MC DeBelina’s focus since 2008 has been primarily teaching children creative dance and raising her growing family.  MC studied Biology and Dance at Dartmouth College (B.A. 2005) and combined her two passions at Sarah Lawrence College receiving an MFA in Dance (2008).  Her thesis work focused on the links between science and art.

Mary Chris founded the Hopkins Center’s Children’s Creative Dance Program at Dartmouth in 2005 and taught every class until 2012 when her family relocated to Philadelphia.  As a faculty member at Dartmouth she was fortunate to perform with, and choreograph for, the Dartmouth Dance Ensemble and she was a frequent guest teacher in the advanced modern dance classes.

In Philadelphia, MC met Keila Cordova and was introduced to Dance for PD.  She attended the Teacher Training Workshop in Brooklyn in 2013, taught classes in Philadelphia. Now in Vermont, MC teaches Movement for Parkinsons at the Montpelier Senior Center and a number of children and adult classes at Contemporary Dance and Fitness Studio in addition to creating her own work when she can.

 In 2019, MC choreographed and danced for the Juventas Music Ensemble. This was the beginning of a lovely collaboration. MC has danced for Juventas a number of times since then and is proud to be a part of Shell and Wing, which won The American Prize Ernst Bacon Award for Performance of American Music.

Mary Chris finds dance in everything and currently her biggest inspirations are her four children.