from Jim Diederich

When I first met Denise she was an Au Pair for a wealthy Pacific Heights couple and I remember picking her up once at their home. As I waited downstairs I was admiring the opulent surroundings when I heard a swoosh on the stairs and looked up to see Denise seeming to float down the stairs in a flowery, flowing, retro-‘30’s silk dress that trailed behind her like a shimmering puff of smoke. I have that picture of her, carefree and flowing. That is how I will always remember her.
One more thing - she was wearing flip flops. How was she able to float down a staircase like that while wearing flip flops? It was just part of her magic.
On the stage she was fearless. I particularly remember a scene she and Anne Marie Smith did together where she played a child talking to an imaginary friend and Anne Marie was the mother who insisted there was no imaginary friend. The scene became more and more intense with Denise frantically insisting that the imaginary friend was really, really there. It was so heartbreakingly familiar to anyone who has been told their dreams aren’t real. (And isn’t that everyone, period?) It was classic “playing the moment”, and the moment was so real and touching that it affected everyone in the theater that night, including several hard-bitten improvisers.
When I think of Denise it is these two scenes that come to mind, one in the real world, one on the stage. She was a special woman, a special improviser, and a special friend.