For the last thirty years, I have been bringing together my interests in contemporary dance, aerial dance, theater, visual arts and film to create choreography for the concert dance stage, and for musical theater and plays. I love storytelling in the body and the intersection of theater and dance. I spent my life dancing, beginning with ballet training at age six studying with Bob and Carol Hanlin. I spent my life creating three dimensional art; from the time I was a kid working with tape, paper and cardboard, to now working with metal, porcelain, wood, papier-mâché and fabric. These life long passions collide constantly in my work. I cannot conceive a new dance piece without seeing all the visual and physical aspects necessary to make the world of the piece complete. I have choreographed over 30 musicals and plays and numerous original contemporary modern dance works in addition to my work as puppet and mask designer and creator.

My mother taught me to sew when I was ten and it opened my mind to the way a two dimensional piece of fabric can become structural and functional. I started to branch out beyond clothing, making puppets and stuffed animals. I made my own patterns, using my own made up methodologies. My parents thought I was destined to be an engineer. They imagined a profitable career in Electrical Engineering, I imagined a career in Creative Engineering, where my mind would be free to invent how to make puppets move like real creatures.

I trained in ballet with Valerie Huston in Santa Barbara and at the Pennsylvania Ballet School with Lupe Serrano. While in college, I discovered a love for modern dance, studying with Alice Condodina, former dancer with The José Limón Company, and Tonia Shimin, former dancer with The José Limón Company and The Martha Graham Company. While performing with Nina Weiner in NYC, I studied at Ballet Hispanico and Broadway Dance Center with Finas Jung and with other modern dance and ballet teachers including Zvie Gothenier and Christopher Pilafian. Upon returning to Santa Barbara, I danced with Santa Barbara Dance Theater before taking on the role of Associate Artistic Director of SBDT, collaborating with Jerry Pearson on many works. It was during my time with Santa Barbara Dance Theater that I began to mature my interest in puppet and mask making as it was integrated into the repertory created during my tenure with the company. I began to truly understand that art creation in all my areas of interest was vital to my soul.

I have taught contemporary modern dance technique, choreography, puppet making and digital video editing for dance at UC Santa Barbara for the last decade, and have worked in partnership with Santa Barbara High School Theater Director Otto Layman as a choreographer for their top ranked performing arts program for fifteen years.

I spent many years collaborating with amazing directors, musical directors, costume designers and lighting designers. I am tremendously grateful to Ann Bruice (costume designer) and Vickie Scott (lighting designer) who have created the perfect designs for the work I like to make. Their work is present on this site as much as mine is. I have a long time relationship with theater directors Risa Brainin and Irwin Appel and musical directors Jon Nathan and John Douglas that have fueled my creativity through our work on plays and musical theater. We are never alone.