Shenandoah Conservatory is delighted to announce that Broadway actress and singer Mandy Gonzalez will serve as the honored guest and keynote speaker for the annual Conservatory Convocation at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, Sept. 3. Later that evening, Gonzalez will kick off the 2025/26 performance season with a public performance at Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre. 

Each year, Conservatory Convocation welcomes incoming and returning students with a vibrant showcase of music, theatre and dance featuring the conservatory’s extraordinary student artists, as well as a keynote by a distinguished arts leader.

This year’s guest speaker is celebrated as one of the most powerful and versatile voices on Broadway today. Most recently, she starred as Norma Desmond in the 2024 Broadway revival of “Sunset Boulevard,” directed by Jamie Lloyd. From 2016 to 2022, Gonzalez captivated audiences as Angelica Schuyler in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s groundbreaking musical “Hamilton.” She is perhaps best known for originating the role of Nina Rosario in Miranda’s Tony Award-winning “In the Heights,” earning a Drama Desk Award for Outstanding Ensemble. Earlier in her career, she brought her powerhouse vocals to the role of Elphaba in Broadway’s “Wicked” (2010–2011), where her show-stopping performance of “Defying Gravity” drew nightly ovations at the Gershwin Theatre.

Beyond Broadway, Gonzalez is a recording artist, a star of television and film, and the author of the young adult novel series “Fearless.” She continues to champion the next generation of performers through concerts, masterclasses and advocacy for the arts.

In addition to serving as the convocation keynote speaker, Gonzalez kicks off the Conservatory Performs 150th anniversary season with a public concert at 7:30 p.m. in Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre. She will be joined by her quartet in an intimate performance that brings her powerhouse vocals and commanding stage presence to a program that bridges the past, present and future of musical theatre.

Conservatory Convocation is closed to the general public, but tickets for the evening performance are available for purchase at conservatoryperforms.org and via the Box Office located in the Ohrstrom-Bryant Theatre lobby.

About Mandy Gonzalez

Mandy Gonzalez is an accomplished film, TV, stage actor and author. She possesses one of the most powerful and versatile contemporary voices of our time.

Gonzalez is a survivor, thriver and exudes positivity. Her passion for theatre began at the age of fifteen when she attended a musical theatre camp with teachers like Ann Reinking, Treat Williams and Gregory Hines. At 19, she left college to go on tour with Bette Midler as a backup singer before moving to New York City to pursue her Broadway dreams. 

Her first Broadway role was in “Aida.” Gonzalez then brought her talent to Lin-Manuel Miranda’s, “In the Heights,” where she originated the role of Nina Rosario in the Tony Award-winning Broadway musical, where she received a Drama Desk Award. As a proud Latina-American, the story of Nina resonated deeply.

Gonzalez then soared as Elphaba in “Wicked” and left an indelible mark in the megahit “Hamilton,” where she starred as Angelica Schuyler for 6 years. Gonzalez also received an OBIE Award and overwhelming critical praise for her performance in the off-Broadway production of “Eli’s Comin’.”

At the beginning of 2020, Gonzalez was diagnosed with breast cancer and battled the disease doing chemotherapy while still performing eight shows a week in “Hamilton.” Her fight persisted through the pandemic which included remote schooling for her daughter as well as continuing chemotherapy alone due to visitor restrictions. In July 2020, she got to ring the “cancer-free” bell.

Television viewers have had the pleasure of seeing Gonzalez in her recurring roles in the hit series “Madam Secretary,” “BULL,” “Quantico,” and alongside Steve Martin, Martin Short, and Selena Gomez in “Only Murders in the Building.” Equally at home on the big screen, Gonzalez has appeared in “Across the Universe” and “Man on a Ledge,” and she can be heard as the voices of Mei in Disney’s “Mulan 2” and Mother Rose on Disney series “Alice’s Wonderland Bakery.”

A frequent concert soloist, Gonzalez has performed with symphony orchestras around the world. Highlights include Carnegie Hall with the New York Pops, Boston Pops, The National Symphony Orchestra, Houston Symphony and Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, to name a few. 

Gonzalez released her debut album “Fearless” with Warner Music East/West, which debuted in the top 20 of iTunes pop charts. In her quest to create positive change, Gonzalez is the proud founder of #Fear-lessSquad — a social media movement for inclusiveness and positivity. Gonzalez is also an accomplished author who recently published her Young Adult series, “Fearless,” a four-book middle-grade series that follows young thespians whose brushes with the supernatural teach them about theatre, friendship and themselves. 

Gonzalez serves on the boards of Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS (BCEFA), where she actively promotes awareness and fundraising efforts.

Gonzalez began guest-starring in the role of Norma Desmond at select performances of Broadway‘s upcoming “Sunset Blvd.” in October 2024.

When she’s not on stage, on set, or traveling, Gonzalez resides in New Jersey with her husband, daughter and two dogs.