about miss debra

I have loved ballet for as long as I can remember. I began studying dance when I was seven years old. I grew up outside of Buffalo in New York State. My ballet teacher, Bernadine DeMike  (who I still call Miss Bernadine ), wanted the best for her students. She brought famous teachers and dancers to Buffalo to teach us. They were from many ballet companies and schools, including teachers who had performed with the Ballet Russe.

I was a reader and a big fan of stories about ballet dancers, dance histories, and ballet stories. I used to hide under the blankets on my bed and read until all hours of the night.

I began helping Miss Bernadine teach ballet when I was 13 years old. I had my own PreBallet class when I was a senior in high school. 

I still teach ballet, although I've been very busy writing the next book in the Dancing Doorways Academy Series, Ballet Busters Jump Backwards into Sleeping Beauty. I taught for many years  at L’Etoile – the Russian Ballet Academy in Columbia, Maryland.  I enjoyed teaching the Russian ballet technique, Vaganova. Each year I helped with their Nutcracker Ballet presented by the Classical Ballet Theatre of Maryland during Thanksgiving weekend. Although the studio is not open, I help with Svetlana Kravtsova's ballet competition, Washington DC Grand Prix.

I love going to dance, theater and music performances. I live between Baltimore and Washington, DC, so I attend as many shows as I can, especially at the Kennedy Center. 

I go to many art galleries, because seeing the artwork of great artists inspires me. 

I love traveling. I’ve been across the United States and Canada. I’ve journeyed to the United Kingdom and Europe, including Italy. This year I went to Istanbul, Turkey and Egypt. A couple years ago, I went to Florence to a ballet conference. The year before, I went to St. Petersburg and Moscow in Russia. I saw where the first Nutcracker took place at the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg!

I take dance classes when I can and I dance West Coast Swing for fun.

I grew up as the oldest of four children. I have 2 grown children, a boy and a girl, and I have a special fondness for a fox hound named TwoStep.

I’m writing the next books!

#2 in the Dancing Doorway Series:

Ballet Busters Jump Backwards to Sleeping Beauty

#3 in the Dancing Doorway Series:

Ballet Busters Fall into Swan Lake