Feminism - the word - can give us a handle, a rallying point, a common ground, and help us build a bridge. Why not claim the gift of the word as a place to begin?

Well, the teacher I studied with for nineteen and a half years was a man named Paul Gavert. He was a great lieder singer, so basically Im a trained lieder singer because of that teacher. The teacher I currently study with - since 1995 - is Joan Lader, who also studied with Gavert.

I love Mary Chapin Carpenter songs. I love her songs 'Come On, Come On' and 'I Am A Town', they're two of my favorite songs.

I had no words for these feelings. And then people started using the word Ms. Suddenly, there was this handle with which I could identify myself and understand why I felt so out of whack with the culture around me.

Everything good that I know was taught to me by great teachers and I feel like giving back and sharing the technique is the thing to do.

So, when the discussion about not using the term feminist came up at a conference workshop, I couldn't believe it. The more I listened, the more I felt the need to express my passion about my identity as a feminist.

For one thing, I teach my students what my teacher for twenty years, Paul Gavert, told me, 'The voice follows... the voice follows everything about you... who you are.

There's a lot of maintenance that goes into being a professional singer.

My two great loves are music and horses.

I was hugely relieved to discover there was a purpose for girls with loud voices.

As you get older, your voice changes, as well. Your voice should be able to last as long as you last.

If we're for one another, we're feminists. The rest is semantics.

Our stories are different our pain is the same.

Broadway has changed tremendously from the early days when the shows were referred to as musical comedies. Musical Theater is now a more expanded art form. Back then, singer/actors were not the norm. From the 60's to now, it is necessary to do it all to be a consummate Broadway performer.

It's just a little ranch. Thirty-five acres. In Texas, if it's not a thousand acres, it's considered a ranchette.