Antoine Thomas (Incoming Owner/Director)
Originally from NY, Antoine R. Thomas has been performing, creating, directing and teaching dance for two decades, and has extensive experience in working with both adults and children. He has owned and operated the DanceLife Center since 2010, with two locations in Illinois, and a third in St. Louis. Despite the demands of managing three studios and a faculty of 16, Antoine remains deeply connected to his art. He still finds time to share his expertise, teaching ballet and hip-hop classes and lending his creative vision to schools and dance communities. For Antoine, dance is more than just movement—it’s a transformative experience that has the power to change lives. His mission is to make this experience accessible to all, ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to discover the joy and fulfillment that dance can bring. With degrees from Eastern Illinois University and a background in instructional technology, Antoine combines his love for dance with a keen understanding of how to effectively teach and inspire others.
Alexa Easley
Alexa began dancing at the age of three, joining Starz in 2012. Her passion for dance grew exponentially through her high school graduation in 2018. Alexa danced for the D1 WSU Shockers Dance Team and performed in Grand Carnivale at World’s of Fun. She graduated with her Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with a minor in Business Administration from UMKC in 2021. Alexa spent two years as a Kansas City Chiefs Cheerleader representing the team at two Super Bowl events! She is also a certified eye-lash tech/artist with Ink’d & Classy in Oak Grove and will be taking on the duties of Artistic Director at Starz beginning in the Fall of 2024. Alexa embodies one of her favorite quotes; “Hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard.”
Lailah Robinson
Began her dance journey with Starz at age 4. She is a 2023 graduate of Oak Grove High School currently attending MCC. Lailah earned many awards and honors during her dance career where she excelled in all styles but became particularly known for her dynamic tap solos. After many years of assistant teaching, Lailah moved into a lead teaching position in January of 2024 and is looking forward to another season with her students. In her spare time she loves to vacation and spend time with family.
Anne McLuckie
Anne’s dance journey began at Dancearts of Columbia, Missouri, when she was just shy of 3 years old. Growing up, she danced in The Nutcracker with the Minnesota Ballet and Moscow Ballet touring companies, attended Missouri Fine Arts Academy, and performed in countless musicals. Anne imparted her love of technique, musicality, and learning to students for a decade while teaching at the Black Pearl Dance Academy in Grimes, Iowa, before returning to her home state. She is a graduate of Truman State University and works for a nonprofit. Anne resides in Lee’s Summit with her husband and two greyhounds. In her free time, she enjoys reading and doing barre workouts. If her face looks familiar, you may have seen her compete on season 1 of The Floor on Fox/Hulu.
Abby Brady
Abby Brady began her dance journey at Starz when she was 5 years old. She competed with Starz for 8 years, where she also began assistant teaching. She then continued her dance training in Kansas City with Priscilla and Dana’s over the next few years. Musical Theatre was always one of her favorite dance styles to perform. Along with competition dance, Abby performed in local theatre productions including Annie, The PROM, and Beauty and the Beast. Since graduating high school in 2023, Abby has performed professionally in productions of “Bye Bye Birdie” at MTKCPro and “Rudolph” at The Coterie Theatre, as well as worked professionally as a Choreographer for “Footloose” at Summit Theatre Group. Abby also devotes time to working with her families nonprofit foundation, Purple Peace for Epilepsy. Her other interests include, vacationing, spending time with her dogs at the lake, crafting with her mom, and all things broadway! Abby plans to continue working with Kansas City Young Audiences, and is excited to be returning to Starz as a teacher!
Nina Crabtree
Ms. Nina danced at Starz from age 2 all the way to 18! She recently graduated with a BA in History and is proficient in Spanish. Nina absolutely loves jazz, musical theater, hip hop, and modern dance. She was an assistant dance teacher at Starz for five fun-filled years before heading to college. In her spare time, she enjoys cooking, listening to audiobooks, jamming to music, and growing plants. Nina lives in Independence and is super excited to be back in the dance studio! You can find her LinkedIn profile here: http://linkedin.com/in/ninacra
Carissa Christensen – (Retiring) Owner
Carissa established Starz Studio of Performing Arts in the fall of 1995. The opening and success of STARZ was the fulfillment of her lifelong dream. “Cari” holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Missouri Kansas City’s Performing Arts Center. She has an extensive background in both performing and instructing including; Three years with the K.C. Chiefs Cheerleading Squad where she also served as co-captain and choreographer, performing at both Busch Gardens, and Fiesta Texas theme parks, National print modeling, Miss Jackson County and top ten Miss Missouri finalist, Kansas City Chiefettes, and Missouri Repertory Theater. Her enthusiasm for the performing arts is second to none. She is extremely motivated, and totally committed to the success of her students. “Shoot into STARZ and let us make your STARZ shine!”
Cari is happily stepping down from ownership & into retirement from Starz in the Fall of 2024. She is passing the torch to a much admired and successful studio owner Antoine Thomas, who owns 3 other schools and resides in Illinois. The team at Starz will continue it’s legacy of inspiring excellence and leadership with supervision by; site director Kellie Cromley (Kellie@starzdancestudio.com), Accounts director Mellissa Lopez (Melissa@starzdancestudio.com) and Artistic Director Alexa Easley.
