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Marlies Yearby
Marlies Yearby
01:04

Marlies Yearby

"Rent"

New York, NY USA

"I made choices that had to do with me."

Career Roadmap

Marlies's work combines: Acting & Theatre, Art, and Being Creative

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Day In The Life

Choreographer/Dancer

I look for theatre projects that are creative in nature and can impact how we think about the topic explored.

Skills & Education

Here's the path I took:

  • High School

  • Bachelor's Degree

    Dance, General

    San Jose State University

Life & Career Milestones

My path in life has been direct

  • 1.

    Originally studied biology; never really felt a passion for it, but it "made sense" in the narrative of "you need to find a sensible career."

  • 2.

    Took a dance class near the end of her first year and says "that was it," suddenly her schedule was packed full of dance classes.

  • 3.

    She kept her major set as biological sciences to have a safety net, until finally the college said, "What are you doing? You're taking all dance classes."

  • 4.

    Once she switched majors, she started doing professional dance and choreography work outside of class.

  • 5.

    Eventually, she was doing so well that she started missing classes; her college urged her to take some time off to pursue dance in earnest.

  • 6.

    She moved to New York and worked harder than she'd ever worked; got invited to send in a choreography submission for "Rent".

  • 7.

    Even though she was exhausted, and her time in New York had drained her, when "Rent" called her back, she refused to pass up the opportunity.

  • 8.

    In 1996, her choreography for "Rent" was nominated for a Tony Award.