Bio - Daina Michell Griffith

Daina Michelle Griffith

Born and raised in Fairfield, Oh, Daina has lived in NYC since May 2005. Steve, her father, was a factory worker and later received his undergraduate and graduate degrees in elementary education. Her mother, Diana, is a hard working sales woman. An only child, Daina always dreamed of being a performer.

Although she didn't start performing in shows until her late teens, her love of art was always apparent. Sketching and painting helped pass her time. As did singing to herself as different characters in the mirror. She also tried other activities including piano, trombone, tennis, gymnastics, soccer, cheerleading, and show choir. It wasn't until she received her first lead in a play, Corrie Bratter in Barefoot in the Park, that she was hooked. She was seventeen years old. That summer she auditioned for Grease at a local community theatre and was cast as Marty. Daina sang in show choir, but never really 'sang out' until she had a taste of the spotlight.

That fall she began taking classes at Miami University of Ohio. For the next two years she took private voice lessons at Cincinnati Conservatory of Music with Katie Steiler, attended classes at Miami, and performed in university and community theatre. Shows included Godspell, The Will Roger's Follies, Oliver! and And The World Goes Round.

The next step was receiving a BFA degree in Musical Theatre. Daina made that dream come true in Pittsburgh, PA at Point Park Conservatory of Performing Arts. While attending school, she had the opportunity to perform with most of the professional theatre companies around the city including Pittsburgh CLO, City Theatre, Pittsburgh Public Theatre, Pittsburgh Irish and Classical Theatre and the Pittsburgh Playhouse to name a few. Not only did she receive her Equity card while in Pittsburgh, she gained years of experience.

In May of 2005, it was time to make the big move to the big apple, and Daina was more than ready. Her first week in town, she was cast as the lead in a play called The Information She Carried which was being produced for the NYC Fringe Festival. But before rehearsals began, she had to fly to Kansas City, Missouri to perform in Jesus Christ Superstar at Kansas City Starlight Theatre. And since that point, her life has been more exciting than she ever could have imagined while playing trombone in Ohio. She has been more than thrilled to attend numerous auditions and callbacks, been cast in musicals and industrials around the country, and finally refers to NYC as home.

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