hello & welcome
My name is Nicole. I was born and raised in a hot rodding, NASCAR loving, rat rod building, rock & roll Detroit family. In an attempt to increase their “alone time”, my parents put me into ballet classes when I was young. However, the stars aligned the moment those tiny pink slippers were on my feet, and my soul came alive. I spent the rest of my adolescence forgoing school dances, social engagements, and sporting events in favor of cultivating the discipline and technique required of a ballet dancer. I began my professional career immediately following my high school graduation, and have been following my passion ever since.
Much to my father’s relief, my love for classic cars, guitars, and the Motor City has never wavered, despite all of the pink satin and tulle.
I currently live in New York City with my sound-engineer husband, Rooster, and our wild little dog, Willow Bird Jones. I have been dancing professionally for 18 years, celebrating 17 Christmases on stage with the Radio City Rockettes. When I am not in rehearsals, performing or following my husband around the world, I can usually be found sifting through the bargain bins in a record store, wandering the halls of a museum, working on my right hook with my boxing trainer, or sitting in Central Park with Willow, my camera, and a good book.
I began my academic journey in the Fall of 2018, and am currently in my fifth semester here at Penn State. I am pursuing both a Bachelor of Arts in Strategic Communications and a Bachelor of Design in Digital Multimedia Design. As of yet, I do not have a clear cut professional path so I am allowing these academic experiences to introduce me to new interests and ways to express myself creatively, which will, hopefully, shape my professional aspirations somewhere down the line. I love writing, art, and design, so I find myself drawn to fields such as journalism, graphic design, and art direction.