Lesley Mitchell-Clarke is a consulting hypnotist, graduate of The Ontario Hypnosis Centre, member of The National Guild of Hypnotists with a special certification in Past Life Regression. Lesley and her hypnosis clinic, LIGHTWORK HYPNOSIS are also focused on the use of hypnosis for the positive improvement of all issues pertaining to artists of all disciplines (actors, dancers, visual artists, writers, musicians, vocalists, etc.) and the unique demands that they deal with in their daily lives and careers. Lesley Mitchell-Clarke is uniquely qualified to work with artists, as there is hardly an area of show business in which she has not worked. For some time, she has been a familiar name in the realm of media relations, promotion and production of musical and theatrical events, as well as arts journalism. For the past eighteen years she has been based in New York City and Toronto, specializing in jazz specific music publicity. In addition to her work as a media consultant, she has also worked in virtually all phases of the entertainment business, beginning as a ten year old principal actress with the Los Angeles area “Sherman Oaks Children’s Repertory Theatre” – along with classmate, Melanie Griffith. Born into a show business family, Lesley’s late father, Whitey Mitchell, was a veteran jazz bassist and Emmy Award winning comedy writer and producer, and her Uncle was the late jazz bass legend, Red Mitchell. In the scope of her own career, she has worked as a busy singer/dancer, and traveled with a number of name acts, including Mitzi Gaynor, Tommy Sands, Fabian and Robert Goulet, and has appeared in numerous television shows, features and TV Movies, including “Queer as Folk”, “The Jeffersons”, “Happy Days”, “Laverne and Shirley” and “Divorce Court.”

After touring the Orient extensively with her own musical group, “Main Squeeze”, Lesley owned and operated a recording studio in Los Angeles where many jazz projects and much of the vocal work for Hanna-Barbara Cartoons was recorded. Lesley has also worked in production on NBC’s “The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson”, “The Hollywood Squares” and “The Midnight Special” as well as numerous productions for Merv Griffin, Dick Clark, Bob Hope, Mark Goodson and Chuck Barris.

Throughout her career as a publicist, Lesley Mitchell-Clarke has also been busy as an arts and music writer, contributing to publications such as L.A. Jazz Scene, Hot House – Florida and New York, The Manhattan Mirror, The Whole Note, TheLiveMusicReport, CODA and Jazz Canadiana.com, as well as penning a number of CD liner notes, including a set for Freddy Cole’s recording, To the Ends of the Earth (Fantasy Records). Lesley was an associate, and later an account executive with the highly regarded New York City public relations firm, Third Floor Media (founded by Helene Greece). During her tenure there (as well as independently) she handled a variety of accounts for many major recording labels including projects for Concord Records, Atlantic, Sharp-Nine, GRP, Koch, Brownstone, DRG, RCA Victor/BMG, Nonesuch Records, Telarc, Columbia, and most of Warner Bros. jazz, covering both international CD promotions, tours and “live” performances.

A few of the major jazz artists with whom she has worked directly include Marian McPartland, Joshua Redman (for whom she was involved in a landmark endorsement hook-up between fashion giant DKNY and Redman), Marian McPartland, Barbara Carroll, Janis Siegel (of The Manhattan Transfer), Blossom Dearie, Fred Hersch, Larry Goldings, Brad Mehldau, Wallace Roney, Jeanie Bryson, Terence Blanchard, Kevin Mahogany, Cyrus Chestnut, Ray Anderson and Helen Merrill.

While at Third Floor Media, she was also the on-going publicist for the world famous jazz venue, “The Village Vanguard”, and helped orchestrate the memorable media event celebrating the historic club’s 60th anniversary. Other major projects included acting for several years as the New York press representative for The Montreal Jazz Festival, The Beacon Theatre/New Audiences Concert Series, The Playboy Jazz Festival, national publicity for the “Harmon Learn to Listen Program, featuring Wynton Marsalis”, and numerous events in conjunction with John Schreiber’s Office (JVC/Festival) and the “The Jazz Times Convention”.

After her successful stint with Third Floor Media, Lesley began her own New York based media consultancy, and for the past ten years has developed a reputation as one of the most effective music-specialized publicists working today. Some of the artists whom she has represented include the late Susannah McCorkle, Jackie & Roy, Blossom Dearie, Winard Harper, Giacomo Gates, Catherine Dupuis, Helen Merrill, Peter Leitch, Billy Drummond, Lee Rittenauer, David Benoit, Javon Jackson, Janis Siegel, Daryl Sherman, Kitty Margolis, John Alcorn, Susie Arioli, The Distillery Jazz Festival, The Markham International Jazz Festival, The Toronto JVC Jazz Festival, Emilie-Claire Barlow, Dave Young, Lenny Solomon, Remi Balduc, Bernard Primeau, Daniel Barnes, Steve Amirault, Karen Plato, Oliver Jones, “Cadence”, Sarah Jerrom, Jean Beaudet, Nehring/Koller & Braid, Michel Mele, multi-Grammy nominee Mark Murphy and the recent Festival events, “The Toronto Summer Chamber Music Festival”, and the hugely successful “Art of Jazz Celebration 2007”, for which she was the Associate Producer.

Lesley Mitchell-Clarke currently resides in Toronto, and has continued to work with artists both locally and throughout the United States, Japan and Europe – now expanding her work to include Hypnosis. She also continues to write for various arts related publications in addition to working as an actor. She has recently appeared in commercials for McDonalds, “Miller Light”, “Bounce”, and in the television show, “Queer as Folk” as well as the award-winning feature film, “Pay in Full”, written and directed by award-winning actor, Walter Alza and the short film “Clive Houston, We Have a Problem” (Winner – Best Foreign Film – Nevada Film Festival 2010).

Continuing and upcoming projects for Lesley Mitchell-Clarke include the expansion of her hypnosis clinic, Lightwork Hypnosis, to include international past-life regression workshops and monthly podcasts (available through lightworkhypnosis.com) which will feature in-depth interviews with some of the most interesting and controversial figures in the areas of metaphysics, spirituality and paranormal phenomena. Lesley continues to contribute to “e-Jazz News” as a writer and video commentator, and regularly hosts a weekly entertainment round-up, “On the Scene”, which airs every Thursday morning on CKLN FM 88.1 (ckln.fm) as part of “The Jazz Bungie”. Lesley has been married for twenty years to the world-renowned, award-winning Canadian jazz drummer and Member of the Order of Canada, Terry Clarke. They have two teenage sons, Kristopher and Kyle.