Mary Lucinda Cardwell Dawson was born on February 14, 1894 in Madison, North Carolina to James Abraham "J.A."

[10] She continued her studies at the Chicago Musical College[11] and The Metropolitan Opera Studios in New York City.

[12][13] The school was a success,routinely accumulated new staff, and moved twice; firstly to 6295 Frankstown Avenue in East Liberty[14] and then, in 1933, to 7101 Apple St. in the Homewood neighborhood of Pittsburgh.

After presenting the opera Aida at the National Association of Negro Musicians convention of 1941, Dawson launched her National Negro Opera Company (NNOC) later that same year with a performance at Pittsburgh's Syria Mosque..[17] The star was La Julia Rhea, and other members included Minto Cato, Carol Brice, Robert McFerrin, and Lillian Evanti.

She organized opera guilds in Baltimore, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Washington, D.C., Newark, and New York.

[10] The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson is a play that was commissioned and premiered at the Glimmerglass Festival in Cooperstown, New York in 2021.