DIRECTORS

Crysta Caulkins-Clouse, M.F.A.
Co-Director, crysta@bigrigdance.org
Crysta Caulkins-Clouse has performed, taught and choreographed nationally and internationally in Texas, Oklahoma, Iowa, Nevada, Georgia, North Carolina, and New Zealand working with artists such as Jordan Fuchs, D. Chase Angier, Rebecca Bryant, Mary A. Chase, Sarah Gamblin, and Mark Dendy. Upon completing her M.F.A. in dance at Texas Woman's University, she taught performance and technique classes at colleges all around DFW. Crysta has also taught dance in high schools in New Zealand, Las Vegas, and Dallas, and leads Professional Development for public school dance programs. Her teaching certifications include FIT4MOM Stroller Strides/Stroller Barre, Youth Protection Advocates in Dance, Progressing Ballet Technique, Secondary Teaching Certificate in Dance, and Movement Fundamentals. Currently, Crysta specializes in health and fitness for new moms as an instructor for FIT4MOM Stroller Strides and Stroller Barre classes. She lives and works near San Antonio while teaching, performing, and choreographing as Co-Director of Big Rig Dance Collective throughout Texas.

Whitney Geldon, M.F.A.
Co-Director, whitney@bigrigdance.org
Kansas native Whitney Geldon’s work emerges from the immediacy of the body, through dance, installation, and pedagogical practice. She holds an MFA in Dance from Texas Woman’s University, where she received the Excellence in Choreography Scholarship Award. Whitney has been a guest artist at Kansas State University, Eastfield College, Tarrant County College, Flatlands Dance Theatre, Texas Dance Improvisation Festival, and Movement Fundamentals Coalescence. She has performed works by international artists such as Amii Legendre, Rebecca Bryant, The Equus Project, D. Chase Angier, Jordan Fuchs, Sarah Gamblin, Mary A. Chase, and Kathy Dunn Hamrick. Whitney served as Co-Coordinator for TWU’s Community Dance Center, where she taught community members of all ages to explore the art of dance. Currently, Whitney is a Co-Director of Big Rig Dance Collective and Dance Lecturer at University of North Texas.

Amanda Jackson, M.F.A.
Co-Director, amanda@bigrigdance.org
Amanda Jackson is a dance maker, educator, and collaborative artist with training in Thai Bodywork and a passion for plants. Her creative work spans the stage, film, and the alternative sites of a planetarium and century old home. Amanda served as the Dance Area Head and Artistic Director of Maverick Dance Company at the University of Texas at Arlington for 8 years and fully developed their dance curriculum. She was voted “Best in Fest” at {254} Dance-Fest and presented at Harvard University’s Conference, Educational Bodies: The Performance of Gender and Sexuality. Amanda has performed extensively in local venues and nationally with artists Rebecca Bryant (CA), Mark Dendy (NC), Dance Exchange (DC), Sarah Gamblin (OK), Michelle Manzanales (NY), and CholoRock Dance Collective at The Kennedy Center. Her choreography and master classes have been commissioned by numerous colleges and professional companies such as Oklahoma Contemporary Dance and Flatlands Dance Theatre. Amanda holds an M.F.A. in Dance from Texas Woman’s University, where she earned the Excellence in Performance Scholarship Award and Pauline Bishop Lehman Memorial Award & Scholarship for her outstanding artistic contributions.

Lily Sloan, M.F.A.
Co-Director, lily@bigrigdance.org
A Michigan native, Lily Sloan received her M.F.A. in dance at Texas Woman’s University with the Outstanding Graduate Student award. She is a Co-Director of Big Rig Dance Collective and has served as an Adjunct Professor at Texas Christian University and Texas Woman’s University, all while living in Denton, TX with her husband and sons. She has performed and/or presented work across the United States and in Mexico, as well as in Italy, where she was a guest artist in site-specific dance at La Bella Vita Arts Workshops. She has performed works by choreographers such as Amii Legendre, Rebecca Bryant, Mark Dendy, Jordan Fuchs, and Sarah Gamblin. Simple Sparrow Dance Company, Flatlands Dance Theatre, and Texas Christian University have commissioned Lily’s choreography and her writing on site-specific dance has been published in the Journal of Emerging Dance Scholarship. Lily sees dance making and performing as unique opportunities to problem solve in a physical and spontaneous way. She strives to continue exploring, performing, and creating innovative performances, often combining her interests in improvisation and site-based work.