Myrona DeLaney pronounced
like Madonna with an R or Piranha with an M
I hail from the Midwest - Ohio to be specific. I am a classically
trained pianist and attended Ohio University on a piano
scholarship. I switched majors many times during those 5
years, from music education to journalism to composition,
finally graduating (before my parents gave up on me) with
a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Vocal Performance.
I
began my professional career as a music theatre actor in
Chicago, where I had the opportunity to work on two original
shows and became enthralled with the creative spirit and
collaborative process that music theatre is all about.
My
first summer stock experiences were at Enchanted Hills Playhouse,
a barn theatre in Syracuse, Indiana, where I played Laurie,
Julie, Luisa, Nancy, Golda,  Nellie
and Mrs. Paroo over the course of two summers of theatre.
In
my free time I was director of the VU Show Revue at Valparaiso
University, a small Lutheran college just south of the Illinois
border.
By
the end of that second summer of stock, it was time to cut
the apron strings and move to New York. So with $1000 in
my checkbook, off to Manhattan I went.
What
was I thinking! After two days of hunting for an apartment
I ended up in Jackson Heights – broke and without
employment. I guess I should have packed more than my tap
shoes!
It
wasn’t all bad though. The auditions were plentiful,
even if the local employment was not. Imagine the 42nd Street
of 1982 – not a pretty sight and definitely scary
to a naïve country girl like me.
But
my love of the theatre won out. I worked Off-Broadway, did
Jersey dinner theatre, and took shows in Florida and Toronto.
I did a 6-month stint in Nashville at the now extinct Opryland
theme park, dancing and singing with an 18-piece orchestra
5 or 6 hour-long shows a day.
I
returned to Orlando where I did a year at Disney World in
the role of Dolly Drew in the Hoop-Dee-Doo Revue, still
running today!
Next
stop – California! New challenges arose in LA. I tried
the film/television route half-heartedly, but my real love
was music theatre. I did shows at CLO’s and dinner
theatres. I sang in an acapella quartet for 4 years. I cruises
the world on Royal Viking Cruise Lines as lead singer and
cabaret performer for over a year.
 Upon
my return I began my graduate work at UC Irvine, where I
played Phyllis in Follies and The Witch in Into the Woods,
two of Sondheim’s most brilliant works. In those three
years I also did two productions of Side by Side by Sondheim
and played Celeste I in a beautiful production of Sunday
in the Park with George at South Coast Repertory.
Most
recently I have moved into directing. I have directed over
20 shows including Falsettos, Seussical , and Blood Brothers
at UCI. Currently, I am a doctoral candidate in Education
with interests in Gifted Education and Creativity.
As
you can see from this writing, my career has not gone in
a straight line, but it has moved in the same direction.
I love music theatre. I love teaching and directing. The
theatre is a safe place for me. A place to explore, to learn
about the world and our place in it, a laboratory to test
new ideas and give dynamic shape to old ones. The theatre
lets passions come to life!
Find out more about Myrona:
::
Biography
:: Teaching Philosophy
:: Curriculum Vitae
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