Connie Ray

Connie Ray, born Constance Ray on July 10, 1956, is an American actress and playwright who grew up in Orange County, North Carolina, where she was raised alongside two siblings on her family's dairy farm. Her parents, Betty Jean (Edmonds) and Shelton Ray, provided the rural backdrop against which Ray developed an early interest in performance and writing. At ten years old, she collaborated with her brother Lester on an original play for a 4-H club talent show, a production that advanced through both county and district competitions. She later studied dance at East Carolina University before earning a Master of Fine Arts from Ohio University.

Ray built a substantial career across theater, film, and television. On screen, her credits include the film Stuart Little (1999), the comedy Thank You for Smoking (2006), and Ice Princess (2005), as well as television appearances on ER (1997) and George Lopez (2002). Her Broadway work spans the years 2010 to 2013 and includes productions of Next Fall and Hands on a Hardbody.

As a playwright, Ray authored three bluegrass gospel musicals: Smoke on the Mountain, which opened off-Broadway in 1990, Sanders Family Christmas (1999), and Smoke on the Mountain Homecoming (2006). The three works rank among the most produced musicals in the United States over the past two decades.