"Storytelling is healing
and healing is revolutionary,
act with joy." -
I AM a a multi - hyphenate who lives and creates joyfully. I started my creative journey as a young actor at Louisville Youth Performing Arts High School, affectionately known as YPAS. My senior year in high school was a turning point in my life. I was cast in my first professional Actors Equity (AEA) show at Actors Theatre of Louisville. I went on to be the recipient of the NAACP, National ACT-SO Gold Medal for acting. Working professionally and going to NYC for this competition exposed me to new experiences, garnered incredible support from my city and validated my desire to embark on acting and storytelling as a career path. Looking back I know that the people that mentored and supported me were key to my growth and success.
I continued my studies at North Carolina A & T State University "Aggie Pride" (HBCU) with a BFA in theatre, where I was an Irene Ryan Finalist. My father was tragically killed by the police and that brought me back home to Louisville, where I had a chance encounter with Avery Brooks; this set my focus on Rutgers University, Mason Gross School of the Arts (PWI). While at Rutgers completing my MFA , I was awarded a teaching assistantship and obtained the Jack Bettenbender Theatre Arts Award for Outstanding Performance. One person across all theatre disciplines receive this honor and they picked me. If only I really understood what that meant back then and if only I didn't step into the professional area feeling fragile and fearful.
Bill Esper "Good actors adjust the text to the inner emotion created by their response to the other actor."
Hal Scott "Track the script, the answers are there."
Maggie Flanigan - "Don't be tepid."
Loyd Williamson "It's ok, it's ok, it's ok to feel what you are feeling."
Israel Hicks "Joy, just ask for what you want."
Upon graduation l began working right away on off-Broadway stages and in regional theatres throughout the country. I traveled domestically and internationally a bit. After my second trip to Zimbabwe, I returned to NYC and decided to pack it up. I purchased a one-way ticket and headed west to Los Angeles. As an actress, I have had the pleasure of working along side award winning actors Forest Whitaker, Ruby Dee, Sidney Poitier, Tim Roth, Anna Deavere Smith and Stephen Mckinley Henderson, as well as a host of brilliant and well respected creative artists.
Los Angeles is where I married and had my one and only daughter Zenzele, who is living her cinematography dreams. While taking a hiatus from the entertainment business, I found the role of motherhood to be my life's greatest gift. I prepared for this part by taking a journey of profound self-discovery, healing and forgiveness . I explored personal development, wellness practices and holistic healing. I acquired various certifications that transformed me as a human and influenced my craft as an actor.
I was introduced to intimacy choreography and coordinating and discovered this practice was what I was missing in the training that I had received as a young actor. This work supports and respects the actors boundaries and allows the actor to act with joy. This work protects the production and creates the foundation for a happier, healthier entertainment industry.
As an Intimacy Coordinator, I have trained at Theatrical Intimacy Education (TIE), Intimacy on Stage and Screen (ISS) and Intimacy Coordinators of Color (ICOC).
I am excited and proud to be a part of the empowering change that is happening in entertainment.
Continuous Joy,