... moved to Utah several years ago from NYC, where she was deeply involved in the rhythm tap scene beginning in 1979.

After receiving her Master’s degree in dance education from Columbia University, she began intensive training in the jazz-tap style (now known as rhythm tap), studying with masters such as Brenda Bufalino, Charles “Cookie” Cook, Honi Coles, Dianne Walker, and many others. She performed for many years with Bufalino in and around NYC, and was an original member of her company, The American Tap Dance Orchestra. Debby also performed for several years in the experimental tap works of Anita Feldman, and was a founding member of the company NYCTapworks. In addition, she has shared the stage and collaborated with tap artists such as Joshua Hilberman, Heather Cornell, Sara Petronio, Tony Waag, and Katherine Kramer.

Though her childhood dance studies were centered in tap, she holds a BFA degree in modern dance from the University of Utah, and has spent many years teaching modern, jazz, dance history, etc on the college level. She has been a part-time faculty member at Salt Lake Community College for 14 years, and currently teaches a rhythm tap class for community members at Studio 600 in downtown SLC.  In 2003 she was the first local tap dancer to be awarded an individual artist grant from the Utah Arts Council for a tap choreography project.

In 2004 she produced the first “Percussive Dance” concert in SLC; a collaboration between tap dancers and the Flamenco company Tablado. In July 2008 she shared the spotlight with Bill Evans as a guest artist in his sold-out tap concert at the Rose Wagner Theatre in SLC.  In January 2009 Debby was sponsored by Repertory Dance Theater’s LINK program to produce a concert entitled Footwork: An Evening of Percussive Dance, also held at the Rose Wagner. Footwork was a smash success, featuring a wide array of tap styles as well as clogging, flamenco, Irish step and African drumming.  The March 2010 Footwork concert, focused entirely on tap, will be followed by another RDT-Sponsored LINK peformance on June 4th & 5th. Once again, a variety of percussive dance forms will be included in the June show.

Annually, Debby travels to participate in tap festivals and workshops nationwide, including The Portsmouth Percussive Dance Festival, The Chicago Human Rhythm Project, The NYC Tap City Festival, Rhythm Explosion in Bozeman, Montana, and The Southern California Tap Fest in Costa Mesa.

She is the Utah representative for the International Tap Association, a service/professional organization dedicated to the needs of tap dancers.

The Utah Tap Caucus was formed in 2001 as a collaboration between Debby and other local tap dancers with the intention of promoting and increasing the visibility and public awareness of the art of tap dance in Utah. They have produced concerts and workshops, and have introduced Utah to National Tap Dance Day, celebrated on May 25th, the anniversary of the birth of the great Bill “Bojangles” Robinson

In addition to all the dance activities, Debby is also a voice talent and narrator, having voiced several radio commercials, and narrated a KUED-produced film.