Shannon Gayle Hurd was born in Upland, California to Lorinda Lynn Erlanson (now Esparza) and Henry Kermit Hurd. At age 14, Shannon and her family moved to New Orleans, where she studied theatre in both high school and at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge. After earning her Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Conservation from LSU, she moved back to California in 2004. A few months later, she booked her first-ever feature film audition.Shannon is a performer in several Los Angeles based cirque troupes: The Lucent Dossier Experience, L'Unkles Boink, Bijoulette, The New Fangled Opry, Fire Groove Entertainment, The Grande Artique, and various other collaborations. She has performed at numerous festivals and venues; including Burning Man, Lightning In A Bottle, Electric Daisy Carnival (Las Vegas), Electric Forest (Michigan), The Hollywood Improv, and in Italy, Copenhagen, Costa Rica, Australia, Fiji, and the UK.Shannon resides in Los Angeles, California.