Born and raised on the picturesque island of Saint Lucia, Shartoya’s spark for the performing arts ignited from the age of seven. She has represented Saint Lucia at numerous regional and international Cultural Dance Exchanges and has performed and choreographed for national events, the Caribbean Cricket Premier League cheerleaders, and multiple Soca artists. Her dance styles extend from contemporary, and modern to African, Caribbean dance, and Traditional Saint Lucian folk.

When Shartoya is not performing, she can be found in the theatre or the design studio. Shartoya’s interest in design stemmed from her mother’s career in interior and commercial design, and it peaked during her undergrad education at Towson University. Currently, Shartoya is an MFA Scenic Design candidate at the University of Maryland. Local credits include P.Nokio (Imagination Stage, Helen Hayes Nominated), Out of the Vineyard (Joe’s Movement Emporium, World Premiere), and Is God Is (Constellation Theatre*). University credits include By The Way, Meet Vera Stark, The Book Club Play, Fall Dance Thesis, Spring Dance Thesis (University of Maryland), and Sense and Sensibility (American University). Assistant Scenic Design credits include Beastgirl (The Kennedy Center) and Choreographer credits include Bob Marley’s Three Little Birds (The Hangar Theatre).

In her spare time, she enjoys philanthropy, teaching, and creating dance concept videos that merge the worlds of choreography and scenic design. Shartoya’s classes and concepts can be found on her YouTube channel – shr758. One of her biggest accomplishments to date is “The SHR Experience” – a one-day dance workshop where international choreographers visit Saint Lucia to teach various dance styles, and in turn, learn a Saint Lucian cultural dance. The proceeds from The SHR Experience are injected into the Saint Lucian dance community by purchasing equipment for dancers and dance studios that lack the necessities for training.