I
was born in Portsmouth, England in December of 1978. My grandparents
owned a hotel called The Sandringham which housed a cabaret
that my family would perform in. My grandpa played the drums in the
band and my sisters and cousins performed in the shows. It wasn't
long until I, too, was thrown into the act at the young age of two.
I was hooked! I continued to study dance, drama and singing while
growing up at my Aunty's school (Shirley Rose School of Dance and
Drama). Aunty Shirley taught drama every Saturday morning and
on Tuesday and Thursdays I took dance from mycousin, Julie Gask. It
was a family affair.
At
the age of nine I went to an audition in London for the new musical
Metropolis by Joe Brooks. It was my first professional audition
and I got it! I made my West End debut alongside Judy Kuhn, Graham
Bickley and Brian Blessed and went on to record the album of Metropolis
at Abbey Road Studios. It was one of the most exciting experiences
of my life.
In
the December of 1993 my parents decided to emigrate to America. We
settled in Jacksonville, Florida where Iattended Douglas Anderson
School of the Arts. It is there that I met my friend, Daniel (Cochran)
Torres (www.danieltorres.net),
and dear friends Kiley Watson and Rachel Plotkin who shared the same
dreams of New York. Under the direction of Dr. Lee Beger we performed
in many productions, as well as in several Thespian Competitions.
Upon graduating I was accepted to Cincinnati College-Conservatory
of Music where I went the following fall and received my BFA
in Musical Theatre
in
2000. Daniel also followed me to CCM a year later and we were
roommates my junior and senior years. In April of 2000 my senior class
performed a showcase in New York at the Westside Theatre on 43rd Street.
From this showcase I met and signed with my agent, Donald Birge and
got my first job out of college as Josie Cohan in George M!
at The Goodspeed Opera House. I have been fortunate enough
to be performing pretty much steadily since then. I continue to reside
in New York with my new husband, actor, Pierre Diennet who
I met on the National Tour of Scooby-Doo! in Stagefright.