Hi!

My name is Emily O’Leary, and I am a singer, actor, teacher and artist. 

 

I was born in small-town Canada, on a little island called Cape Breton, NS, and grew up singing along to Avril Lavigne and Paramore. I always knew that music was the thing I loved to do, but I didn’t realize how important it was to me until I started performing. I graduated from my toy drum-set to a piano, then to a guitar, and finally I started singing. My first real musical theatre performance was in the ensemble of Les Miserables, and after that, twelve-year-old me was hooked. Over the next ten years, I performed in some of my favourite shows, in some of my favourite roles; these include Wednesday Addams (The Addams Family), Natalie (Next to Normal), and Olive Ostrovsky (Spelling Bee). 

 

I studied classical voice at Mount Allison University in Sackville, NB for four years. During that time, I managed to do as much musical theatre as I could alongside my classical work. My thesis project involved performing in, assistant directing and producing Fun Home, which was an absolute dream come true. During this time, I also began teaching voice lessons privately to students of all ages and experience levels, which became more and more one of my biggest passions. This propelled me into moving to New York City, where over the past two years I have been fortunate enough to attend New York University, obtaining my Masters’ degree in Vocal Performance: Musical Theatre, with a Dual Degree in Vocal Pedagogy. I served as Adjunct Instructor of Voice at NYU Steinhardt from January 2022 to May 2023, teaching voice to undergraduate students.

 

Most recently, I made my Off-Broadway debut as Myrtice Strickland in a new musical called Brighter Than The Sun (Chain Theatre). Currently, I teach as an Adjunct Instructor of Voice and Musical Theatre at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts NYC, while also teaching classes at Broadway Training Center in Hastings-on-Hudson, NY, and working as an emcee and front of house member at Blue Man Group NYC. I’m grateful to get to do what I love and share it with the world - thanks for checking out my site!