Inspiring Women : November 2020

mark and fuelled my desire to work as a
professional performer.
The role of Herr Drosselmeyer was played by
Richard Ellis, a former soloist with the Sadler’s Wells
Ballet (UK). We children worked closely with him,
and experienced first hand the discipline, focus and
seriousness of true artistic expression. It was
glorious, and I flourished. Richard and his wife,
Christine, had their own school of ballet in Chicago
and I studied on scholarship with them for the next
six years. After high school graduation, it was time
to pursue my dream to become a professional
ballet dancer.
I accepted a scholarship and attended the official
school of the Joffrey Ballet. Scholarship students
were potentially fed into the Joffrey ll Young
Company, or contracted to join the main company.
My initial wish was to be asked to join the company,
but the city itself afforded new experiences that became surprisingly more enticing than the ballet
studio. Competition was fierce. Many of the dancers had eating disorders, myself included, and my
toes were a bloody mess from my point shoes. I found myself ditching dance classes, and setting off
on wonderful new adventures. After a year at the Joffrey School, I was sure that the life of a ballet
dancer was not for me. It was time for a change and I had to find a new dream.
My greatest joy had always come from the experiences I shared performing with other professionals
on stage. Into that same passionate place where I had found my love for dance, I focused new
determination and energy into my desire to become an actress. I started by attending the University
of Utah and received my BFA in Theater with an acting emphasis. This was a wonderful choice,
because the ballet department at the university was the official school of Ballet West which enabled
me to get a satisfying “ballet fix” whenever necessary. Then I continued my acting training at the MFA
program for Theater at the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill and got my
Actor’s Equity card, performing in plays,
operas and, of course, musicals. For me,
musicals were the perfect blend of singing,
acting AND dancing.
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Memorabilia from my work on Cats
1987 Backstage with Doug at Drury Lane South in Woman of the
Year
My most literal “cat life” began when I was
cast in a production of Cats with the Really
Useful Group. Auditions were in my
hometown, Chicago. Three of us were flown
to Zürich, Switzerland to perform with an
international team of over 200 artists in a
venue for 2000 people. I was hired to cover
seven different roles and when not on stage,
I sang backup vocals in the “pit“ with the
orchestra under the stage.
My plan was to save enough with this job to
go back to NYC and begin the next chapter of
my career as a Broadway star. That didn’t
happen. Instead, I met my future husband, a