For Diana Cushway, dance has never been only about movement. It has always been a way to bring people together.
A choreographer, author, lecturer, painter and former professional modern dancer, Diana has spent decades creating experiences that combine movement, music, visual art, theater and community participation. Now living in the Sierra foothills, she is bringing that same collaborative spirit to North Star House in Grass Valley.
Diana began her dance education remarkably early. At just 10 years old, she was already assisting her parents, who were professional ballroom dancers, with their classes. By 19, she was teaching creative movement, and at 20 she was selected to teach and choreograph a summer dance and performance workshop at Southern Illinois University.
Her professional training later took her to Chicago, New York City and San Francisco, where she studied modern dance and ballet. Among her greatest artistic influences was Carla Maxwell, longtime Artistic Director of the Limón Dance Company, who inspired Diana to explore movement not simply as choreography, but as a form of expression and beauty.
Diana went on to perform and teach throughout the United States, from California to Wolf Trap in the Washington, D.C. region. Her work included modern dance, creative movement, teacher training workshops and parent-child movement programs.
Building Community Through the Arts
Much of Diana's career was spent at Skyline College, where she served as a professor, Artistic Director and Dance Department Chair within the Kinesiology Department.
Her productions were intentionally collaborative.
Students shared the stage with professional dancers, musicians, singers, painters, poets, costume designers and visiting artists. Performers included dancers from San Francisco Ballet, musicians and dancers led by Malonga Casquelourd, and members of the internationally recognized Limón Dance Company.
Diana also invited students and faculty from other areas of the college to become part of the performances. Cosmetology students created period hair and makeup. Choir members performed alongside dancers. Artists painted, musicians played, and volunteers helped bring increasingly ambitious productions to life.
The result was much more than a traditional dance concert.
Productions could involve more than 160 participants, supported by dance instructors, graduate students, assistants, parents and student volunteers. Performances regularly filled Skyline College's 550-seat theater.
One particularly memorable production blurred the boundaries between audience, stage and artwork. An opera singer began performing from the back of the theater while lighting slowly revealed enormous canvases being painted onstage. Dancers positioned throughout the audience rose onto stools, moved through the aisles and eventually made their way toward the stage. By the end of the piece, the dancers themselves became part of the painted canvas.
It was exactly the kind of unexpected artistic collaboration Diana loves creating.
A Lifetime of Teaching and Creating
Throughout her academic career, Diana taught or developed curriculum in subjects ranging from Dance Composition and Theory, Modern Dance, Ballet and Jazz to Creative Dance, Dance Production, Pilates, Stress Management and Dance Wellness and Therapy.
She also brought guest artists into her programs to introduce students to an extraordinary range of movement traditions, including Swing, Salsa, Flamenco, African dance, Capoeira, Tahitian dance, Tango, traditional Irish dance and Philippine dance.
Her work extended behind the scenes as well. Diana contributed to lighting design and video collaborations for choreographers and other artists, continually looking for ways to expand what a performance could become.
She is also the author of Stop Choose Change: Thriving and Surviving Tough Times, a book centered on practical strategies for navigating change.
A New Creative Chapter in the Sierra Foothills
After moving to the Sierra foothills six years ago, Diana quickly became impressed by the depth of artistic talent throughout Nevada County.
That discovery has inspired a new chapter in her creative life.
She is especially interested in collaborations that bring together local artists, performers, merchants, makers and community members in ways that feel welcoming, unusual and fun.
That vision fits naturally with the growing community programming at North Star House, where classes, workshops, cultural programs and creative gatherings are helping people experience the historic estate in new ways.
Rather than treating a historic property simply as something to observe, Diana sees opportunities to fill it with music, movement, creativity and people.
Bringing Another Era to Life at North Star House
That philosophy is at the heart of Diana's involvement with An Autumnal Evening in Another Era on October 17.
From 4 to 7 PM, guests are invited to experience North Star House through period-inspired dancing, music, games, crafts and traditions throughout the historic estate.
Diana's background makes the evening especially fitting.
Throughout her career, she has brought together people from different artistic disciplines to create experiences that encourage audiences to participate rather than simply watch. At North Star House, that same idea takes on a new form as guests are invited to learn dances, explore period customs and enjoy an evening inspired by the many eras represented in the House's long history.
Guests can participate as much or as little as they like. Period-inspired attire is encouraged but never required.
View event details and tickets for An Autumnal Evening in Another Era.
Keeping a Historic Place Active Through Creativity
Diana's involvement also reflects a larger goal at North Star House.
Preservation is essential, but keeping a historic property meaningful requires people to continue using it.
Through public events, creative programming, historic tours, volunteer work and community partnerships, North Star House continues to become a place where history and contemporary community life can exist together.
For Diana, that means creating opportunities for people to dance, collaborate, experiment and connect.
After a lifetime spent bringing artists and audiences together, she now hopes to help create those same connections here in the Sierra foothills, inside a historic place that was meant to be lived in.
And sometimes, keeping history alive really does begin by filling the rooms with people again.
North Star House
Published October 7, 2026
