Staff

SHELLY TRUJILLO, Owner and Director
Shelly is currently the Choreographer and Assistant Director for the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders. Shelly has 3 Super Bowl wins under her belt with many American Bowls in Barcelona, Tokyo, Mexico City and London. Shelly has traveled the world with the Bronco Cheerleaders entertaining our troops in countries such as Afghanistan, Egypt, Jordon, Cuba, Australia, Guam, Japan and many more. As the Broncos Cheerleaders choreographer, Shelly has staged shows with The Frey, One Republic, Big Bad Voodoo Daddy, and Jessie James. Recently Shelly staged a promo-tag for the Bruno Mars' halftime Super Bowl show. Credentials of her own include work with Deborah Allen, Sherri Belifonte, Danny Ganz, Broncos Cheerleaders, Nugget Dancers, Denver Gold USFL, as well as performing in shows in Chicago, and commercials. With over 25 years of teaching experience Shelly has created world renowned dancers including: Stephanie Landwher who performed in the Cher show in Las Vegas, Megan Hiratzka who danced with Katy Perry at the Grammy's and who is also the Asian face of Nike, and La La Land Choreographer and Emmy-nominated "So You Think You Can Dance" choreographer, Mandy Moore. Currently all three of her children are living the dream in Hollywood dancing, acting, modeling and singing. You can find them on National commercials, music videos, and many social media influencer sites.

MEGHAN LAWITZ, Company Director, Contemporary

Meghan Lawitz is the Artistic Director and Founder of the Denver-based contemporary dance company, Rogue Co. Dance. Originally from Arizona, Meghan has established a strong foundation in the Colorado community as a dancer, choreographer and teacher over the past 15 years. Before founding Rogue Co, she was the Co-Director/Choreographer for the Damsels Contemporary Dance Company. Meghan has been a guest artist for Soul De Soul Dance Convention, United We Dance, You See These Moves, Releve Dance Competition, PUSH, The Block Party, Murmuration, St. Michael’s College, Denver School of the Arts, and most recently toured with DMC China International. She has been an Official Judge for UDA Mile High Dance Championships, The Groove Experience, and the ICU World Cheerleading Championships. A few performance credits include The Janes Dance Crew, Imprint Group, Vail International Dance Festival, 8150 Urban Dance Challenge and the Denver Dance Festival. Meghan also currently dances with Boulder Jazz Dance Collective and is on faculty with the Boulder Jazz Dance Workshop.

TIA BLOOM, Mini Company Director, Company, Combo Classes, S&S
Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Tia began her dance journey under Karen Colabianchi and Dee Hillier, falling in love with the stage during her early dance and theater performances. Her training spans musical theater, tap, jazz, ballet, strength training, contemporary, and hip hop.

Tia holds a B.A. in Child Development and Family Studies with a Dance minor from The University of Akron, where she performed with the U of A Dance Team at NCAA Men’s Basketball Championships and collegiate NDA Nationals.

Performance credits include Anastasia, Oklahoma, and Crazy for You (Candlelight), Queen50 (Dairy Arts Center), Love Is (Soiled Dove), Home for the Holidays with Denver Honey Taps (Lone Tree Arts Center) and Top 50 finalist for the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders, where she met Shelly. Her choreography work includes Bright Star (Candlelight), Mary Poppins - asst. choreographer(Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center), Shelly True Dance Academy and Uptempo Dance.

Now based in Colorado with her husband Geoff, Tia teaches Musical Theater at Shelly True Dance Academy. She finds true joy in helping students discover their own passion for performing and is deeply grateful for her family, mentors, and everyone who supports the arts.

JACKIE MCMENAMAN, Ballet
Jackie McMenaman did not take the road less traveled to becoming a dancer or a teacher. Beginning her athletic career as a pint-sized swimmer taking to the water as physical therapy for a broken collarbone, she soon realized that kick-boards and swimming lanes did not inspire her creativity. Opting to get artistic in the water led to synchronized swimming which was supplemented by ballet classes. Not long thereafter, Jackie realized her love (and the greater long term career potential) of being in the dance studio. Henceforth, Olympic dreams were swapped for pointe shoes and a new passion blossomed.

Jackie’s dance education began on scholarship with her local studio, and was later supplemented with scholarship opportunities from Montana Dance Arts Association, Ballet West, Summer Dance Laboratory, and others. In college, she owned and operated her own ballet studio where she honed her teaching skills and had the privilege of instilling a love of dance in her students. Upon moving to the Denver area, she joined the ranks of David Taylor Dance Theatre, later Dawson Wallace Dance Project, where she performed as a mainstay and a principal dancer for over twelve years. During that time she was personally mentored by the renown ballet master Nikoloz Makhateli, whom she credits with her technical and artistic development.

Jackie has also performed with Gravity Works Dance, Zikr Sacred Dance Ensemble, Summit Dance Collective, Chadash Contemporary Dance Movement, Fox Theatre Productions, Montana Ballet Company, Colorado Renaissance Festival and Delusions of Grandeur Productions. Favorite roles include the Dewdrop Fairy and the tipsy maid in DTDT’s Nutcracker, the nymph in Makhateli’s Morning in a Field, and the beatnik girl in Jeoff Horgan’s Cheek to Cheek.

CADEY TURNER, Ballet
Cadey Turner (she/her) grew up in Littleton, Colorado where she began her dance journey at Dual Star Academy of Dance. At 14 she went on to further her ballet training at National Ballet Academy Denver under the direction of Cornell Callender as well as Rocky Mountain Ballet Academy with Kim Chmielewski, Alexei Tyukov, and Maria Tyukova. Cadey graduated Summa Cum Laude from the Alonzo King LINES Ballet BFA at Dominican University of California in May 2025. During her time there, she performed works by Maurya Kerr, Brett Conway, Katie Scherman, Gregory Dawson, Laura O'Malley, Liv Schaffer, and Carmen Rozesraten. She has attended summer programs at Orsolina28 with Medhi Walerski, B12 Research or Die, Flockworks, Complexions Contemporary Ballet, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Bolshoi Ballet Academy. Influenced by her experiences dancing around the world, Cadey strives to nurture a learning environment that prioritizes sensation based exploration, individuality, and imagination. She is excited to be joining the faculty this fall at Shelly True Dance Academy.

ANNIE EVANS, Ballet
Annie has been teaching in the Denver area since 2018 and has performed with numerous companies including Rogue Co., Boulder Jazz Dance Collective, IDA, and Schiff Dance Collective. Her background includes training in ballet, jazz, contemporary, and musical theater.

Annie grew up as a competitive dancer and loved the opportunities that conventions provided to a small town dancer. After finishing her undergraduate degree in Biology from the University of Colorado at Boulder, she moved to Los Angeles to pursue her dance career. While she loved training with world renowned instructors, and felt extremely lucky to sign with a talent agency, LA was ultimately not the right fit. Annie moved to Denver where her love of dance was reignited, and she felt embraced by the dance community.

Annie is passionate about dance because of its unique and powerful way to connect us to each other. Her style is explorative and playful, while being grounded in technique. When Annie is not dancing, she is outside falling in love with nature.

LOGAN HATHAWAY, Jazz
Logan Hathaway is a professional choreographer, teacher, and dancer based throughout Colorado. He has received training in all styles and continues to explore the widths of contemporary and jazz repertoire. During his high school education, Logan fell in love with the discipline of choreography and teaching. He began teaching classes in a variety of styles and choreographing dances even during his high school career. Logan had the opportunity to perform in the 2022 Beaux Arts Ball for National Jewish Health alongside performers from around the country under Imprint Group. He is a member of the Boulder Jazz Dance Collective directed by Helen Estrella and Rachael Harding, where he performs in the company and choreographs for their summer workshop. His group and solo choreography have won multiple high scoring awards and recognition for outstanding choreography at competitions across the state of Colorado and beyond. Logan has been lucky enough to teach for many different studios across the country for a variety of workshops and guest classes. Using his knowledge of many unique styles, he enjoys creating new and innovative movement that pushes boundaries and inspires students to be creative themselves.

KATIE RHODUS, Tech & Turns
Katie is in her second season with the Denver Broncos Cheerleaders. She attended college at the University of Alabama. During her time there she spent 2 years on the dance team and 2 years as instructor for UDA. Her high school pom choreography has taken first place at the Missouri State Dance Team competition, and some of her other strengths include teaching turns technique, jazz, and contemporary.

NAOMI LUNA, Hip Hop
Naomi has been a technically trained dancer since the age of seven, dedicating her life to movement and performance. Her talent led her to perform on America's Got Talent, which launched a journey of traveling the world and performing on some of the most prestigious stages. These experiences helped her grow as both an artist and performer. She is currently a Denver Broncos Cheerleader, proudly entering her fourth season with the team.

Naomi has taught at top dance studios across Colorado and trained with some of the most respected instructors in the industry. She's passionate about creating a positive, fun, and safe space where dancers feel supported and inspired. To Naomi, dance is more than movement—it's her purpose and the heartbeat of everything she does. Whether performing or teaching, she aims to share the joy, confidence, and connection dance has brought to her life.

SHAYNA ESCOBAR, Combo Classes, Hip Hop/Jazz Funk
Shayna was a competitive gymnast for a few years, until she fell in love with dance ten years ago at Shelly True Dance Academy. After seven years of dancing at STDA, Shayna ended up dancing for the Colorado School of Mines Dance Team. She danced in college for two years, and is excited to be back in the studio as a teacher! In the past, Shayna conducted private acro classes and has substituted technique and company classes for all levels. She is very excited to be back with her STDA Family! Currently, Shayna is a Junior in college majoring in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Biomedical Engineering.

JAMIE BABISH, Studio Manager
Jamie has been part of the Shelly True family since 2017, beginning as a dance parent when her oldest daughter first stepped into the studio, followed shortly by her younger two.

Now, with all three girls thriving as company dancers, the studio has truly become a second home.

Jamie stepped into the role of Studio Manager in the 2023-24 season and loves being part of the supportive, inspiring community that makes Shelly True so special.