Join us for the next generation of traditional music, as Celtic, Latin and jazz influences combine for something truly unique, as we welcome the incredible Mary Frances!
Having performed with her parents and acclaimed fiddlers Natalie MacMaster and Donnell Leahy for over 600 shows, genre-defying fiddling (and piano) sensation Mary Frances Leahy is branching out with her fantastic debut solo album First Light. The innovative, eclectic nine-track collection of originals, co-produced by Mary Frances and Cuban guitarist Elmer Ferrer, is an amazing blending of Celtic, Latin, and Jazzinfluences. “It’s a bunch of styles you wouldn’t think go well together,” the 19-year Canadian phenom from the hamlet of Douro, Ontario says. “But once you hear it, you’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, I get it!’ My sound is energetic. It makes me want to dance!”
Influenced by her parents, Ferrer, Celtic fiddle legends (Buddy MacMaster, Mac Morin and Howie MacDonald), Western swing artists such as Mark O’Connor and Mark Sullivan, the late jazz pianist Bill Evans and Latin pop star Marc Anthony, Mary Frances is no stranger to the stage. Leahy spent 2024 supporting First Light while performing at Cape Breton’s Broad Cove Scottish Concert and Celtic Colours, the inaugural Nova Scotia Stampede, Prince Edward Island’s Mutual Festival of Small Halls, Milwaukee’s Irish Fest, and Australia’s Woodford Folk Festival. And she’s previously performed with an A-list of talent including Yo-Yo Ma, Jerry Douglas, Bela Fleck, British musician Tim Edey and Spanish gaita (bagpipes) wizard Carlos Nunez among others.
With one of her TikTok videos getting over 2.4 million views and a busy 2026 on the horizon, Mary Frances is on the cusp of stardom, continuing a line of internationally renown musicians in her family tree without any internal pressure. “It doesn’t feel like a duty to my family to perform,” she says. “It feels like a duty to myself because I know I have so much to give.”
Catch this fast-rising star while you can, as her trio take the stage for one night only live on your Playhouse stage!
