From Columbus East to Broadway: An Evening with Marja Harmon
On Thursday evening, February 26th, community members filled The Commons for "Love Letters" - a cabaret-style celebration of one of Columbus, Indiana's own, Broadway star Marja Harmon. Community members found their assigned tables, grabbed drinks, and settled in before Marja took the stage at 7:30 with her full band. It was her first time performing in Columbus since 2012.
What followed was an evening of live music woven together with Marja's own story - told in her own words, between songs, to a room full of people who knew her before the Broadway credits. She talked about growing up performing anywhere Columbus would have her - singing at Pacers games, acting with the Mill Race Players, performing at city events at the request of former Mayor Fred Armstrong - and the vocal instructors like Jim Lazzell and Janie Gordon who shaped her early training. She talked about joining the Indianapolis Children’s Choir at just eight years old, and landing her first major callback as a junior in high school. And she talked about what it means to navigate the theater industry as a Black woman - how The Lion King had always been her dream role and she got to live it as Nala in the national tour, and how Hamilton became the next door that opened from there.
That path from Columbus East High School to Broadway took Marja through a Theatre Acting degree at the University of Southern California, working three jobs in New York City, and a first professional role as the lead in the North American tour of Aida. Her Broadway debut came in the first all-Black production of Cat on a Hot Tin Roof at the Broadhurst Theatre, directed by Debbie Allen and starring James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad. She went on to perform in The Book of Mormon on Broadway before joining the national tour of Hamilton as Angelica Schuyler in late 2018 - the role she currently performs nightly across the country.
Midway through the show, Marja dedicated a song to her parents, Mary and Tom Harmon - both African American Foundation board members who have done decades of work for diversity and culture in Columbus - and the community that supported her along the way. Her sister, Chasten Harmon, and best friend, Kristin Hamilton - both fellow performers - joined her on stage.
Big thanks to Marja Harmon for coming home and sharing her story and her voice with us. Thanks also to the musicians who brought the evening to life: Lily Ling on piano and music direction, Chasten Harmon and Kristin Hamilton on backup vocals, Jaylen Petinaud on drums, Jordan Scannella on bass, and Benjamin Weiss on guitar.
About Black History Month Columbus: Black History Month Columbus is about celebrating Black culture, telling the true stories of Black history, and honoring the legacy and accomplishments of the Black community. Join us as we are creating a momentum for community healing through inspiring and educational experiences, and we warmly invite our neighbors from all walks of life to participate ♥
