Shelley Crowley took her first ballet class at the age of seven, not knowing it would be the beginning of a lifetime filled with dance. By the time she was fourteen she had already started her professional career as a soloist with Santa Clara Ballet Company. Classically trained, in both Vaganova and Royal Academy styles of ballet, she was an apprentice for San Francisco Ballet, and later became a member of Pacific Dance Theatre and Peninsula Ballet all before graduating from high school. After graduation, she attended UCLA as a Dance major, and continued her dance career, in Southern California as an industry dancer. Years later she decided to return to the Bay Area to continue her education at San Jose State University in the Theater Arts Department. Shelley started teaching dance while attending SJSU, and later moved to the Sacramento area where she founded Roseville School of Dance in the 90s. She was the director and choreographer for Valley Dance Repertoire, a pro/am performance and competition company. Shelley has had the honor of judging for many national dance competitions, including KAR and Starbound, and has taught master classes throughout Northern California. She has taught classical ballet, commercial & musical theater jazz, lyrical, and contemporary for many studios in the Sacramento Valley, including Lines School of Performing Arts, KAST Academy, Dance Elite All-Stars, Aria’s to the Pointe, and most recently, Studio 65 Dance Company, where she was the Musical Theater Director. What seems like a lifetime later, Shelley is a very proud mama of three amazing adults, and feels so blessed to now be a part of the CYT Family.

Tarah is a CYT alumni who has a passion for all things involving Jesus, music, kids, and dance. She has performed in many musicals in the ten years she has spent with CYT, as well as choregraphed for CYT-at-School classes. For the last year she performed and stage managed with the True Girl U.S. Tour, a ministry dedicated to bringing moms and daughters closer to Christ with a fun, musical, and Biblically-rooted event. This year Tarah is combining both her passions of ministry and the arts by starting at William Jessup University with a major in leadership and a minor in theatre. She is ecstatic to share her love of theatre and be back with the CYT family!