Hilary Thomas

Hilary Thomas (she/her) grew up in Pasadena and trained with The Pasadena Dance Theatre. She earned degrees in dance and psychology from Santa Clara University and continued her dance training with the Joffrey Ballet. In 1999 Hilary created Lineage Dance to raise support and awareness for nonprofit organizations and to make the arts accessible to all. Since that time, Lineage has presented over 3000 performances and raised more than $500,000 dollars in support of charitable, educational and nonprofit organizations across the country. In 2010 the company opened the Lineage Performing Arts Center (LPAC) in Pasadena as home for connecting through the arts. As Artistic Director, Hilary works with a company of professional artists to present live music, theatre, and dance concerts. She has created multiple original performances in collaboration with local nonprofits (including Healing Blue with the Living Beauty Cancer Foundation, Ceiling in the Floor with Didi Hirsch Mental Health Services, After Roe with Planned Parenthood, and A New Day with the Phil Simon Clinic) which are in repertory at the LPAC. She has also directed Lineage's musical productions which include Tick Tick Boom, The Last Five Years, Pippin, Next to Normal and Cabaret. Hilary helped launch Lineage's Dance for Joy program, which offers free classes in the community to those affected by Parkinson's Disease, Alzheimers, Stroke Recovery, Cancer, and Autism. Through this program, Hilary produces intergenerational performance opportunities for younger students to work with the Dance for Joy participants on storytelling and movement pieces. She also works with a panel of artists and experts to offer regular death education and end-of-life-planning workshops called Staging Your Grand Exit. Hilary has earned various awards for her artistic work in the community: the Beverly Hills Outlook selected her as one of top choreographers of 2004 and 2005, she received the “Gold Crown Award” from the Pasadena Arts Council in 2006, and was nominated by “THE” Magazine as one of Pasadena’s top 50 creative artists in 2011. Hilary has also been on faculty at Flintridge Preparatory School, teaching science and dance since 2001. For more information about Hilary and Lineage, visit www.lineagepac.org.