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About Us
It is our goal to Inspire, Educate, and Perform.
Welcome to New Creations Dance Studio and Performing Arts Center. It is our goal at New Creations Dance Studio and Performing Arts Center to develop self-confidence, self-esteem, and self-poise through the education of dance, acting, and music as an art form.
Our faculty and staff are committed to inspiring the next generation of performers. We will provide an exceptional learning atmosphere that promotes self-development through exciting classes and performances. We are excited to share our passion and love of the performing arts with others.
Teachers
Rhonda Herrington
Shana Hansen
Rhonda is very involved in her community. She is the Founder/Director of the Anderson County
Community Chorus and Orchestra, Choir Director for First Christian Church. She is currently on
the Board of the Palestine Public Library, Palestine Regional Medical Center, Rotary Club of
Palestine, and United Way of East/Central Texas.
Professionally, Rhonda has been an educator for 44 years. She is the Director of Fine Arts for
the Palestine Independent School District. She graduated from Sam Houston State University
with a Bachelor’s Degree in Music with an emphasis in Voice. She also received a Master’s
Degree in Early Childhood Education and a Master’s Degree in Education Administration.
Rhonda grew up in a performing arts family. Her mother was the wardrobe mistress for the
Houston Grand Opera for 23 years, her grandparents made stage curtains and painted
backdrops for stage productions, cousins and uncles worked lighting and sound, and her
brother is currently the Director of Backstage Operations for Wortham Theatre Center in
Houston. As you can tell theatre is in her blood. Growing up her favorite place to watch all the
productions was back stage. She was able to see the hard work that goes into a show which
helped build an appreciation of what goes on behind the scenes. She was hooked. She carried
her love of the performing arts to Palestine and appeared in many productions of the Palestine
Community Theatre. And yes she was Peter Pan!
She says, “I am so proud to be involved with New Creations Dance Studio this year, especially
working beside my daughter Shana Hansen. I’m so proud my love of the performing arts has
carried over to Shana.
Crissy Jarvis
Christina Jarvis is our high kicking, jazz dancing, and kind-hearted teacher at NCD. This is her 4th year at NCD. She teaches jazz and our leaps, jumps, and turns class to our students. She graduated with her teaching degree this past year. Growing up she has trained in jazz, tap, ballet, tumbling, contemporary, and cheerleading. She continued her dance training in college with the TVCC Cardettes. With the Cardettes, she has won many national awards with ADTS Nationals, Dance Team Union College Classics, and many more. She has taken on many teaching and leadership roles with many dance/cheer organizations such as TVCC Dance/Drill, Texas Dance Educators’ Association, Kilgore College Dance Department, MacArthur High School Dance/Drill Texas, and Irving Girls’ Cheerleading Association. Christina also choreographed beautiful field routines for the Palestine High School Kik-Kats and Rusk High School drill team. She is a great asset to our team, and we love that she is part of our NCD family
Jessica Valencia
Shana Hansen is the artistic director and owner of New Creations Dance Studio and Performing Arts Center. Shana graduated from Oklahoma City University with a BFA in Performing Arts in 2000. After college she traveled to various locations performing which consists of working for Disney in Japan, Odyssey in New York, and various shows in Las Vegas which consist of Legends In Concert, Bill Acosta’s Lasting Impressions at the Flamingo, Harrah’s outdoor theater, Harley Davidson Conventions, and Paul Mitchell Conventions. She spent the next 10 years incorporating dance into academics in the public schools throughout the state of Oklahoma. While working in the Oklahoma City Public Schools she was the Dance Departments Chair and Fine Arts Chair for her 6A high school. She created the first year round public school tap class in the state of Oklahoma. She is certified through the Oklahoma State Department of Education and the Texas State Department of Education with a focus on dance. Shana enjoys producing the full scale productions for New Creations Dance Studio and Performing Arts Center and the yearend shows. Shana has been teaching dance classes for over 18 years. She enjoys instructing her students through creative problem solving and three-dimensional experience of the performing arts. Sharing a love and passion of the performing arts has always been Shana’s goal for all of her extended studio family.
Blake Lockhart
Blake Lockhart is an aspiring performer. She has performed at “The Antioch Church” in multiple Christmas, Easter and Anniversary dances and plays. She has also worked with the younger children there and led the “The Way Teens” praise team for a year. At NCD Blake has also done adult Jazz classes, Cardio classes, and also does private lessons. She is our highly motivating and energetic Hip-Hop teacher at NCD. She has also trained through CLI studios, learning about different choreographers around the world and their choreography while encouraging the students within the class to have fun and do their best. Blake is also a graduate from the Performance Readiness course, “Shine by Carey Lewis” and continues to expand her education by taking performance courses through “The Barrow Group”. For three years Blake was also a part of the PHS Kik-Kat Drill team and was a lieutenant on the team for two years. She pursues to allow a creative, fun, and limit-pushing environment for her students and teammates.
Sharyn Hightower
Jessica Valencia is worship pastor at Living Springs Assembly of God. She graduated from Palestine High School and continued her education at the University of Texas at Tyler. There, she was part of the university’s ‘Patriot Singers’ and later graduated with her bachelors in psychology. This is her second year with the NCD family, she has performed and sang at many venues. She began singing in her father’s church and continued her love for singing by joining choir later on. In choir she competed in many competitions including the All-Region choir competitions, advancing to State Solo & Ensemble, and being invited to sing at Carnegie Hall in New York City. One of her more recent endeavors was starring in the Palestine Historic Texas Theatre’s production of “The Marvelous Wonderettes”, where she played the character ‘Betty Jean’. She is now a paraprofessional at PISD and is furthering her education to earn her masters degree in psychology. She is also in ministry school at the North Texas District School of Ministry working on getting her license to minister. She started teaching vocal lessons to help young singers with their love for music and singing, the same way her past choir teachers have for her.
Sharyn’s musical foundation was forged at a very young age starting from playing the hand bells in a youth choir, and advancing to playing the cello in multiple orchestra concert performances, thus setting her professional musical career in motion. She went on to study music at CFNI Institute in Dallas as well as many years under private instructors. Music is clearly her passion.
Sharyn has 22 + years of experience teaching piano / keyboard lessons and playing in Contemporary Christian Bands. She has played in weddings, Christmas parties, dance pageants and even a Southern Rock band, but her devotion is teaching, and watching her students get that “aha” moment when the lightbulb turns on and the music comes alive.
Sharyn believes that from classical to country, blues to pop: learning to play for your own enjoyment, or to accompany singers at church; lessons are tailored to the individual. She has great experience with kids and adults so if you’re here to learn music and transform it into something bigger than yourself then she is thrilled and excited to teach you, share the experience with you and support you all the way as you master your craft.
Eli West
Eli West graduated valedictorian from Palestine High School in 2014. While there, he was a three-time All-State musician and Distinguished Soloist for State Solo and Ensemble. He became Texas State Champion in 3A classical trumpet and earned additional All-State titles while competing in Texas 4A and 5A divisions. While attending college, Eli toured as a trumpet soloist with the Santa Clara Vanguard Drum & Bugle Corps in 2015 and 2017. Headquartered in Santa Clara, California, he toured nationwide with this group and performed in venues including the annual Parade of Roses, the Alamo Dome, the Georgia Dome (home of the Atlanta Falcons), MetLife stadium (home of the New York Jets and the Giants), and Lucas Oil Stadium (home of the Indianapolis Colts). Several of these performances were broadcast internationally. In 2017, he earned silver at the Drum Corps International World Championships. While earning his B.S. in Biomedical Engineering from The University of Texas at Austin, Eli freelanced with various live music groups around central Texas. In 2019, Bacardi Ltd. sponsored one of these groups and hired them for promotional events in New Orleans, Miami, Little Rock, and more. He also taught private trumpet lessons, and some of his students became Texas All-State musicians themselves. Eli is currently at UT Tyler University Academy of Palestine to establish music classes in the school, where he instructs students in piano, vocals, guitar, percussion, and music theory. He sings tenor with the Anderson County Community Chorus. He also teaches private music lessons for brass, piano, vocals, and theory through New Creations Dance Studio. His goal is to spread the joy of music across East Texas and enrich folks’ opportunities for creative outlets.
Gerry Goodwin
Gerry Goodwin is the theatre teacher at NCD. This is his 3rd year at the studio. He has an amazing way of getting our students to recreate whatever character they are portraying. The laughter of the students and the fun they have in musical theatre class always brings a smile to your face when he is teaching. Gerry has been involved in more than 80 productions doing everything from producing to pulling a curtain since getting his start at PHS in 1999. He holds a theatre degree from Lon Morris College and has studied theatre at Angelo State University, SFA, and is currently completing a degree in English through Texas Tech. He works in the english department at Palestine High School. He has also been volunteering at the Texas Theatre since 2006 and is now on the Board of Directors. He has written a “A Christmas Carol” adaptation and cowrote “Pretty, Texas”. He has directed “A Christmas Carol” and has assistant directed “Sugar, “Pretty, Texas”, and many more. He gets so excited every time he steps into the studio and looks forward to it all week. We love what he brings to NCD and we are glad he part of our amazing team!
Becky Falconer
Becky Dedo Falconer is our tumbling teacher at NCD. She grew up participating in musical productions, beginning with "La Boheme", "Showboat", as well as lead roles in "Carousel", "Music Man", and Maria in "The Sound of Music". Active in tumbling and cheerleading since the seventh grade, she was a two-time All-American Cheerleader who performed in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City.
Becky was accepted into the School of Music at the University of Central Florida and was crowned Miss UCF, competing in the Miss Florida Pageant. She went on to pursue her dream as a UCF cheerleader, placing third in the nation at UCA College Cheerleading Nationals on ESPN. She worked at Walt Disney's Wide World of Sports while coaching and choreographing national cheerleading routines and traveled the US teaching cheer camps and as a National Cheerleading Judge.
Today she is a Director at Palestine Regional Medical Center, and has returned to the stage portraying Judy in the musical "9 to 5" and a Mersister in the musical "Little Mermaid" at the Texas Theatre.
Estela Ortiz
Estela was born and raised here in Palestine Tx. She has been dancing since the age of 6. She has trained in ballet, tap, jazz, contemporary, modern, musical theatre and hip hop. In the 12 years of her training, 4 of them were done at NCD. She also has a love for singing and theatre. She has taken musical theatre classes and vocal lessons. She also did 3 years of choir. She was also a part of theatre in high school. She was the lead in the Junie B. Jones Musical. She also took part in Palestine’s Historic Theatre’s production of The Little Mermaid. Estela graduated from Westwood High School and this is her second year as full-time college student at Tyler Junior College. She is majoring in Nursing but is also taking college dance classes to further her skills. She is very passionate about performing, teaching, and learning to give the best experience back to her students.
