le cancan bijou
cast roster
Management
Cindy Lu
Co-Director & Dancer
Cindy is delighted to be a member of Le Cancan Bijou and has been dancing with the troupe since 2008. She's always loved dancing, and studied ballet for a few years at an early age. She wasn't able to actively pursue dance until college, where she studied ballroom dancing and was a member of a swing dancing performance group. Some of Cindy's interests include vintage and contra dancing, and she actively participates in yoga and kickboxing. Her love for vintage led her to a membership with 1930s vintage dance troupe, the Decobelles. Cindy is a marketing professional by day, but her passions are dance and costuming, with a penchant for corsetry. Each year she looks forward to performing at the Great Dickens Fair & Victorian Holiday Party - one of her favorite annual events.
Meredith Sherwin
Co-Director & Dancer
A lover of all types of movement from Classical Ballet to impromptu sidewalk dance parties, Meredith grew up dabbling in various dance styles including Ballet, Jazz, Tap, and Irish Step Dancing. Most frequently she was found enacting some “Musical Theater” style, reminiscent of her favorite classic films. This mixture of technique and performance drew her to the cancan, finally succumbing to the seduction of ruffles, high-kicks, and feathers and joining Le Cancan Bijou in 2013. She is also a member of the Decobelles with several other Bijou ladies, and spends her free time searching for vintage treasures, drinking wine in the sunshine, and chasing her cats around the house.
current performers
Site Title
Barbara Pond
Dancer
Barbara was introduced by her mother at a very early age to the unusual combination of Golden Age musicals, Star Trek reruns, and the novels of Louisa May Alcott. Convinced she had been born in the wrong era (or dimension) Barbara was excited to discover in 1995 that musical theatre and ballroom dance were alive and well! She immediately auditioned for both a local production of My Fair Lady and the UC Davis Ballroom Dance Team, and has performed with various companies ever since. Favorite roles include Maria in The Sound of Music, Lucy Schmeeler in On The Town, and an unforgettable turn as a giant, tap dancing lobster. She has received two Solano County ARTY awards for her work: Lead Actress in a Musical (Maria, The Sound of Music), and Supporting Actress in a Musical (Sister Mary Leo, Nunsense!). In an attempt to cover all her historical bases, Barbara also dances with The Decobelles, performs with The Stark Ravens Historical Players at Renaissance festivals, and sings with the piratical Queen Anne’s Revenge. Most recently, she has been involved in film and television projects , and is studying on-camera acting with Nancy Berwid at San Francisco’s First Take.
Bonnie Rose
Dancer
At a young age, Bonnie Rose studied a variety of dance classes including tap, ballet, jazz, and hip hop. From sixth through eighth grade she danced with her middle school cheer team while continuing to compete with her dance school team in national competitions. A member of her high school Varsity Dance Team, Bonnie Rose became the captain her junior and senior years, affording her the opportunity to compete and perform globally from the Florida Citrus Bowl Half-Time Show to events in Paris, France. Studying Fine Arts, Interior Design and Dance in college, Bonnie Rose has also dabbled in the Go-Go scene in San Francisco and Italy. From 2011-2012 she also danced with another bay area cancan troupe, the Can-Cannibals. Her other interests include modeling for photography, figure drawing, and fashion. Bonnie Rose currently lives in San Francisco where she practices her fine arts skills as a painter. She joined Le Cancan Bijou in 2008, and continues to dance at The Dickens Fair as well as outside performance when she can fit it into her busy schedule.
Rachel Young
Dancer
Rachel was delighted to join Le Cancan Bijou in 2016 after many years of working alongside them at the Great Dickens Christmas Fair. She enthusiastically embraces dance and yoga as a counterpoint to her more sedentary life doing fine needlework and breathing new life into old books. Much of her Bay Area theater experience has been in the production of props and costumes, or as backstage crew, performing routines that were never seen by an audience. Now she happily trades her traditional stage blacks for the bright, frilly confectionary of a cancan dress and a high-kicking, jolly good time.
Christophe Taylor
Dancer
Christophe started dancing ballroom in college a decade ago. After making his rounds on the competition circuit, he picked up a a large assortment of social dance styles - from blues and lindy hop to tango and vintage waltz. He spent several years performing burlesque as well as being a member of The Can-Cannibals, Decadance, and several other troupes. Christophe founded the monthly event East Bay Waltz, and continues to teach, travel, and DJ at dance events across the country. In his spare time, Christophe enjoys aerial acrobatics, partner flips, acro-yoga, and board games. He's also enjoyed a previous life training for and competing in triathlons and marathons.
Jessie Potter
Dancer
Jessie has spent much of her life dancing and performing. She started out as a gymnast in her childhood and then moved on to ballet as she gained proficiency. She later found a love for Irish, swing, and Morris dance, along with other fun forms of performance and movement. She started dancing with Le Cancan Bijou in 2000, and is happily back this year after a four-year break. When she’s not dancing Jessie likes to play the cello and sing with her band, The Honeybelles, which includes her sister and her daughter.
Cybele Baker
Dancer
Cybele joined Le Cancan Bijou in 2003, having previously worked as a competitive Irish dancer for over a decade. A singer and actor, Cybele has performed twice in Gilbert & Sullivan's Pirates of Penzance, seven years with the 19th century Musical Hall vocal group The LORS, and was the director of the all-ladies nautical-themed singing group Queens Anne's Revenge from 2008-2012. She has performed in productions spotlighting stage combat with The Albion Schoole of Defense. Cybele has loved dancing with Le Cancan Bijou for more than 10 years and feels it is the most exciting and invigorating dance form she has ever had the ability to perform.
Joshua Haiman
Dancer
Joshua fell in love with dance at age 15 when he fell into Scottish Country Dancing. His love of jumping lured him into the realm of Scottish Highland Dance, where he competed for several years and currently teaches weekly at the Piedmont Parks and Recreation Department. In college he explored both ballet and modern dance, and now thoroughly enjoys swing, waltz, and tango. In 2008 he joined Le Cancan Bijou, and hasn't looked back!
HALEY SMITH HENDERSON
Dancer
Haley joined Le Cancan Bijou in 2017. Her love for dance is exceeded only by the length of her legs and the ruffly-ness of her panties. She has spent her life exploring different types of movement. As a child, she learned folk dances from all over the world, primarily Balkan. In high school, the Swing dance boom hit and she spent the next decade dancing Lindy Hop and Blues dance. She has spent time choreographing and teaching on and off as well. To support her dance habit in college, she obsessed ballet and modern dance, focusing on Graham technique and solo choreography. Her non-dance movements of choice include yoga, rock climbing and hiking.
Keegan Tyler
Dancer
Keegan devoted much of her early life to performing, but gave up the glamorous life for good – until she found Le Cancan Bijou. Keegan joined the troupe in 2011 after 10 years away from the stage and couldn’t be more overjoyed to have found her home. Keegan grew up in the theater, performing in her first musical, “Showboat,” at 6 years old. She also spent many years as a competitive figure skater and ballroom dancer. When she’s not kicking up her heels with Bijou, Keegan can be found teaching Pilates, sewing ridiculous costumes, and searching for sparklies in Azeroth.
Lillian Porter
Dancer
Lillian is an enthusiastic dancer who loves to perform. She began dancing at the age of 4 and joined a performance dance team at age 13 in which she performed clogging and jazz dance in over 8 countries. She loves being on stage and entertaining the audience. Lilian also loves to sing and has also sang in several choirs and performed in several musicals, including Oliver and The Sound of Music. Lillian is a dedicated swing dancer (Lindy Hop, Balboa, East Coast and Collegiate Shag) and enjoys teaching and competing. When she's not dancing she is a consultant to large companies and advises them on financial, operational and compliance solutions. Lillian joined LeCanCan Bijou in 2003 and has had a fabulous, fun time being a CanCan dancer at the Dickens Christmas Fair and other venues.
TESS-MARIE WHITE
Dancer
After a brief and unremarkable middle school jazz and tap career, Tess thought she'd hung up her dance shoes for good. But a series of fortunate events led her back to the stage as a member of the Decobelles, a 1930s themed dance troupe that performs at many Art Deco themed events all over the Bay Area. Since joining the Decobelles in 2015, Tess has spent lots of time on the dance floor dancing Lindy, and was thrilled to join Le Cancan Bijou in 2017. In her time offstage, Tess is a classical painter and artist, and a vintage fashion enthusiast.
Heather Feeney
Dancer & Choreographer
Heather has been performing with the Le Cancan Bijou since 2007. She loves dancing and can often be found shaking her derriere to any and all music she encounters. She has studied a wide variety of dance forms including ballet, jazz, salsa, flamenco, hip hop, and Appalachian clogging.
Heather Feeney
Dancer & Choreographer
Heather has been performing with the Le Cancan Bijou since 2007. She loves dancing and can often be found shaking her derriere to any and all music she encounters. She has studied a wide variety of dance forms including ballet, jazz, salsa, flamenco, hip hop, and Appalachian clogging.
SAWYER SECHE
Dancer
COMING SOON!
Tara Roberts
Dancer & Choreographer
Tara began dancing when she was just three years old, and hasn't stopped since! Being trained in ballet, tap and jazz led her to dancing in musicals, and eventually turned her passion for dance into a passion for performance. That passion has led her to become a choreographer and teacher, training the next generation of dancers in ballet, tap, jazz, musical theater and lyrical/contemporary styles all over the Bay Area (as well as a bit in Michigan, where she grew up). She was roped into the magical world of Le Cancan Bijou in 2014, and added cancan to her repertoire of classical ballets, musicals, social dancing, and stage plays. When she's not dancing or teaching - which is rare - she enjoys barre3 classes, and performs with Barely Legal, a local Rocky Horror Picture Show shadowcast.
Krista Miller
Dancer
Krista started dancing with her first tap class at the tender age of 4, whereby she promptly ran from the stage crying in terror during her first recital. Undeterred by this traumatic experience, she continued to dabble in dance on-and-off throughout her childhood and teen years with ballet, jazz, and contemporary styles. But it was when she found Irish and Highland that her passion for dance and love of performance took off. Having found her niche and discovering a whole world of performance opportunities within it, she dove in and never looked back (she has also never run from a stage crying again). Krista has played and participated in several other cultural dance styles throughout the years, and most recently added Italian folk dance to her repertoire. But, in 2016, she was no longer able to resist the lure of high kicks, shiny colors, and ALL THOSE RUFFLES of the French Cancan! She is thrilled to see where this adventure with Le Cancan Bijou leads.
CATHERINE LANGONE
Dancer
COMING SOON!
company members
Monique Ivan Woodruff
Founder
tanya anguita
Founder
anni bergman
Founder
