I am a User Experience Designer based in the Seattle area, currently employed at Microsoft in their Server & Tools division. I've always been passionate about both technology and the arts, and in UX Design I have happily found a way to apply both on a daily basis.
When I'm not designing, you'll most likely find me onstage. I am a professional musical theatre and improvisational actress, and have worked with numerous Seattle-area theatre companies. I'm also an ensemble member with Unexpected Productions, home of Seattle TheaterSports in the historic Pike Place Market. In 2009, I co-wrote and co-starred in an original MSN Movies web series, "I'd See it If..." (over 500,000 views!)
Prior to joining Microsoft, I spent four years in the video game industry and have shipped over half a dozen games on multiple platforms. I've also worked in the theme park industry: for both Sesame Place (as an entertainer) and Walt Disney World (as an interface designer). In the fall of 2002, I was a teaching assistant for Professor Randy Pausch's "Building Virtual Worlds" class at Carnegie Mellon.
I also serve on the executive board of Seattle-area nonprofit IGNITE (Inspiring Girls Now In Technology Evolution), a group devoted to exposing young women to the potential careers available to them in science and technology. I'm working with the group to evolve their branding and improve awareness of the organization while continuing to volunteer as a speaker at school events.
If you're on Twitter, you should follow me! (@muppetaphrodite)
