Why do you continue to work in Seattle?

I moved here from NYC, and I find it much, much easier to be a working artist here. I've received more financial support here, even as someone brand new to the city. I applied in the first year for every grant I could think of, thinking that I'd start now and in 10 years I'd get one; and I was pleasantly shocked to receive two grants the very first year I applied for things. That was quite a welcome.

Do you actually make a living from your art?

No. But I have figured out how to juggle things with a lot less stress in my life than I was able to do in NYC. My job is arts-related, and something that I care about. I'm able to have a flexible schedule. The other thing about Seattle is just the quality of life; it's really beautiful here. There are so many parks, it's lush, and the air is clean. And the audience is very immediately supportive; the very first show I produced was sold out. It was at a small theater, but I was really new and had no idea that that many people would come and support someone whose work they didn't know.

Has that support continued, even though you're not so new anymore?

Yes. The last show that I did--which was co-produced with glass bones ensemble--we self-produced at On the Boards, which was a leap from a 100-seat theater to a 300-seat theater. While we weren't sold out, we more than doubled our audience.

What have you got coming up this fall?

I'm part of Better Biscuit Dance, which is myself and Alex Martin--all of the above productions were done by both of us, I want to make that clear--and we have a show called twosome; it's going to be a cycle of three duets. It goes up on November 30 through December 3.

What the hell does Better Biscuit mean?

Alex came up with that name--it was her e-mail address when she lived in New York. Somehow it stuck.