LeahWillis - Poetry in Motion


	Leah Willis (Now married and known as Leah D. Prunty) was born in Van Nuys, California. She moved to Portland Oregon by age 4 and began dancing the very next year. In 1988, her mother introduced her to the fantastic and fascinating world of dance. Her dance career started at a studio called Hollywood Dance and Fitness. The studio’s name was later shortened to Hollywood Dance. As with most studios, recitals were held annually. Leah trained in tap, ballet, and jazz dance. In July of 1997, The Hollywood Dance Troup, of which she was a member, was invited to perform at Disneyland’s Carnation Plaza. In August of 1998, The Troup performed on one of Royal Caribbean’s Stars at Sea Cruises. Leah also taught and choreographed while at the studio, broadening her experience at age 14. After 10 consecutive years of dance, performance and teaching, she was accepted as a company member of the Jefferson Dancers touring Dance Company based out of Jefferson High School, in Portland, Oregon. The company was headed by Artistic Director Steve Gonzales who was formerly a member of Moses Pendleton’s MOWMIX Dance Theatre Company of New York. Jefferson High School is the Magnet Performing Arts High School in Portland, and the company, for over 25 years, has hosted the performing arts program for students throughout the metropolitan area. Accepted her Junior year, Leah toured with the company and performed at such venues as: The Millennium Stage at the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., The Hult Performing Arts Center in Eugene Oregon, The Newport Performing Arts Center in Newport Oregon, and the beautiful P.C.P. A. (Portland Center For The Performing Arts) in Downtown Portland. The company gave lecture demonstrations to elementary and high schools within the city when they weren’t on the road. Some guest choreographers with whom she worked, while she was a member include: Linda Sohl-Ellison, Artistic Director of Rhapsody in Taps; Joseph Webb, a performer from the smash tap show “Bring in Da Noise Bring in Da Funk;” and Bruce Smith, Director of The African American Ballet Theater. After Graduating from Wilson High School, Leah moved back to California, and began her higher education at Santa Monica College. She performed with the dance group “Synapse Dance Ensemble,” and she was the president of a student organization called the International Dance Club, teaching Salsa and Hip Hop styles to students from all over campus, and from all walks of life. She was also chosen as a member of the West African Dance Company Ballet Kouman Kele, Directed by the world renowned Master Nzingha Camara, outside of school. After graduating with her Associate in Arts Degree in Liberal Arts, Leah transferred to California State University, Long Beach where she choreographed dance works that were accepted in the 2006 and 2007 undergraduate Contemporary Dance Concerts, and earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Dance. She is now currently working on her Master’s Degree in Business Administration at the University of Phoenix. Mrs. Prunty’s dance experience is a combination of discipline, technique, and values that work together to infuse wisdom into dance, music, movement, and life which are all intertwined. “One is never without the other,” she says. When we walk, when we breathe, when we talk, and when we sleep, there is a rhythm that our bodies naturally fixate to: our heart beat. This is the rhythm of life. So naturally, when we hear music, our whole essence comes alive! The beat moves our bodies, and our bodies are renewed in expression, joy, and freedom, through movement.”