Lori Christensen (Ms. California), Owner

Lori Christensen—affectionately known as “Ms. California”—has spent a lifetime sharing her passion for dance and education. She began teaching dance when she was just 13 years old and went on to build a strong educational foundation, earning a Bachelor’s in Theater Arts from UC Irvine, a Master’s in Secondary Education from CSU Fullerton, and a Special Education credential from MTSU.

Throughout her career, Lori has worked as a dedicated dance educator, choreographer, and public school teacher across California, Kansas City, and Tennessee, serving in both the Cannon and Warren County School Districts. One of her most memorable creative highlights was choreographing for "Celebration," a performance group for adults with special needs that had the honor of performing at the White House.

An entrepreneur at heart, Lori founded the Canyon School of the Arts in California before establishing Cannon Arts Dance Studio in Tennessee back in 2007. Beyond the studio, she stays deeply involved in her local community, giving back through various cultural, historical, and civic initiatives.

Today, she stays deeply connected to her community as a board member for the Cannon County Senior Center and an active organizer for The Good Ole Days Committee. Lori (Ms. California) is excited to be celebrating 20 years of Cannon Arts Dance Studio in Woodbury, TN, and appreciates all of the warm, continued support from the community. 

Xan Barrell Tap | Jazz | Ballet

Xan Barrell comes to us from Showstars Dance Academy in Brighton, Tn, where she has worked since 2019.  Xan’s teaching focuses on developing technique in whatever genre she is teaching, whether it's Tap, Jazz, Ballet or Acro.  After being chosen to attend the prestigious Governor's school in 2020 and 2021, Xan decided to attend MTSU to pursue her dreams in dance and film. Her experience in choreographing group and solo performances made her the ideal instructor for our Junior Company, travelling with them to Country Tonite in Pigeon Forge. In past seasons Xan has taught Acro and Prelude, as well as contributing choreography to our seasonal Nutcracker performances. Xan excels at teaching our youngest students in combos 1-4,  providing a solid structure that has helped even our youngest students excel and grow.

 Katie-Lynn Bohannon Clogging 1

After completing our clogging 1 program, who better to introduce new dancers to clogging than one of our own? Katie-Lynn has performed the last two seasons on the Country Tonite stage with our clogging group and continues to add to her clogging knowledge by participating in various groups in the community. 

Shelby (Williams) Clukey Artistic Director | Ballet | Pointe | Lyrical | Jazz | Acro dance | Yoga

Shelby (Williams) Clukey is a dynamic dance educator and the Artistic Director at Cannon Arts Dance Studio, where she leads Ballet curriculum, Nutcracker rehearsals, workshops, and yoga classes. Training since the age of three, Shelby has built an extensive background performing soloist roles with the Chattanooga Dance Theater and participating in prestigious intensives like the American Ballet Theatre and the Governor's School for the Arts. She is a graduate of Middle Tennessee State University with a degree in dance and exercise science, bringing her rich performance history, MTSU Dance Company experience, and teaching background from Chattanooga and Journeys to her leadership role at Cannon Arts.

 Ashlyn Lee Hip Hop | Boots & Burn

Ashlyn Lee is our energetic hip-hop and line dancing instructor and choreographer with an extensive dance background.Her training began with 15 years at Paula’s Dance Academy and performance on the nationally ranked Warren County High School Pioneerette Dance Team, where she earned a TSSAA State Runner-Up title, placed in the Top 15 at UDA Nationals, and achieved UDA All-American status.

Ashlyn spent four years on the Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU) Dance Team, competing at NDA Nationals (placing 12th in Hip Hop) and performing at major sporting events like Tennessee Titans and Nashville Predators games, NCAA tournaments, and bowl games.

She has coached and choreographed for multiple programs, including Siegel Middle School and Music City All Stars, and served as Head Coach of the Coffee County Central High School Dance Team from 2020 to 2024.

Last season,  Ashlyn’s Sr and Jr Hip hop classes wowed audiences at the recital. In the summer she pioneered our line dancing program, Boots N Burn, which performed at Country Tonite in Pigeon Forge. We love the excitement that Ashlyn brings to her high energy classes and look forward to her continued success.

 Catherine Lescarini Clogging | Tap | Jazz

Catherine is a talented product of Cannon Arts Dance Studio, where she has been dancing  since the age of 3. She excels at many forms of dance including Ballet, Pointe and Lyrical. We have called upon her to teach combo 5 Tap and Jazz, as well as Adult Tap, Combo 6 Tap and Clogging 3.  We always love when one of our own assumes a teaching role, passing down their valuable expertise.

 Jessica Morton Costumer | Studio apparel

Jessica has spent many years, not only as a dance mom, but as a costumer extraordinaire. She takes on the role of measuring, organizing and ordering all studio costumes, as well as designing and distributing our studio T- shirts and apparel. This year, she has added “dancer” to her resume, as she participated in our Boots N Burn program!