Christy has studied dance since 1989 in all forms of ballet including French, Russian, Cecchetti, and Contemporary. Other forms of dance she has studied include jazz, tap, modern and hip-hop. She has interned with the world renowned Paul Taylor Dance Company and has performed at the Veiled Prophet Ball. In addition, Miss Cook was also featured as a principal dancer in the Lindenwood University production of Sweet Charity. Christy earned a dance scholarship to Lindenwood University where she completed her Bachelor of Arts degree in dance.
Miss Cook has choreographed for Lindenwood University in addition to numerous partial and full length recitals and competition productions here at FDC. She began instructing in 1997 and has taken her dancers from the novice level to platinum award winners. Her dancers have been chosen at competitions for extreme teams as well as being awarded best technique and best precision. In addition, FDC dancers have consistently been selected for community theatre productions and Junior Varsity and Varsity dance teams throughout St. Charles County.
Christy also shares her enthusiasm and knowledge of health and fitness with her students. She earned her professional fitness status in 2010 with the International Federation of Bodybuilding. She continues performing and furthering her dance education by attending conventions and taking Master classes.
Julie has been dancing since 1987 and teaching since 2004. She specializes in hip hop, jazz, contemporary, and lyrical. Throughout high school, she was a member of the Francis Howell Central Sensations and danced in college as a member of the Lindenwood University Lion Line Dance Team. Currently, she is the hip hop choreographer for the 6A Missouri State Hip Hop Champions, Francis Howell North Knightline. Throughout her years at Fusion, she has won many choreography awards as well as many overall placements. She enjoys working with students of all ages and loves seeing them grow!
Kristy began dancing at the age of 2 ½ and has been teaching dance since 2000. Kristy graduated from Lindenwood University, St. Charles, Missouri with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Dance. She has extensive training in many styles of dance including Ballet, Tap, Jazz, Poms, Acro, Lyrical, Hip Hop and Musical Theatre. Kristy earned her dance teaching certificate from Dance Teacher magazine in 2005 when she attended their summer conference in New York. Kristy has continued her education in dance by taking classes with many well-known teachers and choreographers at workshops and conventions. Many of her students have won top awards at regional and national competitions, and she has also won numerous choreography awards.
Kristy was a member of her high school dance team all four years as well as a member of the award winning Lindenwood Lion Line Dance Team for four years. Kristy has also been the coach for the Francis Howell JV Golden Girls Dance Team for the past 5 years. Kristy is very knowledgeable about the ‘Dance Team World’ and has helped many of her students to be selected for their high school and college dance teams.
Kristy has a strong and continuously growing passion for dance and hopes that her students will obtain a passion for dance as well. She challenges her dancers, supports them to go beyond what they think they are capable of, and encourages them to reach their potential in dance and in themselves. Kristy loves working with children and in addition to being a dance instructor, she also teaches children with special needs. Kristy loves her Fusion family and loves being a part of the wonderful and talented Fusion staff.
Colleen has had dance experience since 1986, including teaching since 2000. She was a 4 year member of her high school dance team at Pattonville High School, captain 3 years, and a National Champion her Senior year. Colleen is a former member, captain, and coach of the 5-Time National Champion Lindenwood University Lion Line Dance Team. During her time as head coach of the team, Lion Line won 4 National Titles in 5 years in the Open Hip Hop Division at the Universal Dance Association’s (UDA) College Cheerleading and Dance Team Championships held in Orlando, FL. In October 2013, Colleen, along with the 2007-2008 Lion Line Dance Team were inducted into the Lindenwood University Athletic Hall of Fame for being the first National Championship Team for the dance team program. Many of her former dance team members have gone on to choreograph and coach for their own award winning teams, which is something she takes great pride in.
Colleen is a former UDA instructor and is a veteran judge for the National Dance Team Championships, also held in Orlando, FL. She has judged regional and state high school dance team competitions in Colorado, Indiana, Mississippi, Missouri, and Oklahoma. Along with teaching at Fusion, Colleen also works with the nationally-ranked Fort Zumwalt West Varsity Dance Team and the 2013 Class 5A State Champions, Pattonville Varsity Drill Team.
Along with proper technique, Colleen emphasizes to her students the importance of dancing from your heart, and that all dancers need to believe in themselves always. “Miss Colleen” loves her Fusion Dance Center Family and feels that she has truly found a home here at FDC.
Erika started her dance career at the age of three, and has trained extensively in ballet, contemporary, jazz, tap, musical theatre, hip-hop, and acrobatic gymnastics. She has won many awards including the Fame National Talent Search in 2010 that took her to California, and a plethora of overalls and choreography awards from a variety of competitions. After just one semester of college, Erika was hired by Walt Disney world entertainment as a full time performer in a variety of shows and parades. Although she enjoyed her time at Disney, Erika decided to return to college and follow her passion for teaching and choreographing.
While pursuing her Bachelor of Fine Arts in dance at Lindenwood University, Erika has had the opportunity to work with a variety of teachers and guest artists including Alicia Guy (Chapman University), Michael Mizerany ( award winning west coast contemporary choreographer), Trevor Harrison (iLuminate and Diavolo dance), and Kyle Hotchkiss who staged a production of Larry Kiegwin's innovative work "Runaway.” After graduating she plans to continue sharing her love for dance through teaching and choreographing.
Missy started dancing in 1975 under the guidance of Don and Donna Hixon at D/D Productions in Peoria, Illinois. Throughout her years she excelled in tap, acro and jazz. Missy was the captain and choreographer of her high school dance team and also a member of the dance company Perpetual Motion. While in college she participated in dance workshops through the SIU theatre department. After taking some time off for career and family, Missy put her dancing shoes back on.
She loves teaching all ages and has created many award winning pieces and won many judges and choreography awards. Missy has been a teacher in Illinois, Arkansas, California and Missouri. Additionally, she continues her dance education by attending teacher conferences and workshops. She has studied with Robert Reed, Bill Evans, Ronnie Mahler, Joe Tremaine and Laurie Johnson, just to name a few. Miss Missy is committed to providing the level of instruction that Fusion clientele expect. She is a board member of the St. Louis Chapter of Dance Masters of America and certified in tap and jazz. Technique, artistry and self-confidence are her number one goals in the studio. She has a well-rounded background of dance and performance combined with an enthusiastic and genuine love of teaching. With her two daughters at Fusion, dance for Missy is a family affair.
Cathryn has been dancing since 2005. She has extensive training in Jazz, Contemporary, Ballet, Pointe, Lyrical, Tap, Acro and Hip Hop. She has 10 years of competition dance team experience. Cathryn has performed in the Nutcracker with the Joffrey Ballet at the Fox Theater in 2009 and 2010. She also was a member of the Dance Company of Saint Charles.
Cathryn was a four year member of the Francis Howell Varsity Golden Girls. She has competed in UDA competitions in Chicago, Illinois; Bloomington, Minnesota and Nationals in Orlando Florida. In 2015 the team earned 4th in Hip Hop and 10 th in Jazz. Cathryn has been awarded a UDA All American and Instructor Recruit. Cathryn has also competed in Missouri Dance Team Championships and was a member of the 2015 6A State Champion Golden Girls team. This coming year Cathryn will be attending Lindenwood University majoring in Exercise Science and minoring in Dance. Cathryn aspires to share her passion and experiences with Fusion dancers.
Carlie started dancing when she was 2 ½. She trained for 16 years in her studio and competed for 12 years. She was also a competitive gymnast for 8 years. In those years she was accepted into the St. Louis Ballet Company’s summer camp, where she was able to learn from the top Ballet instructors in St. Louis, as well as perform at the Fox Theatre. She also traveled to New York for workshops at the Broadway Dance Center. In Highschool, Carlie was on her dance team for all 4 years and was a large component of their choreography in all of the styles they performed, including their nationally ranked routines. She went on to college at Lindenwood University and was a part of the Lindenwood Lion Line for her 4 years there. She also participated in the Lindenwood University Dance Concerts. While attending college, she taught jazz technique classes at her previous studio.
Carlie has choreographed for several Highschool teams in the area including, Francis Howell Central, Timberland and Pattonville JV, as well as for the dancers of the indoor Football team here in St. Charles, the “Show-Me Believers”. After Graduating college, Carlie coached 2 different dance teams, Pattonville JV, and the Federal Way E-Gals Varsity in Washington. For the past 7 years, she has enjoyed growing her family, and watching her daughters get involved in dance. She is very excited to get back into the studio, and start working with the students at Fusion! Carlie believes that dance is more than just steps. Along with technique, a huge part of dancing is being comfortable with who you are, and reaching out to make yourself even better than you ever thought you could be.
Lauren began her dance journey at the age of three. She has trained in various genres, such as jazz, contemporary, hip-hop, lyrical and ballet. Lauren was a part of the dance competition team for her studio for 12 years. She began teaching classes at age 15 and choreographing at age 18. Throughout her time choreographing, her dances have won various special awards and choreography awards. She is currently attending Lindenwood University where she is finishing up her Bachelors of Science in Exercise Science and minor in Dance. Lauren loves working with all ages and levels of experience and is excited to share her passion for dance with her students!
Morgan is currently pursuing a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Dance and a Minor in Business Administration at Lindenwood University. Morgan grew up dancing under the direction of Kimberly Gavin Anderson at the Ballet Arts Center in Farmington, Missouri, training extensively in ballet, pointe, jazz, contemporary, lyrical, and musical theatre. She has danced in eight full-length productions of The Nutcracker Ballet with the Young Peoples Performing Arts Theatre. She also has ten years of experience as a competitive gymnast. Additionally, Morgan has attended summer intensives with Joffrey Jazz and Contemporary, Broadway Dance Center, The Grand Rapids Ballet, The St. Louis Ballet, and COCA. She is so excited to join the Fusion team and share her passion for dance with as many students as possible.
Carson is originally from Nashville, TN. She started dancing at the young age of three years old. She has trained in various styles of dance including ballet, hip-hop, jazz, lyrical, and contemporary. She danced on a competitive all-star team, Music City Allstars, for five years. She was a captain her senior year and won a total of five Nationals Championships. She was also a competitor at the Dance World's in 2012 and 2013. In addition to her all-star team, Carson was on her high school dance team from 2010 to 2013. Her team was named TSSAA State Champions in 2011 and 2013.
After graduating high school, Carson was chosen to be a part of the 7-Time National Champion Lindenwood University Lion Line Dance Team. She competed on Lion Line from 2013 to 2016. In 2015, Carson and her team won their first National Title in the Open Jazz category. This past year, Carson gave up Lion Line to focus on school and her career goals. She was the JV Dance Team head coach at Marquette High School. On May 6, 2017, Carson received her Bachelor's Degree in Business Administration with an emphasis in Marketing.
Carson is looking forward to spreading her passion and love for dance with her students this upcoming season!
Callie Stoutin recently graduated from Illinois State University with a Bachelor of Arts in Dance Education, a minor in Spanish, and a minor in Business Administration. She has trained primarily in ballet, jazz, lyrical, contemporary, and modern. She has also danced in the styles of tap, hip hop, pom, kick, musical theatre, and acro. In high school, Callie joined her high school dance team where she performed and competed solos and group dances. Her dance team performed at a variety of events with the most notable including The Cotton Bowl Pre-Game and Half-Time Shows, The Capital One Bowl Half-Time Show, and IDTA State Competitions. She was chosen by her team members as co-captain her sophomore year and maintained this leadership role through the end of her senior year.
At age 15, Callie began a recreational dance program in her hometown of Casey, Illinois for ages 3-12. She taught classes in ballet, tap, jazz, hip hop, and tumbling and performed most of the administrative duties of the program. Since then she has taught at several studios in central Illinois. At Exclusively Dance in Effingham, IL, she has choreographed many different solos, duets, and group dances for their competition team. Recently, she received a choreography award for her contemporary piece through Bravo! Dance Competition.
As a Dance Education major in college, Callie was trained in Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Contemporary, Composition, and Improvisation. Her curriculum also included many additional courses such as Dance History, Kinesiology, and Dance Pedagogy. Throughout her time at ISU, she danced for Illinois State Dance Theatre and a student organization called Dance Association. Callie has a passion for both teaching and dancing, and she is very excited share this with everyone at Fusion Dance Center!
Audrey began dancing at age 4 at Monona Academy of Dance where she continued her dance training in ballet, pointe, tap and jazz. She was a member of the "Mad City Dancers" competition team and Wisconsin Dance Ensemble. With Ballet being her passion she has held several roles in The Nutcracker Suite Ballet, La Fille Mal Gardee and Peter Rabbit's Ballet.
Audrey graduated from the University of Wisconsin Whitewater with a Bachelor's degree in Theatre and Dance. While attending college she was a member of the University Pom and Dance team.
Audrey was a teaching assistant at Beaujangles Dance Studio in Wisconsin, she taught ballet and tap for the Whitewater Recreation Department and was the Senior Pom Pom coach at Parkview High School. After graduating college Audrey traveled with the NASCAR Speed Channel as a promotional model and worked with Fastlane Promotions in Orlando-Sebring Florida.
Audrey is a blessed mother of two children. She still has a strong love and passion for dance and is extremely excited to share it with the students at Fusion Dance Center.
Emily Baker, was born and raised in Southern California. At the age of 8 she started her serious ballet training with Inland Pacific Ballet Academy, where she had many opportunities to perform with the company. She also trained at School of American Ballet, San Francisco Ballet School, Boston Ballet School, and Atlanta Ballet Centre for Dance Education. Miss Baker then went on to dance professionally for Atlanta Ballet, Inland Pacific Ballet, Ballet Tucson, Canyon Concert Ballet, Impact Dance, Colorado Ballet, Missouri Contemporary Ballet, and The Big Muddy Dance Company.
Raylon Bivins is 20 years old and is currently a junior at Lindenwood University. He received a scholarship to study musical theatre and is pursuing a bachelors degree in business administration with a minor in dance. He was raised in Los Angeles, California and decided to relocate to St. Charles to study business, theatre, and dance. Raylon has starred in Shrek the Musical , A New Brain and Violet. He also starred in Lindenwood University’s production of Legally Blonde the Musical directed by Nikki Snelson where he was also dance captain. Raylon has danced in six of Lindenwood’s Dance Department concerts in his two years of being a student. Raylon has been a member of Lindenwood’s premier vocal group Voices Only and has performed as a soloist for more than 4,000 people. Raylon has trained in hip hop, jazz, ballet, contemporary, modern, acrobatics, and tap. When at home, he directs 3 choirs of all levels and ages at church while also giving children free dance lessons at church in his free time. He continues to better himself by taking technique and master classes while teaching classes at different establishments. Raylon plans to open a school for performing arts after he finishes his career as a performer and share his experiences with those that want to take the same path he once traveled.
Caity is currently a sophomore at Lindenwood University where she is majoring in marketing with a minor in bio/chem. She started competitive gymnastics at the age of 7 and continued for 8 years. She was a cheerleader in high school and is now on the competitive cheerleading team at Lindenwood University. She has been coaching competitive level gymnastics and tumbling for 5 years. Caity has a huge heart for coaching and helping student achieve their goals.