Carmen is originally from the Slocan Valley in the West Kootenay region of BC. She began her training at the McKay School of Dance in Trail and furthered her studies at the School of Winnipeg Contemporary Dancers and the School of Toronto Dance Theatre.
She graduated from Mount Allison University in Sackville, NB (Honours English, Minor Canadian Studies) in 2008. Carmen was fortunate enough to have been the recipient of numerous national and institutional grants, and scholarships, most notably the Millenium Excellence Award and the Columbia Basin Trust Youth Scholarship Award.
While in New Brunswick, she founded three grass-roots, non-profit organizations: a local dance company, a national dance and multimedia organization, and a yoga school.
In 2007, Carmen completed her Yoga Teacher Training with master Ashtanga Yogis, David and Satya Garrigues in Seattle and is a registered instructor with the Yoga Alliance of North America.
In 2011, Carmen graduated from London Contemporary Dance School (BA (Hons) Contemporary Dance).
In 2009, she was appointed as a dance critic by the Society of London Theatre Awards for the 2010 Olivier Awards (London’s equivalent of the Tony Awards). In 2011, Carmen began working for London-based company, Dance Tours International (Director: Justin Meissner, Former Royal Ballet First-Soloist) doing entrepreneurial growth and development.
In October 2012, Carmen will begin her PhD in London at Central Saint Martins and TrAIN, the Research Centre for Transnational Art, Identity, and Nation. Her research investigates the relationship between foreign affairs, international relations, & notions of national identity and cultural consumption & distribution.
