"For unless an individual plays his part adequately
on this world stage, he will reach only
half of his development."
“For unless an individual plays his part adequately on this world stage, he will reach only half of his development.”
– Esther Harding
- Esther Harding
"For unless an individual plays his part adequately
on this world stage, he will reach only
half of his development."
“For unless an individual plays his part adequately on this world stage, he will reach only half of his development.”
– Esther Harding
- Esther Harding
My theatrical life began as an all-consuming social and extracurricular activity and transformed into a long journey of meaning and discovery as an interpretive artist. I became aware that something greater was being asked of me when I encountered timeless drama or myth, and the works of great composers, playwrights, and choreographers.
The collaborative nature of making theater brings me into contact with the visions and ideas of countless artists, all of us seeking to find and express our voices individually and collectively.
My educational path took me from Lewis and Clark College, in Portland, OR, briefly through New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, and back out to the University of Washington School of Drama, in Seattle, WA. Eventually, I combined an active freelance career with professorships that began with four years at Williams College in MA, followed by ten years at NYU as the head of stage design at Tisch’s Graduate Department of Design for Stage and Film. As a teacher and mentor, I discovered a passion for guiding students in their personal and artistic development, challenging their limiting beliefs and defenses, and fostering a deeper capacity for self expression.
I have relied on a multitude of people to help me along the way: mentors, teachers, students, elders, coaches, colleagues, body workers, and analysts. We all need the wisdom of others, at each critical stage of our development, to help us reach our full potential. In retrospect, I would have benefited from artistic coaching early in my creative and personal development.
I have faced highs and lows, dead ends, crises and resolutions. Each life experience has been an essential ingredient in my overall journey and all of them, even the most difficult or challenging, have been and continue to be intrinsic to the whole.
A new path has led me from studying at the C.G. Jung Institute Zürich to leading international dream groups as an Inara co-creator, to counseling students, teachers, and administrators in Nairobi, Kenya, and co-founding an NGO there to provide community-based psycho-social support.
The practice of Depth Coaching is the purest and most integrated expression of my creative urge, guiding emerging and established artistic professionals, as well as adults and young people from any walk of life, in their developmental journeys.