Today we’d like to introduce you to Mary McElree.
Mary, please kick things off for us by telling us about yourself and your journey so far.
My childhood home was a greenhouse for nurturing creativity. I grew up around parents and siblings who are all gifted in the arts somehow. I found that my niche was my singing voice and my ability to become another character through it. I was passionate about musicals, in particular, growing up with the MGM classics ever on the home television. Judy Garland, Gene Kelly, Barbara Streisand–those were my heroes. I knew very early on, but quite definitively that I wanted to do what they did.
I began my professional acting/singing career at the age of eleven; I was lucky to be homeschooled, in that my schedule was flexible enough to snag the gigs that my peers couldn’t make due to their school conflicts. Since 2003, I have built a professional resume in the Dallas/Fort Worth area performing both as a singer and actress. Because I had established myself at an early age, I was able to secure my Actor’s Equity card by nineteen, and have never looked back!
And though theatre dominates most of my resume, I did grow up as a voiceover talent for Radio Disney and a few local radio stations, and I continue to pursue film and commercial work through my agency, Core Talent.
Some years ago, I met my husband, Johnny Lee, through the Dallas theater scene. In 2017 we booked work as principle singers on a luxury cruise ship bound for the Mediterranean, and shortly after the contract ended, he proposed! We were married in May of this year, and we happily continue to produce art: through music, photography, film – anyway we can, really.
Can you give our readers some background on your art?
As both actress and singer, my mission is to relay whatever story is being told through the piece; be it play, musical, song, film, photograph, they all have a story. My job is to help tell it, and to be someone relatable to the observers, bringing them into the story with me.
As for me, Mary, my mission is to radiate joy and inspiration.
Artists rarely, if ever pursue art for the money. Nonetheless, we all have bills and responsibilities, and many aspiring artists are discouraged from pursuing art due to financial reasons. Any advice or thoughts you’d like to share with prospective artists?
If you sit waiting for the money, or the tools, or the social media followers that you think you need in order to carry out your vision, you are putting yourself in danger of getting caught in a downward spiral of creative depression where inspiration and productivity rarely exist! Do what you can with what you have, when you have it.
An example: Johnny and I have a web series that we are putting out into the world this month. Our whole angle: we have no budget!! No mics, no professional editing software, no crew–just each other’s talents, our two Nikons, and whatever primitive means we can use to get the story out. Our advice: everybody loves an underdog. Get your art out there and see what happens.
What’s the best way for someone to check out your work and provide support?
For acting and singing, the best place at the moment would be my website: www.marymcelreeofficial.com
For photography, go to my Instagram! @mizmarymac
Show your support by following me on Instagram and experience the artsy fartsy goings-on of me and my actor husband.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.marymcelreeofficial.com
- Email: maryillyssa@gmail.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mizmarymac/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TravelSized
Image Credit:
Paxton Maroney, Chip Tompkins, Michael C Foster, Johnny Lee took
Getting in touch: VoyageDallas is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
