I was born in Wilmington N.C. and began dance classes at age 4 at Mrs. Belcher’s School of Dance. By age 10 we were living in New York City where I began my professional career in show business performing in summer stock theater. Yes, my mom, Sally, was a little like Mama Rose in the Broadway show “Gypsy”, but she gave me the gift of Dance which will always be the driving force in my life.
Living in N.Y.C. I trained and worked with many wonderful choreographers and teachers like Martha Graham, Luigi, my brother, Timmy Everett, Bob Fosse, Jerome Robins and many more. By age 15 I was a featured dancer on the T.V. “Perry Como Show” and went on to be in the road companies of “West Side Story” playing the role of Anybodys and “Take Her She’s Mine” ‘playing the juvenile lead. Next, I was hired by Jerome Robins again and created the role of Chava in “Fiddler on the Roof” on Broadway. The experience of being in these landmark shows and working with so many incredible people will be in my heart always.
While performing and choreographing in N.Y., I developed and started teaching my “Dancesthetics” classes. My dance program was discovered by “Kimbo Records” which lead to my appointment to the President’s Council on Physical Fitness and Sports under President Ford. I became the first professional dancer/teacher/choreographer named a Council Clinician. This was the first time in it’s history that Dance was incorporated into the Council’s program.
In 1976 I moved to Los Angeles to start a new adventure. I brought my “Dancesthetics” classes along with me and they were an instant hit. I also developed ” Method Dancing” which I started using in my choreography. In one of my first stage shows here in LA ” Marathon Madness” I hired actors who had no dance training at all and created a show with difficult dance numbers through out. In this production the actors became the dancers they never dreamed they could be. And as a result together we won the “Drama Logue Award” for best choreography. My husband Wally Bagot, and I have also worked on many shows together which we used my “Method Dancing” such as “Tracers” here we worked with actors who were all Vietnam Vets and utilized there training in combat fighting and martial arts, here again the actors became the dancer and together we won the “LA Weekly Award” for Best Best choreography. Please check choreography for more of my work.
In 1989 my husband Wally and I along with my sister Sherrye Everett a therapist in New York, created “Psycho Drama Recovery” workshops utilizing Dance. Here I wanted to use dance movement to help people access their emotions. At the start of the workshops I use my “Dancesthetics” to loosen the group up. Latter we move into the Psycho Drama work where Wally and I utilize our acting talents. I also incorporate “Movement Therapy”, which is the psychological use of movement to evoke understanding, acceptance and expression of feelings, thus helping people find further healing in there lives. This work has proved very healing and rewarding in my life. Our workshops are still on going both in LA and New York City
My husband Wally and I have recently completed two screen plays “McRae” a World War Two film and “Flap-Ball-change” a Dance film, which we are currently pitching to the industry. Also “Elevator Music” a stage play which was produced, is now being reworked, and we are networking it to the industry.
I’m teaching my “Dancesthetics” classes, at our Sunset Studio in West Hollywood, and loving them. Also I am choreographing and always looking for new projects to work on. As I said in the beginning, “Dance will always be the driving force in my life”.
Dancesthetics 