MY STORY
Debra has been fascinated with movement and the human form for as far back as she can remember. This fascination has been the driving inspiration leading her to create a life devoted to exploring and sharing the healing power of movement. She aspires to help others find ease and comfort within their bodies, to overcome physical and mental limitations, to heal from difficult injuries, and most of all to find the joy of movement! Empowering others to find this joy and in turn, guiding them towards their most healthy, strong and mobile selves has been one of the greatest gifts Debra has received from her decades of work, beginning with her studies at the School of American Ballet as a child, to her professional years as a founding member of Alonzo King LINES ballet, to teaching The GYROTONIC® Method under the guidance of creator & innovator Juliu Horvath.
Debra studied with Mr. Horvath during the formative years of this movement system, learning from him, and assisting him in the development of course curriculums and syllabi. She is also one of the few Master Trainers authorized to teach the GYROTONIC® Level I Final Certificate courses and is responsible for training tens of thousands of GYROTONIC® trainers worldwide. Debra has loved every second of her career in The GYROTONIC® Method and is truly honored be able to pass on the legacy of Mr. Horvath's body of work to others.
In 1988, Debra founded San Francisco GYROTONIC® (SFG) to serve the San Francisco Bay Area's dance community. Since that time, SFG has grown to become one of the world's foremost GYROTONIC® training facilities. During her time as studio owner, Debra created the first academic syllabus and GYROTONIC® manual for the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA Program at Dominican University of California. She has also created curriculums for San Francisco State University, The San Francisco High School of the Arts (SOTA), and the Alonzo King LINES Ballet Training Program and Summer Programs. After 38 incredible years, Debra is now the Founder Emeritus of San Francisco GYROTONIC® and is thrilled to work alongside new studio owners Lynn Huang and Chris Luo as the studio Master Trainer. Debra feels so grateful to leave SFG in such capable, loving, and nurturing hands. She has the utmost trust in Lynn and Chris and knows they will maintain the studios level of excellence as they bring SFG into the new age of health & wellness.
As a dancer, Debra trained in New York at The School of American Ballet under the leadership of George Balanchine. Eventually she made her way out west and began her professional career dancing with the Oakland and San Francisco Ballets. The majority of her career was spent dancing as a principal and founding member of Alonzo King's LINES Ballet for 20 years. In addition to being a principal dancer, Debra served as Ballet Mistress for LINES and assisted Mr. King in setting choreography on various companies that include Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Dance Theater of Harlem, and the Joffrey Ballet. Debra also danced for the San Francisco Opera Ballet for 30 years, performing with artists such as
Placido Domingo, Marilyn Horne, and Renee Fleming.
Debra feels incredibly humbled to have been inspired and fueled by the work of George Balanchine, Juliu Horvath, & Alonzo King. The impacts of these three mentors are at the core of who Debra is as an artist, a dancer, a teacher, a thinker, and a creator.
