Maria started partner dancing in 2017, dabbling in salsa and tango. But after discovering Zouk, she fell in love and dived into Zouk training.  She has trained hard to strengthen her solo dancing and to refine her teaching techniques. Currently, she is part of a community of instructors based in Seattle. She has traveled to congresses all over North America, and performed and competed as an amateur. 

Maria comes from a background of athletics and music. She trained for years as a competitive distance runner and classical cellist and aims to bring both athletic strength and musicality from these backgrounds into her dancing. 

She has participated in Zouk Babes for two seasons, and then began directing the Seattle team’s third season. She has loved the community Zouk Babes has given her, locally and internationally, as well as technique and confidence in her dancing. She strongly believes in building spaces for dancers to come together and to support and train with each other. Maria looks forward to giving back to the Zouk community in her roles as dancer, student, instructor, and mentor.