Biography
Monica was born in Virginia and grew up in the Philadelphia area. Born to an American father and a Bolivian mother her multicultural outlook was formed at an early age by trips every summer to La Paz, Bolivia. Always a traveler, she completed the last two years of high school in Barcelona, Spain. The metropolitan city of Barcelona stimulated many new avenues of inquiry both in the fine arts and social activism.
Returning to the States she then graduated with a B.A in Dance from the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, while also focusing on Women's Studies. In college she concentrated on Flamenco, Ballet and Haitian dance and made yearly trips to Spain to continue her Flamenco studies.
Upon graduating, she traveled to Salvador, Bahia Brazil for 6 months where she worked at a social project, teaching dance to underprivileged children. In Brazil she also studied Afro-Brazilian dance in both academic and ceremonial settings. Returning to the States, she moved to Miami to pursue a career in the performing arts and to study Holistic Healing practices. She has since traveled to Cuba, Egypt, Brazil, Peru, Nigeria, Kenya and Benin to study folkloric dance styles as well as indigenous plant medicine. Upon returning to Brazil, she worked at a social project in Rio de Janeiro and also performed in the the Portes Abertas of Santa Teresa. She is currently lives in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where she teaches dance at Ballet de Santa Teresa, meditation classes at Casa da Mulher Trabalhadora, and continues to choreograph and perform her own dance work in both Brazil and United States.
Monica believes in the inspirational qualities of art as a way to express the interconnectedness of life and to celebrate our earthly experience. As both an artist and a healer Monica believes in the truth of the body as our connection to the earth, cosmos and to ourselves.
She seeks to create art that is in alignment with the natural world, as a reminder of our connection and interdependence with nature, which includes our bodies and spirits as elements of the natural world. Through dance and song she hopes to address some of the larger issues in society, challenging belief systems and social structures that have diverged from a harmonious symbiotic approach. She looks to express the truth of the human spirit as a catalyst to break through many of the illusions and disconnections of the post-modern world. She aspires to create organic fusions of dance that incorporate the evolutionary heritage of the female body and that reflect a multicultural perspective.
Through art, she strives to represent the female principle in its entirety, allowing all dichotomies; both strong and gentle, nurturing and free, sexual and loyal, as the female psyche itself is constructed. Inspired by myths of ancient Goddesses from India, Egypt and Africa she seeks to revive an understanding of the female principle in both men and women. She hopes to encourage the process of women's liberation and support the understanding that women's rights are human rights and that equal opportunity, respect and understanding can be the only successful outcome.
Through multicultural fusions in art she hopes to create awareness of both the beauty and subjectivity of culture itself, allowing individuals to release boundaries, assumptions and limitations that are culturally imposed.
Through the use of music and dance in social projects and community centers, she strives to educate, inspire hope, self-esteem and a strengthened sense of community. Monica believes that all life must be understood and lived primarily through the heart. Monica's work as an artist, social activist and holistic healer reflects this principle of discovering truth within and living wholley in accordance to this natural rhythm.