Born and raised in São Paulo, Brazil, Pola is a multi-faceted artist who is especially interested in creating theater with an ensemble.

 

Her mother was a ballerina and her grandmother was a pianist, so she has been on stage her entire life. At age nine, she started taking classes at Casa do Teatro, a theater school for children. After graduating high school, she enrolled at Teatro Escola Célia Helena, one of the most prestigious theater conservatories in Brazil.

 

In 2012 she traveled to Connecticut to study for a semester at the National Theater Institute, an experience that changed her life. She then decided to audition for colleges in the United States and in 2013 she began her studies at California Institute of the Arts (CalArts), pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting.

 

Although primarily an Acting student, Pola sees herself as a theatermaker, as she also writes and directs. Her interest in collaborative and devised work has led her to study with members of theater companies such as SITI Company, Complicite, Double Edge Theatre and Théâtre du Soleil.

 

She is expected to graduate from CalArts in 2017.