About the Director:
Hillary Brown started Manoa Dance Studio to learn how to dance again.
Most thought she was simply teaching kids the basics, when she was learning again herself. In 2008, she suffered a stroke that left her unable to speak and her right side paralyzed. After a risky brain surgery, she nurtured her recovery over two years with Pilates which enabled her to return to her first passion, dancing.
Hillary started dance at age 3 as part of an elite dance team “Starz” in Mesa, Arizona. She continued to train in Salt Lake City, Utah where her studies included Jazz, Ballet, Tap, Pointe, Lyrical, Broadway and Hip Hop. A young actress as well, she played roles in movies with Disney, DreamWorks, and Lucadia Films, and had reoccurring roles on ‘Touched by an Angel’.
In 2001, Hillary made her journey to Hawaii, where she taught for numerous studios, was director of a local talent agency and choreographed several pageant contestants. Hillary has judged several pageants, including the Miss Hawaii Pageant and Miss Teen Filipina and World Pageants.
Now she shares her passion for Pilates with her dance students and clients in hopes that the method will help others the way it helped her. She focuses on developing a passion for health, nutrition, and a positive attitude.