in a nutshell...

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Attending an arts high school was the closest I could get to being on Fame. So, that's exactly what I did. Earl Haig Secondary School - Claude Watson Arts Program, dance major. My experience at this school nurtured my passion, my creativity, and my confidence. By the time I turned sixteen I was performing professionally, and had choreographed my first.dance piece.ever. I knew that I could make a career out of my art so, following graduation, I attended The Alvin Ailey American Dance Centre, in NYC. (If you don't know, you better find out!) Being at this school, and in New York City was incredible and life changing. It is still one of the most gruelling experiences of my life. And was the best dance education I could've asked for. Except, my body couldn't take it. I returned to Toronto a year later, suffering from injuries, and unsure what the future held. I let my body have a short break to recuperate, then went on to perform in a Canadian Armed Forces Show tour (similar to USO tours) through Bosnia, did multiple music videos and commercials, and within a few years of returning home, co-founded Womb Dance Co. This gave me the space to express my creativity and fulfill my need for creation. After four years of choreographing, putting on shows, and teaching classes, New York called me back. And I HAD to head the call. I was twenty-four years old, with stars all up in my eyes.

After auditioning for Madonna's Drowned World Tour where, out of fifteen hundred people I made it to the top five, I returned to NYC with high hopes. Though I was still suffering through injury, I truly believed I would overcome, and succeed. Little did I know that four months after moving, two planes would careen into the Twin Towers. This experience had a devastating effect on my psyche, and sense of purpose. In the face of such destruction and civilian casualties, I wondered if what I had chosen to do with my life, was too unimportant. Too frivolous. This existential crisis, coupled with the reality that my body couldn't withstand the toll of a professional dance career, I spent the next two years trying to figure out what to do with myself. As someone who always had a camera on hand (long before the days of digital cameras and cell phones), someone who used two VHS players to edit short videos from her Hi8 camcorder, I decided that getting a film degree made the most sense. In 2008, I graduated from The City University of New York, Brooklyn College...and instead of becoming a documentary filmmaker, I  promptly returned to the stage. I guess old habits die hard. I wrote and performed a multi media one-woman show, and started training as an actor. It seems that what I really needed, was an extensive tool box from which to create meaningful work. It wasn't until decades later that I would fully realize this fact.

After nine years in Brooklyn, I made a decision I never thought I'd make- I moved back home to Toronto. It ends up that I really missed health care, Sundays at my Mom's house, and being at 'home'. I immediately started to book work as an actor, and have been lucky enough to work steadily in film/TV for the past fifteen years. Along the way I've also directed and choreographed for theatre, had a ten-minute play produced, and made a webshow on my YouTube Channel. Though I continue to audition and work as an actor, I'm shifting gears back into creation mode, writing projects that span TV, film, and theatre, and connecting with collaborators along the way. I now have the privilege of time and age, to step back, take stock, and really focus on what I love. This means making work that speaks to my life experience and observations, using the skills I've honed to create stories people can relate to, and imparting the lessons and knowledge from my career as a professional performer to those interested in following suit. I love teaching and am looking forward to spending more time with my students. It also means taking the time to grow my own food, bake my own bread, take care of my elderly parents, raise my dogs, and continue to grow with my husband. I know I'm not alone when I say that the pandemic really put life into perspective. It's a new chapter, and I couldn't be more excited.