Lauren O'Brien grew up in New Jersey and began her dance training at a local dance studio at a young age. In high school she was accepted to the Dance Department at Gloucester County Institute of Technology directed by David Kloss and Norman Taylor and performed with Koresh Dance Company's secondary company, the Koresh Youth Ensemble, in Philadelphia, PA under the direction of Assistant Artistic Director and Company Dancer Melissa Rector. Lauren graduated from Montclair State University in 2018 with her BFA in Dance Performance and a Minor in Communication Studies. While in college she performed works by Alwin Nikolai, Stacey Tookey, Mark Morris, Christian Von Howard, Frederick Earl Mosley, and many more. After graduating, Lauren had performing and administrative opportunities throughout the dance community in New York. Lauren was introduced to NDI New Mexico through their Teaching Excellence program and has been a part of the Residency program teaching students across New Mexico since 2021.