Lauri-Michelle completed her training as a full-time student at the prestigious School of American Ballet in New York City. At 18 she joined the Chicago City Ballet where she was featured being coached by Maria Tallchief in the PBS documentary "Balanchine's Ballerinas." From 1987-94 Lauri-Michelle danced for the Pacific Northwest Ballet in Seattle where she performed a full repertoire of soloist and principal roles. While at PNB, she was privileged to dance one of the masterpieces of George Balanchine including principal roles in Rubies, Divenimento #15, Apollo, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Who Cares? She performed with Nashville Ballet as a principal dancer in 1997-98. She excelled in the utmost of roles including the Sugar Plum Fairy in the Nutcracker and Odette/Odile in Swan Lake. Lauri-Michelle was pictured solo on the arts front page of The New York Times in Lar Lubovich's "American Gesture" . Most recently she has been a very effective teacher and private coach, and has staged several ballets including works by Stowell and Petipa.
Benjamin began his career with Joffrey II and later joined the Pacific Northwest Ballet where he performed as one of their most beloved principal dancers for thirteen years. Adept at both contemporary and the great classical roles, he performed in a wide range of works by Balanchine, Baryshnikov, Stowell and Fosse's Anne Reinking among others. As Artistic Director, Mr. Houk led the Nashville Ballet (1996-98), and Fort Worth Dallas Ballet (1998-2001). Thoroughly experienced in Arts in Education programs as director and lecturer, he has enthralled over a hundred thousand children around the country. He has also served as a guest lecturer for among others, Vanderbilt University, Microsoft, The Kennedy Center's Imagination Celebration, and served as a grants panelist for the National Endowment for the Arts. Ben was pictured with Patricia Barker in a linotype on the front page of The Wall Street Journal. Mr. Houk has enjoyed popular and critical success on three continents as a choreographer, in over 25 works including Nutcracker, and Shout, and has performed in musical theater, film and TV including PBS' "Bill Nye the Science Guy."
Lauri-Michelle and Ben have enjoyed many performances as guest artists, most notably together at the Edinburgh Festival. They have taught extensively as master teachers at ballet and modern dance companies, schools and universities. In 2001, they founded SAN ELIJO DANCE & MUSIC ACADEMY, which has grown to be the preeminent academy in San Diego County; and in 2010 they opened 4S DANCE ACADEMY. Former students have gone on to film, musical theater, and with scholarships to the most prestigious schools, universities and companies including, SAB, NYCB, ABT, PNB, SFB,UC Berkeley, L.A., SF, Irvine, Stanford and Julliard. Lauri-Michelle and Ben are happily settled in North County with their five children Madeline, Katherine, Elizabeth, Michael, and Alexandra.
