Mary Ruth Brindley, one of Indianola’s icons of education and the arts, passed away last weekend. Brindley was a veteran educator who taught at Carver Middle School, Indianola Academy and at Mississippi Delta Community College. She also acted in and directed scores of plays and musicals over the years at the Mid-Delta Arts Association’s Brindley Theater, which was founded by her late husband, John Brindley. Brindley most recently brought to the local stage a production of To Kill A Mockingbird. That was in 2020, the same year that she was featured as one of The Enterprise-Tocsin’s Women of Influence. In that Q&A, Brindley described her biggest accomplishments as, “I am happy that John and I were able to raise our two children in Indianola and am proud that they have turned out to be fine adults with families of their own. In addition to raising my own children, I consider my years teaching at Carver Middle School, Indianola Academy and Mississippi Delta Community College to be a big accomplishment and one that I truly enjoyed. I can’t go anywhere in this town that I don’t run into a former student.” In a statement following Brindley’s passing, MDAA said the following: “While John Brindley is credited for having the dream for our theater, it is no secret that Mary Ruth served and worked with equal passion. Over 45 years later, MDAA is still bringing the arts to the stage. Mary Ruth was no stranger on stage and embodied any role with professionalism and perfectionism. She strived to make sure she presented her character as the playwright intended. This intentionality drew audiences in to her roles with guffaws of laughter or tears of sadness. While she enjoyed the stage, Mary Ruth quite possibly enjoyed directing even more. She enjoyed introducing new people, both young and older, to the stage. One thing is certain, be it novices or veterans on her stage, she was relentless in requiring nothing but the best performance for the audience. While we grieve, we know Mary Ruth entered heaven to a standing ovation and her beloved “Johnny.” Certainly she heard the voice of her Lord, ‘Bravo, my good and faithful servant.’”
