Originally from Darien, IL, Mariah grew up inspired by theatre-making she saw in the Chicagoland area, where she began her career. After graduating from Northwestern University, where she received her Bachelors of Arts in Theatre and Psychology, as well as a Music Theatre certificate, she found she had a passion for developing new and meaningful plays that reflect the world around us, while continuing to innovate the form. She has performed in new work at the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts, About Face Theatre, and most recently, the David Geffen School of Drama at Yale, where she received her MFA in Acting and began developing her original, one woman play, body of work. Mariah has worked in plays and musicals at Yale Repertory Theatre, Northlight Theatre, Boho Theatre, Emerald City Theatre, Prop Thtr, and others.
In addition to performing, because of her background in psychology and passion for social justice, Mariah has worked in community spaces for the healing and connection of people of color. At Yale, she was a co-director and producer for FOLKS, a group for Black drama students, originally founded by Angela Bassett, as well as a teaching artist for the Dwight Edgewood project, a day program for local New Haven elementary/middle school students to learn the basics of playwriting. Mariah is a certified Truth and Racial Healing Transformation Practitioner and has previously worked as the Equity Program Manager for Planned Parenthood of Illinois, which included being a speaker for the Planned Parenthood Federation of America's national conference.