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______ Take the gift of natural talent, a determination to succeed and add the unending support of a family blessed with its own share of talented individuals and what you have are some of the ingredients for a bright and fulfilling career in the world of entertainment. New York-born Ahmaya Knoelle has been blessed with all of those ingredients and more: at 21, she has already graced the stage at theaters in the U.S., Japan and Europe, thrilling audiences worldwide with a powerhouse voice that belies her age. Performing in the lead role of Doris Winter in Mama I Want To Sing, the smash musical (based on the life of her legendary aunt, the late Doris Just One Look Troy) that remains the longest-running off-Broadway show in history, Knoelle has captivated crowds from Harlem to Tokyo with her soulful vocal delivery and skill as a young actress. The daughter of famed New York broadcaster Vy Higgensen and Ken Wydro, the producers of Mama I Want To Sing and a number of other successful musicals, Knoelles early exposure to music came listening to the work of her aunt Doris, whose recordings for Atlantic Records and the Beatles Apple label catapulted her to international recognition. As her mother and father began developing Mama and subsequent plays such as Sing! Mama 2, Glory, Glory, Hallelujah! and Let Me Off In Harlem, Knoelles desire to express her own innate talent manifested during her years at Professional Childrens School and New Yorks Professional Performing Arts High School. In fact, Knoelle played various roles in each of the musicals her parents created, starring in the role of Little Doris at the Paramount Theater in Madison Square Garden and on tours throughout the U.S., Europe and Japan. From an early age, I began traveling with Mama I Want To Sing but my first chance to sing onstage came when we were doing Sing! Mama 2, says Knoelle. The little girl who was supposed to play little Doris was late and my mom and dad didnt know what to do. I was standing there and I said, I can sing it and that night was my initiation as a performer. I had memorized all the songs from watching the show and I played the role for several months in 1991. Knoelle says that listening to Desiree Coleman (one of the early stars of Mama I Want To Sing) and contemporary artists like Whitney Houston, Mariah Carey, Boyz II Men, SWV and TLC helped shape her desire to pursue a career in entertainment and credits her aunt Doris as a major influence from the time I was very little. It was my aunt Doris attitude and approach to her music that affected me. She always had a smile on her face when she was singing. Although she felt no pressure to be involved in music professionally, Knoelle adds, Id say from the age of twelve, I started taking my career seriously. At the time, my mom was still on the radio and listening to her every morning before I went to school was so inspiring. Pursuing her own dreams, Knoelle performed in a number of other shows including 1940s Radio Hour (where she performed as singer Sarah Vaughan), Anything Goes, Once On This Island, Runaways and Rubirusa while continuing the education needed for honing her craft. During my early to mid-teens, I went to The Professional Childrens School and there only eight people of us in the class so I got a lot of hands-on training. When I was sixteen, I studied at and later graduated from The Professional Performing Arts School and Id say that was a turning point because I got to learn the basics, the technical aspects of music and particularly singing Knoelle put all the training she received to good use: in addition to showstopping performances at New Yorks Lafeyette Theater in Mama I Want To Sing, the multi-talented singer/actress and dancer has been seen in an Adidas commercial and, following in the steps of her mother (whose immediately recognizable tones graced New Yorks airwaves for more than a decade), Knoelle co-hosted The Positive Zone on KISS-FM 98.7 in the Big Apple. Knoelles current focus is on recording and establishing herself as a creative hitmaker on the contemporary music scene. Bringing her studio experience through recordings for Toshiba-EMI on the albums, Amazing Grace, This Is My Song, Gospel Is and the cast album for Sing! Mama 2, Knoelle is currently working on new material for what she intends to be her own solo debut. Knoelle is a recent graduate of The American Music & Drama Academy in the integrated program in which she fine-tuned her talent by studying dance, drama and musical theater. Knoelle is also Associate Music Coordinator at The Mama Foundation For the Arts in Harlem, NYC where she teaches theater, music and provides vocal instruction for all ages. Knoelle developed her own style. With the same love for entertainment which has been so much a part of her familys tradition, there is a commitment to developing all facets of her craft. Knoelle brings her own distinctive talents as a young, gifted and soulful artist to the next phase of her career, as she moves into the world of contemporary music and entertainment sharing her God-given gifts as a recording artist, actress and performer of the first order.
