I grew up in Lexington, Massachusetts. From a young age, I was a polyglot and artist, speaking Bulgarian at home before taking up French and German at school, later earning a degree from Georgetown University in English Literature and Russian Language, with a minor in Spanish — all the while performing in productions alongside my studies. My very first role was Violet Beauregard in our 8th grade production of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I had been bitten by the drama bug and went on to train at LAMDA in London, completing its rigorous three-year conservatoire programme. After graduating, I founded the multi-award-winning Out Of The Forest Theatre, an international touring company known for taking mis-remembered or forgotten stories from history, setting them to live folk music and telling them through a lens to better understand today. We've had multiple sell-out runs at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and a transfer to Off-Broadway. I am also a published playwright, with independent commissions, and most recently adapted and directed The Nutcracker for The Taunton Brewhouse's 2025 Christmas season. Alongside this, I serve as a visiting lecturer and director at Rose Bruford College, where I teach modules on tragedy and have directed several productions for the American Theatre Arts programme.

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My philosophy of mentorship is rooted in collaboration, curiosity, and care. Drawing on my experience as a theatre director and workshop facilitator, I approach teaching as an ensemble process — one in which each student has genuine ownership over their ideas and voice. Rather than dictating outcomes, I guide students in shaping and refining what emerges from their own thinking, helping them develop clarity, confidence, and intellectual independence. This approach is deeply informed by the principle of cura personalis — a philosophy I was introduced to at Georgetown that centres a commitment to nurturing the whole person. In practice, this means fostering habits of mind grounded in self-belief, resilience, and curiosity, all while maintaining academic rigour. I encourage students to be playful and exploratory in their writing, because it is through that openness that original, compelling work emerges.

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Outside of teaching and directing, I love cooking and host an annual Thanksgiving feast in London. I'm also a keen salsa dancer and have performed with a band across the UK. I have a Hermann's Dwarf Tortoise named Morticia, a tiny creature no bigger than the palm of my hand, who I like to take out into my back garden while I read in the sunshine. My favourite books are Right Ho, Jeeves by P.G. Wodehouse, His Dark Materials by Philip Pullman, and If On A Winter's Night a Traveller by Italo Calvino.