, the more your topics go from, like, “Does pineapple belong on pizza?” to “Should all nuclear bombs be given to an international committee to regulate?”

When do you feel most connected to other students (or teachers/staff members) in our community?

Just discussing random things, like the time Caro (’27), Mr. Dardonville, and Mr. Samblas and I were talking about a really bad YouTube video for making fried rice. At all the schools I've been to previously, it’s felt like there are two very distinct cultures: you have the teachers and you have the students, and there wasn't really an overlap. Here, there's a lot of interaction between the two groups, and you can see that in class and outside of class as well. 

How has your Commonwealth experience colored the way you look at the world? How you plan for your future?

At my old school, you pretty much either did STEM or humanities. But at Commonwealth, I've had the opportunity to see the intersections, or you could just choose to pursue both STEM and humanities individually at the same time. It's really something I've just come to appreciate.

What is it like going to school in Boston?

You get to see some pretty nice buildings. There’s also the BPL [Boston Public Library]. 

What’s your advice for prospective students considering Commonwealth? 

View the application process as you choosing a school, because you might get into a school that people say is “better” than other schools, but you don't really know if that's the best school for you. Schools have different ways of educating their students. They place emphasis on different topics. They have different cultures. So I guess my advice would be to visit the school, see if the teaching suits you, see what the school’s overall culture is like. Because, ultimately, it's about you finding a school that you'll be happy in for the next four years. 

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