Martavius Parrish

Duke alumnus Martavius Parrish discovered musical theater in high school. In addition to playing the saxophone and participating in his high school's drama program, he attended the Georgia Governor's Honors Program as a Theater major.

At Duke, Parrish majored in Neuroscience, intending to become a doctor. However, as he says, he "became increasingly involved with several aspects of the theater, including performance, producing, stage managing, pit crew, tech crew and front of house. It wasn't until my junior year of undergrad (after an astounding production of Ragtime that coincided with the Trayvon Martin incident) that I officially decided to leave the life of medicine and pursue what had become an important opportunity to mold the hearts of the masses."

After graduating from Duke, Parrish attended New York University's Steinhardt, studying Vocal Performance with a concentration in Musical Theatre. Immediately after graduation, Parrish says "I landed my first professional show at Ogunquit Playhouse and have been working consistently in the arts since then."

Parrish is a teaching artist (Lincoln Center), a director (Broadway & New York City Center) and a Creative Entrepreneur (Artonomist).