Ishmael Harris McKinstry

Ishmael Harris McKinstry is a small town country boy from Buena Vista, Georgia. From singing and creating his own characters (while performing chores) at the early age of 4, winning literary competitions during grade school, joining the One-Act Play team in high school, to becoming the first black and male drum major at Marion County High, he has always had an undeniable passion for the arts.

Ishmael's love for acting and music inspired him to study Theatre and Vocal Performance at Albany State University. During his matriculation, he was a member of the ASU Gospel Choir (director), ASU Concert Chorale (featured soloist), ASU Theatre Ensemble (president), and he became a proud member of Alpha Psi Omega National Theatre Honor Society.

Ishmael is a working professional actor, singer, musician, theatre director, and musical/choral director who has had the amazing pleasures of gracing the stages of the historic Liberty Theatre (Columbus, Georgia) and the historic Springer Opera House (Columbus, Georgia). Being apart of the Liberty Theatre has challenged Ishmael to step out of his comfort zone and tackle directing Langston Hughes' Black Nativity which lead to creating a show filled with musical Broadway hits entitled Shonuff Broadway! Ishmael made his first professional acting debut at the Springer Opera House in Sister Act as Eddie Souther. Other theatre and performance credits include Smokey Joe's Cafe (Adrian); Dreamgirls (Curtis Taylor, Jr.); Grease (Johnny Casino); Black Nativity (Joseph); Next to Normal (Gabe); The Colored Museum (Walter-Lee- Beau-Willie Jr.) and was a featured soloist in the 2016 - 2019 Miss Georgia Pageant and two-time guest performer for Columbus, Georgia Mayor's 'The Dream Lives' MLK Celebration. Ishmael has been blessed to work on several television and film sets such as Trajan Clayton's adaptation of Zora Neale Hurston's Sweat, Bo Barlett's Things Don't Stay Fixed (2018), Goosebumps (2015), Drumline: A New Beat (2014), Blowout (2014) and Vampire Diaries; just to name a few.

While acting and singing, Ishmael deems it necessary to give back to the community by stimulating, empowering, and inspiring young minds through acting and voice performance at Company C, Academy of Dance, the Liberty Theatre, and many local churches in his community and abroad.