Elyse Johnson
she/her
Upon first meeting Elyse, it’s her kind heartedness and bubbly personality that precedes her introduction. Elyse was born and raised in Ellicott City, Maryland, just outside of Baltimore. Music and theatre has been a lifelong passion of hers. For as long as she can remember, Elyse grew up listening to nothing but the rhythms and grooves of Michael Jackson, The Beatles, and Whitney Houston, to name a few. You could say her musical style is greatly influenced by the ladies of the 80s, living in the world of everything Pop Rock. Elyse has an exceptionally good musical ear as her grandmother passed down the gift of perfect pitch, giving her the ability to understand music in a way most people can’t. She’d be lying if she said that watching American Idol at 8 years old, and subsequently forcing her family members to judge her singing during the commercial breaks, wasn’t extremely formative to her life and pursuit of a career in the arts. She particularly enjoyed performing the roles of Janet Van de Graaf in THE DROWSY CHAPERONE, Fantine in LES MISERABLES, and most recently here at SU, Catherine in PIPPIN. When she’s not doing theatre, she enjoys having a girls night in with her roommates, making up new recipes on the spot, traveling, and being a die hard Baltimore Ravens fan. Following graduation, Elyse plans on eventually making the big move to NYC and diving head first into any opportunity that comes her way.