Daily Inspiration: Meet Maiesha McQueen

Today we’d like to introduce you to Maiesha McQueen.

Hi Maiesha, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I was born in New Jersey but raised in Atlanta, and I’ve always been a curious, creative kid. Even as a child, I was drawn to the arts—not just performing, but creating. I started in choral music and visual arts, and I was fortunate to have a mother who encouraged every interest I had. Whatever sparked my curiosity, she found a way to nurture it.

That path led me to Tri-Cities High School of the Visual and Performing Arts in East Point, where I discovered acting and fell in love with musical theatre. I was shaped by incredible mentors, including Freddie Hendricks, Dawn Axam, Don Ogletree, and Viola Turner, who challenged me, believed in me, and helped me see what was possible. I also became a member of the Freddie Hendricks Youth Ensemble of Atlanta—a community that has remained family to me. As we like to say, once a member, always a member.

After high school, I attended New York University, where I studied musical theatre. From there, my career has taken me across Broadway, national tours, regional theatres, and most recently into opera. But one thing that has remained constant is my love for education. Through Teach For America, I taught full-time while also performing with a touring theatre company, reinforcing my belief that teaching and artistry don’t compete with one another—they strengthen one another.

Today, although Atlanta will always be home, my work allows me to perform, teach, direct, and create all over the country. Whether I’m on stage or in a classroom, my goal is the same: to tell meaningful stories, help others discover their voices, and continue creating work that leaves a lasting impact. At my core, I’ve always been a creator, and that curiosity that defined me as a child still fuels everything I do today.

I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I don’t know that I’d describe my journey as “smooth,” but I am incredibly grateful for where it began. I came up in artistic spaces that were deeply nurturing, culturally affirming, and rooted in possibility. Before college, I wasn’t thinking about “type” or whether I was commercially viable. I was encouraged to be curious, to tell stories, and to become the fullest version of myself as an artist.

That shifted when I entered a predominantly white institution where the conversation around musical theatre was much more centered on commercial viability and fitting into existing molds. It wasn’t necessarily wrong—it was just very different from the artistic foundation I had been given. Suddenly, I was introduced to the idea of what I was “right” for versus what I wasn’t. I think that tension still exists in our industry today.

Rather than allowing those limitations to define me, they’ve challenged me to ask bigger questions. How do I bring authenticity and humanity to stories? How do I expand the narratives we’re telling? How do I create opportunities where they don’t already exist? Those questions have shaped every part of my career.

I’ve never seen education as separate from my work as an artist. I often say that teaching isn’t my Plan B—it’s part of my plan. Whether I’m performing onstage, directing, creating new work, or leading A Bite Out of Broadway and introducing young artists to Broadway professionals and experiences they may never have imagined possible, I’m doing the same work: creating spaces where people feel seen, empowered, and inspired to tell their own stories.

If there has been a struggle, it’s been learning not to wait for permission. When I didn’t see the spaces I longed for, I learned to help build them. I love the creative process, and I’ve realized that my purpose isn’t just to perform in stories—it’s also to create them, expand them, and make room for others within them.

Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
At my core, I’m a storyteller. Whether I’m performing onstage, directing, teaching, producing, or creating new work, I’m always asking the same question: *How can this story help us understand ourselves and each other more deeply?*

Professionally, I’ve had the privilege of performing on Broadway, in national tours, regional theatres, and opera. But I’ve also spent more than two decades as an educator, director, and mentor. I’ve never believed those identities compete with one another—they all serve the same purpose. I love helping people discover their authentic voice and creating environments where they feel safe enough to take creative risks.

I think what sets me apart is that I genuinely love the process as much as the product. I enjoy building ideas from the ground up, collaborating across disciplines, and finding unexpected ways to tell stories. I’m just as energized developing a new educational program or directing young artists as I am stepping onto a stage. I don’t see creativity as something that belongs only to performers; I see it as a way of moving through the world.

One of the accomplishments I’m most proud of is founding A Bite Out of Broadway. The program was born from a desire to create the kind of access and mentorship that can change the trajectory of a young artist’s life. Watching students step into Broadway rehearsal rooms, connect with working professionals, and realize that those spaces belong to them too has been every bit as rewarding as any curtain call I’ve ever received.

More than anything, I hope I’m known for creating spaces where people feel seen. Whether that’s through a performance, a classroom, a rehearsal process, or a new piece of work, I want people to leave believing there’s more room for their own voice than they realized when they walked in.

Where do you see things going in the next 5-10 years?
When I think about the next five to ten years, I hope we continue to see greater investment in the arts, not just in producing existing work, but in developing new work and giving new voices the resources to tell their stories.

I’m especially passionate about what that could look like here in Atlanta. We produce an incredible amount of talent. So many artists come from this city, train here, or begin their careers here, and then they feel like they have to leave to build a sustainable life in the theatre. I’d love for Atlanta to become a place where artists don’t just launch their careers, they can build them.

I think that means investing in every stage of the pipeline. It means stronger collegiate training opportunities, more internships and apprenticeships with our theatres, better financial support for working artists, and greater collaboration between our theatre companies instead of everyone operating in their own lane. It also means creating more opportunities for playwrights, composers, and creative teams to develop new work right here in Atlanta.

At the end of the day, I want Atlanta to be known not only as a city that produces extraordinary artists, but as a city that sustains them. I want young people to be able to imagine a future where they can build meaningful, fulfilling careers in theatre without feeling like they have to leave home to do it. I know that’s a big vision, but I think it’s one worth working toward.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.maieshamcqueen.com
• Instagram: @maieshamcqueen
• Facebook: @maieshamcqueen
• Twitter: @maieshamcqueen
• Youtube: @MaieshaMcQueen_theartist