Bio

Known in the muggle world as Liá, Wayward Pixie hails from the lush, fairy forests and wild, rocky coastline of Mendocino County in Northern California. She has been passionate about dance and performing since she was a small child, from lip syncing Paula Abdul in her bedroom for a stuffed animal audience to cheerleading for her local Pop Warner football team.

Her passion for movement grew even deeper when she discovered belly dance at the age of 19, taking classes with Nicole Fish and Elika Freeman. She immediately felt at home with this dance style that was so strong yet sensual, and admired how it was so accepting of people in all forms. Surrounded by an incredible group of women, she got her first taste of real female empowerment, which would continue to flourish as her circle of sisters grew. She then began to perform with Trillium Tribe, led by Nicole Fish. This included training in Egyptian, Folkloric, and Cabaret belly dance and was the real starting point of the dance journey that she is still on today.

After some time, she wanted to branch out and explore new territory, so she and Elika created Toniq Vivant in 2009. They started out as a Tribal Fusion troupe then evolved into a performance showcase, combining world dance, hip hop, fire arts, burlesque, theatrics, and whatever else caught their fancy. The creative freedom of this project and the deep bond with the women involved has been a rock to stand on for the continuation of her performance life. 

In 2011 she joined the Les Filles Rouges burlesque show, presented by the Polaris Dance Troupe and led by Melinda Miller-Klopfer. Here she embraced silliness on stage, improved her theatrical skills, and channeled her inner exhibitionist, all while adopting feminism in a whole new light. 

Shortly after, in 2012 she was invited to perform with Luminesque Fire Troupe. She had fallen in love with fire dancing on the beaches of Thailand a few years earlier and was excited to expand her skills in object manipulation and be a part of the dramatic, ritualistic beauty that Luminesque was known to create.

In the summer of 2019 she embraced the opportunity to tour with Flynn Creek Circus. Based out of Mendocino, CA, Flynn Creek Circus brings high caliber performance and dedication to mastering circus arts all while “pushing tradition to the edge”. Wayward spent the 2019 and 2021 seasons traveling with the show, under their vintage big top tent, as part of the marketing team and performing in the adults only version of the show. This endeavor has helped her to grow in so many ways as an artist and also gave her more experience with the business side of the entertainment world.

During the trying times of the global pandemic, Wayward decided to plant new roots in Nashville, TN. There she has found supportive communities of musicians, dancers, and a myriad of other artists to collaborate with and gain new inspirations. She has had the opportunity to work closely with local rock bands, DeeOhGee, Down Boy, and The Smoking Flowers, as well as guest appear with the babe-a-licious burlesque troupe, The Tipsy Teasers, and the incredible Suspended Gravity Circus. She has also been honored to become a member of Pyroglyphics, a dynamic multi disciplinary performance troupe. Feeling inspired by all that Music City has to offer, she also produces shows and curates performances under the umbrella of The Mystery Flavours, providing entertainment at some of Nashville’s most iconic venues and at events of all kinds.

Through all of these projects she has grown and learned so much from the talented creatives that she has worked with. Also through these connections she has been able to perform at events such as Oregon Country Fair, The Mendocino Film Festival, Humboldt Burlesque Festival, London Burlesque Festival, Deep Tropics Culture & Music Festival, Northern Nights Music Festival, The Black Mountain Jamboree, and the Burning Man Conclave, as well as many community gatherings, variety shows, and celebrations.

In more recent years she has been called to teach dance and movement, where she not only shares technique and conditioning, but all of the deeper benefits that she has gained from the art form. Dance and performance have been so important on her journey to becoming more confidant and empowered and to shed the shame and guilt of being a sensual feminine human. It brings her great happiness to help guide others on their path to similar goals.

In between performances and teaching she enjoys traveling and training in as many dance styles as she can. She has studied belly dance fusion, a bit of Classical Indian dance, and some Kabeliya (North Indian folk dance) with the awe-inspiring Colleena Shakti in Bali, India,  and Greece. Those experiences were not only high quality technique training, but lessons in humility and grace, and a starting off point to studying some of the deeper roots of dance. Other styles that she has delved into include ballet, samba, ATS (American Tribal Style), contemporary, and aerial hoop, taking classes from very talented teachers in places such as France, India, and Australia. She takes all that she has learned (and continues to learn) through dance practice and life experience to create artistic expressions of movement, fusing together different techniques and adding flair with intriguing props and costumes.

One of her greatest joys in life is to take in art forms of all kinds and to be able to share her art with others. She truly believes that art and creativity are an essential part of life, and are healing gifts to ourselves and the world.