While many Victorians know Molly Raher Newman through her “alter ego,” Emily Carr, who she regularly portrays at various special events, Molly has been in the local performing industry for more than 30 years.
She plays 20 instruments and her many ensembles have ranged from Ragtime to Dixieland, Red Hot Mama to Swingband Singer, Medieval and Renaissance to Celtic, Early Country to Bluegrass. Her current bands, RigAJig and the Mighty Little Uke Band, continue to contribute to Victoria’s musical culture through dance and song.
Molly is also well-known for her portrayal of Canada’s most famous artist and author. For the last 14 years, Molly has been performing at Emily Carr House in Victoria, around the province, and in other parts of Canada.
A painter and author herself, as well as a band leader and a gardener, she lives with her husband, Rod, in a home filled with paintings, in a house that looks like a leprechaun’s cottage!
Black Press: What have you learned as you mature that you would have liked to share with a “younger you?”
Molly Raher Newman: “A little more Laughter, a little less Worry, a little more Kindness, a little less Hurry.”
BP: What is your guilty pleasure?
MRN: JW Macy’s CheeseCrisps
BP: The one thing you would never be without?
MRN: An instrument!
BP: If you weren’t in your current career, what would you be doing?
MRN: I’d become an archeologist.
BP: What is the most cherished advice you’ve received from a woman in your life?
MRN: From Emily Carr: Never cease investing in yourself.
BP: For what traits would you like to be remembered?
MRN: Kindness, persistence, patience, creativity and musicality.