Mao Hojo has a profound background in musical theatre for in her home country, Japan. Since the age of 6, Mao has been trained in singing, dancing and acting from some of the best instructors including Hiroki Sakurada (voice), Makoto Nishino (Vocal) and Kiyomi Maeda (Jazz). Her theatre credits include Brigitta Von Trapp in Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Sound Of The Music (dir. Jeremy Sams, Keita Asari, Japanese original cast), A Sondheim Tribute Concert Vol.1, Vol.2 (Tokyo, Japan). Mao has also appeared in a couple of student films, and she also played the title role in a podcast History Of Japan- Oichi The Most Beautiful Lady In The Sengoku (origin title: ボイスドラマで学ぶ　日本の歴史　「お市の方　戦国一の美女」, dir. Yasushi Okada), where she portrayed the historically famous figure from her childhood to the death. 

Along with performing, Mao is an experienced English to Japanese/ Japanese to English translator as well. She has produced Japanese lyrics of songs from Sondheim musicals, Heathers The Musical, Beetlejuice The Musical and more.