Deborah Wicks La Puma is a composer and orchestrator. Her work for young audiences has been seen around the globe, from Australia to Singapore to the East Room of the White House. With playwright Karen Zacarias she created Frida Libre (La Jolla Playhouse), Ferdinand the Bull (based on Munro Leaf’s book), Chasing George Washington (Kennedy Center), Looking for Roberto Clemente (Maryland’s Imagination Stage) and Einstein is a Dummy (Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre). With playwright Doug Cooney she created Nobody’s Perfect (based on Marlee Matlin’s book), a bilingual musical in English and American Sign Language, co-commissioned by Very Special Arts and the Kennedy Center. Arranging credits include Mo Willem's Knuffle Bunny, Ken Ludwig's Tom Sawyer, and Joan Cushing's Junie B. Jones and a Little Monkey Business. A Mexican American with dual citizenship, she grew up in Portugal and Brazil and speaks Spanish and Portuguese. She currently serves the Board of Directors of Assitej-USA (TYA/USA).