This summer as part of WKAR's series Inside the Arts, we're introducing you to Lansing area actors with conversations about their experiences both on and off stage.
Holly Kay-Cannon has become a fixture on Mid-Michigan stages in recent years, mostly at Riverwalk Theatre.
She was a middle schooler in Mason when she was brought to the high school to play a nun in “The Sound of Music.” She says her mom has fond memories of watching her daughter on stage.
"She was like ‘you just smiled the whole time! All you did was smile the entire time!’ I’m like well, I couldn’t help it. I was excited to be on the stage. So, then I got to high school, and I did all four years of the school musical, and I was in the choir and the competition choir and all of that," she said.
During her college years, Kay-Cannon discovered community theatre, starting with an ensemble role in a 1993 Riverwalk Theatre production of “West Side Story.” Her work in the musical “She Loves Me!” earned her a local Thespie Award in 1999.
Warmer weather drew her to Los Angeles for 21 years, but she has since moved back to Lansing and has been back on the stage, starting with “Christmas Belles” at Riverwalk in 2023. Since then, she’s had a steady stream of roles showing her range, from musicals to comedies to serious dramas.
Kay-Cannon says a favorite role of hers was Sunny Jacobs in “The Exonerated,” playing a real-life woman on death row for a crime she did not commit.
“You bring with you what you’ve experienced throughout your life,” she explained, “And while no, I’ve never been a prisoner on death row as these people were, there’s something to be said for the terrible things that can happen in your life and the bad decisions that can be made that, that could get you to these bad places. And so, those emotions come much more easily with age and experience.”
Her dream roles would be non-traditional choices, like Judas in “Jesus Christ Superstar” or Tony in “West Side Story.” Kay-Cannon says she also loves the role of Che in “Evita” originated on Broadway by Mandy Patinkin.
“It’s not something that I would go after,” she said. “Mandy Patinkin and the songs are just so fantastic that I love singing along to them.”
Kay-Cannon grew up idolizing musicians more than actors, but there is one performer she especially admires: Carol Burnett.
“She was in ‘Annie’, which was one of my favorite movies as a kid, and she was the princess in ‘Once Upon a Mattress’, a show that I did in high school and, and, lately I’ve been watching reruns of ‘The Carol Burnett Show’ on one of my antenna channels and I forget how wonderful and amazing and funny and dramatic she could be.”
If given the chance to just hang out with a favorite actor, Kay-Cannon couldn’t pick just one, and with good reason: it would be the team of Steve Martin and Martin Short.
“I didn’t have a very high opinion of Martin Short. I hate saying that. I always thought he was just a scenery chewer, but as I’ve watched ‘Only Murders in the Building’ and seeing them interact through their comedy bits and the things that they do," Kay-Cannon said.
"I think they would be so much fun to hang out with because they would just have the best stories about other people.”
Holly Kay-Cannon’s work at Riverwalk Theatre now includes a seat on their board, and she’ll also direct one of the entries in their Emerging Playwrights Festival for high-schoolers on August 1.
UPCOMING ARTS EVENTS
The Lansing Concert Band Big Band performs Thursday, July 2 at 7 p.m. in Jaycee Park as part of the Grand Ledge Music in the Park series.
On Friday, July 3, the Meridian Community Band will play patriotic music at the Lake Lansing Park Bandshell. The music will start at 6 p.m.
Next Wednesday, July 8, the 29th annual Muelder Summer Carillon Concert Series will feature guest carillonist Jeremy Chesman. The genre-spanning program will blend classical works, jazz standards, contemporary pieces and musical theater favorites at Michigan State University's Beaumont Tower starting at 6 p.m.
TRANSCRIPT
Scott Pohl: With Inside the Arts, I'm Scott Pohl. This summer, we’re introducing you to Lansing area actors with conversations about their experiences both on and off stage.
For the next installment in the series, I talked with Holly Kay-Cannon, a woman who has become a fixture on Lansing stages in recent years, mostly at Riverwalk Theatre.
Holly Kay-Cannon was a middle schooler in Mason when she was brought to the high school to play a nun in “The Sound of Music.”
Holly Kay-Cannon: My mom has a great story. Watching me in the show, she was like ‘you just smiled the whole time! All you did was smile the entire time!’ I’m like well, I couldn’t help it. I was excited to be on the stage. So, then I got to high school, and I did all four years of the school musical, and I was in the choir and the competition choir and all of that.
Pohl: During her college years, Kay-Cannon discovered community theatre, starting with an ensemble role in a 1993 Riverwalk Theatre production of “West Side Story.” Her work in the musical “She Loves Me!” earned her a local Thespie Award in 1999.
Warmer weather drew her to Los Angeles for 21 years, but she has since moved back to Lansing and has been back on the stage, starting with “Christmas Belles” at Riverwalk in 2023. Since then, she’s had a steady stream of roles showing her range, from musicals to comedies to serious dramas.
Kay-Cannon says a favorite role of hers was Sunny Jacobs in “The Exonerated,” playing a real-life woman on death row for a crime she did not commit.
Kay-Cannon: You bring with you what you’ve experienced throughout your life, and while no, I’ve never been a prisoner on death row as these people were, there’s something to be said for the terrible things that can happen in your life and the bad decisions that can be made that, that could get you to these bad places. And so, those emotions come much more easily with age and experience.
Pohl: Her dream roles would be non-traditional choices, like Judas in “Jesus Christ Superstar” or Tony in “West Side Story.” Kay-Cannon says she also loves the role of Che in “Evita” originated on Broadway by Mandy Pantinkin.
Kay-Cannon: It’s not something that I would go after. I just, Mandy Patinkin and the songs are just so fantastic that I love singing along to them.
Pohl: Kay-Cannon grew up idolizing musicians more than actors, but there is one performer she especially admires: Carol Burnett.
Kay-Cannon: She was in "Annie," which was one of my favorite movies as a kid, and she was the princess in "Once Upon a Mattress," a show that I did in high school and, and, lately I’ve been watching reruns of "The Carol Burnett Show" on one of my antenna channels and I just, I forget wonderful and amazing and funny and dramatic she could be.
Pohl: If given the chance to just hang out with a favorite actor, Kay-Cannon couldn’t pick just one, and with good reason: it would be the team of Steve Martin and Martin Short.
Kay-Cannon: I didn’t have a very high opinion of Martin Short. I hate saying that. I always thought he was just a scenery chewer, but as I’ve watched "Only Murders in the Building" and seeing them interact through their comedy bits and the things that they do, I think they would be so much fun to hang out with because they would just have the best stories about other people.
Pohl: Holly Kay-Cannon’s work at Riverwalk Theatre now includes a seat on their board, and she’ll also direct one of the entries in their Emerging Playwrights Festival for high-schoolers on August 1.
With Inside The Arts, I’m Scott Pohl.
