The Columbia community is bursting with hidden talents. Learn more about some of the employees around campus whose artistic abilities shine—either during or after working hours.

• Jay Corcoran, Documentary Filmmaker
• Marigrace Dineen, Rock Musician
• Ching Gonzalez, Dancer, Singer
• Dennis Green, Lyricist
• Victor Mercedes, Salsa Band Leader
• Allison Scola, Singer, Songwriter

Four years ago, Marigrace Dineen turned down a part in the hit musical Rent—a surprising move for a singer and songwriter who wouldn't mind getting more recognition for her work. But Dineen just wanted to see if she could get the role.

As someone who spent most of her life living on the Lower East Side, she says, "Rent commercialized a scene we created. As a writer, I feel you can't buy coolness. You have to earn it."

With similar directness, Dineen has pursued her music career, not sought out fame or fortune. After years of temping as a legal assistant and word processor, she decided a full-time job would help her sustain a life as an independent musician. "Balancing work and my creative life is not a big deal because who I am here is who I am on stage," says Dineen, who has a personality bursting with enthusiasm, with an on-stage strut to match. "Everyone knows I'm a singer and [they] have been so supportive. This is a great environment for that. Columbia is conducive to creativity."

Marigrace Dineen on stage with her band, Hard Candy, at Arleneís Grocery on the Lower East Side.

Dineen left her Long Island home at 16 to move to the East Village to begin her singing career. To make ends meet, she worked as a receptionist at an advertising agency and shared an apartment (which had a bathtub in the kitchen) with a poet whom she found through a Village Voice classified. She wrote songs, performed live in local venues and dabbled in performance art.

Eventually, she played such well-known venues as CBGB and Mercury Lounge, and she still has club dates in the Village. In summer months she tours clubs and does concerts in the Hamptons. Working at Columbia as a legal assistant in the office of the general counsel, she says, allows her to stay on this path and remain true to her music and to herself. And the steady paycheck means not having to relinquish creative control to anyone.

Dineen describes her music as pure rock and roll, with her songs a mix of "hardness and sensuality." On a recent trip to Los Angeles, Dineen met with Warner Brothers about the possible use of her music in a Matt Damon film, and she is also pursuing similar deals for television and commercials.

Dineen will release her new CD, Marigrace, July 14. "People have compared me to Patti Smith, Stevie Nicks and Janis Joplin," she says. "I sing with a lot of energy, strength and soul."

Top   |    E-mail this story