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I was born on a Saturday night
in Amarillo, West Texas. When I was four years old all my friends went to kindergarten. Being the youngest one on the block
I was the only one staying home, (remember this was before pre-school, back when pluto
was still a planet) so my mother took me to school, DANCING SCHOOL! I enjoyed my lessons VERY much. It instilled a "can do"
attitude in me that carried on into all other aspects of my life. I studied dance throughout my life and in college I was a Theatre Major
and a Dance minor. After school when I started making the rounds on auditions I found myself being hired more often for my
dancing rather than my acting. Show business being somewhat unpredictable, I gravitated towards a steady position
in teaching dance. I found I was good at it, I loved it, and the show never closes.
I've been fortunate enough to study with Gelsey Kirkland at The Harkness House
in New York City, Lee Theodore's American Dance Machine, with Luba Gulyeana at Lee Strasberg's
Theatre
Institute and with many famous and talented teachers across the United States. Currently I study in Manhattan at Broadway
Dance Center (where I was asked to sub
Tap for the legendary/incendiary Phil Black for one summer), and New Dance Group. My teachers are performers/choreographers on Broadway and in Hollywood for theatre, music videos, concerts ,and films.
My classmates have included Brooke Shields, Georgia Engel, and Liza Minelli to
mention but a few and my teachers have coached the likes of Paula Abdul, Anne Hathaway, and Jennifer Lopez. I've made some
T.V. movies, commercials, and music videos here and abroad, and have appeared off
Broadway
at Symphony Space with Ballet Argentino in the corps de ballet. Our last performance was the ballet Faust. Touring the United States as a backup singer with CBS recording artists "Soccer" was also quite
an education. I'm affiliated with the dance organization Dance Educators Of America and I still attend conventions across
the country as well as taking acting workshops with Lisa Regina of The Sopranos, and Nickelodeon's Lane Napper. Having
traveled extensively I'm glad to have found a home here in Smithtown. It's a great community and a nice place to raise my family. The students this year put on an
incredible Holiday Show at The Arbors Assisted Living Center much to the
residents' delight .Our six week Adult Basic Beginner Course was again well received and will be repeated next season. Last
August I was able to attend the L.A.Tapfest at Debbie Allen's Dance Academy in Culver City California. This weeklong event
is jam packed with master classes, panel discussions, jam sessions, and performances. In the past I've taken students to L.A. with me and any students
wishing to attend in the future should speak to me about fundraising and eligibility. Once again I met Dick Van Dyke (and
I saw him again on Broadway in Chita Rivera's A Dancer's Life), Arthur Duncan (my Hero!), and I'm grateful to have danced
one last season with Fayard Nicholas of the Nicholas Brothers. While in L.A.
I have taken lessons at The Millennium Dance Complex in North Hollywood and Edge Performing Arts Center. At Edge
I was treated to a fantastic Salsa class with So You Think You Can Dance's Alex Da Silva.
This season three of our students competed at the Haal of Fame dance Competition
where they won a Gold and High Gold award for their Tap routine to "Singin In The Rain" so we are once again able to say our
studio has "award winning students"!
Being fortunate enough to receive very positive encouragement in my own dance training,
I try to instill the same positive, stimulating, and creative attitude that I
was/am lucky enough to enjoy from all my teachers. The staff and I endeavor to pass on this same "can do" attitude to our students, as well as nurturing the same joy and positive energy we receive from all our
students. Thanks so much for making this a most memorable season!
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