Born in Shaker Heights, Ohio, Michael McElroy moved to New York City in May 1990 after earning his BFA in Theatre from Carnegie Mellon University. He made his Broadway debut in The High Rollers Social and Pleasure Club. He has since appeared in numerous productions, both on and off Broadway, and in 2004 was nominated for a Tony Award for Best Featured Actor in a Musical for Big River. He has also been nominated for Drama Desk Awards for Violet and Big River. In 1995, McElroy appeared in the premier performance of John Adams' opera I Was Looking at the Ceiling and Then I Saw the Sky in Berkeley, California. In 1999, McElroy became the founder and director of the Broadway Inspirational Voices, a diverse, non-denominational gospel choir made up of Broadway singers. He currently teaches in the New Studio on Broadway at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.