Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Mary Leveridge. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Mary, appreciate you joining us today. We’d love to hear the backstory behind a risk you’ve taken – whether big or small, walk us through what it was like and how it ultimately turned out.

Everything in life comes with risk, but choosing to be an artist was one of the most life changing risks I’ve ever taken. I was in college in England studying Equine Science. I had wanted to ride and train horses for the rest of my life. I thought it was what I was supposed to do, having done it for over a decade at that point. There was, however, this small part of me that loved the theatre, loved watching stories come to life, but was always too shy to ever do anything about it. It all came to a head in college and I knew I had to go home and at least give it a try and take a class or I would never be able to forgive myself. So, I enrolled at the local community college, undeclared, took my first class doing monologues and scenes and was immediately hooked. I knew that horses would always be a part of my life, but that acting and storytelling is what my purpose truly is.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m an actor and writer, occasional stage manager, lover of TTRPGs, and equestrian. It’s a lot of hats to wear, but it keeps things interesting. I’m an actor and writer first and foremost. I love getting to tell stories and those are the best ways for me to do so. I would definitely say acting comes before writing. There is something so special about sharing a moment with someone on stage or on film, just as there is something special about writing. and then hearing your own words out loud with a group of creatives you know and trust. I also stage manage on the side. I love TTRPGs-specifically Dungeons & Dragons and Pathfinder-I run games for friends and I play. And, as mentioned previously, I ride horses when I can.

For you, what’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative?

Aside from the personal fulfillment I get from acting and writing, I love when others are affected by the work I do. When audience members come up after a show and tell me their favorite moment or say a simple “thank you” – it means the world. I always stage door whenever I see a show, so when people do it at shows I’m in, it fills me with another level of gratitude for the art form. Because acting is all about showing us our humanity, and the cycle of seeing art and putting art into the world and having it seen is incredibly fulfilling. I wrote, produced, and performed a one-woman show at the Hollywood Fringe Festival in 2024 and I loved the conversations I got to have with audience members who saw my show and other artists who were performing at the festival. Everyone was excited about what was being created, and creating is one of the most human acts we can do.

Is there something you think non-creatives will struggle to understand about your journey as a creative?

The most important thing any creative needs is support. I’m grateful to have that from my friends and family, but I know a lot of people who don’t have that, and it makes the journey incredibly hard and incredibly lonely. Having people tell you that you’re on the right track, that your art is worth sharing and being seen, that yes, this is something you can do and it IS a viable career are all really important things to hear. Every artist questions themselves and their art at some point, and having people in your life to tell you (lovingly) to snap out of it, is really important. Every creative person needs someone to say “you got this”, because sometimes saying it to yourself is not enough. I keep a lot of letters from friends and family as motivation for when I’m feeling down to help lift me back up again. When I know they believe in me, it makes me believe in myself that. much more.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.maryleveridge.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mary_leveridge/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100005216057276
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mary-leveridge-a19214215/
• Other: IMDB: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm13078477/?ref_=fn_al_nm_1

Image Credits

Headshots: Leah Huebner
Kim Fowler/The Art of Acting Studio
Richard Dean @broadwayphotovideo