It\u2019s been quite the month of May for Mary-Mitchell Campbell \u201996. She took over conducting duties on Broadway\u2019s \u201cDeath Becomes Her.\u201d She received the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award for her impressive and intensive theater and performer\u2019s advocacy work. And, on May 9, she returned to her alma mater, Furman University, for the first time in nearly a decade to give the Commencement speech for the bicentennial class of 2026.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s all in a month\u2019s work for Campbell. She\u2019s the kind of person who, when asked, pretty much has to say \u201cyes.\u201d Whether it\u2019s taking over musical direction on a Broadway production for a friend in need, running Kristin Chenoweth\u2019s Broadway Bootcamp each summer in Oklahoma or jumping on stage in front of 560 graduates to inspire them into their next step of life, Campbell gives of herself. And it all started at Furman with a class she didn\u2019t even need in the first place.<\/p>\n
\u201cI took a social problems class here that radically rocked my world,\u201d Campbell said. \u201cIt changed everything. Literally like a dividing day of pre-that class and after that class.\u201d<\/p>\n
The course exposed her to systemic inequities and the realities many communities faced just beyond Greenville\u2019s most visible spaces. Campbell toured mill villages, saw the stark disparities in infrastructure and began to understand how deeply systems could shape opportunity.<\/p>\n
\u201cOnce I fully understood that, I was like, \u2018This is crazy. We should be doing more,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
That realization became the foundation for a career rooted not only in artistic excellence, but also advocacy and service. While at Furman, Campbell founded the Pauper Players, a student theater organization that combined performance with philanthropy, raising money for community organizations through productions staged on campus.<\/p>\n
Nearly 30 years later, the organization still thrives.<\/p>\n
For Campbell, one of the most meaningful moments came when Pauper Players eventually supported Arts Ignite, the nonprofit arts organization she founded in 2005.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was like, \u2018Oh, this thing that I started in college is now fundraising for this thing that I started as an adult,\u2019\u201d Campbell said. \u201cThat was a very full-circle moment.\u201d<\/p>\n
That sense of reflection has followed Campbell throughout this season of her life. Returning to Furman carried special emotional weight as she balanced Broadway productions, nonprofit leadership and preparations to accept one of theater\u2019s highest honors. Campbell recently learned she would receive the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award, an honor recognizing humanitarian and advocacy work within the theater industry.<\/p>\n
\u201cI had completely been like, \u2018Oh yeah, getting a Tony? That\u2019s not my journey,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cThen they called and said, \u2018You won the Isabelle Stevenson Tony this year,\u2019 and I just paused and went, \u2018What?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The recognition arrives after years of balancing what Campbell jokingly describes as \u201ctoo many jobs.\u201d In the past year alone, she worked on multiple Broadway productions, conducted shows, led concerts, oversaw nonprofit initiatives and continued mentoring performers across the country.<\/p>\n
Still, she approaches success with the same perspective that guided her when she first moved to New York after graduation. Despite encouragement from professors to pursue graduate school and more stable opportunities, Campbell felt compelled to chase Broadway, even if failure waited on the other side.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m not scared of failing,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m scared of not trying.\u201d<\/p>\n
That mindset became a central theme of her Commencement address. Campbell encouraged graduates to embrace uncertainty, remain open to growth and understand that fulfillment rarely comes from awards, titles or professional milestones alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no finish line,\u201d she said. \u201cThere is no external thing that\u2019s going to make you happy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Instead, Campbell believes purpose comes from connection, community and a willingness to keep showing up for others. They are the same lessons she first learned in a Furman classroom decades ago.<\/p>\n
As she stood before Furman\u2019s bicentennial graduating class, Campbell represented far more than Broadway success. She represented curiosity, compassion and the willingness to pursue passion even when the outcome remains uncertain.<\/p>\n
And for Campbell, coming back to Furman felt less like revisiting the past and more like honoring the place where so much of her future first began.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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