Flare And Family On Walnut Street, Red Bluff

Walnut Street block captains Krysta Shadish, of Flare Dance and Acrobatics, and Michelle Hickok, of Zelma’s Awards, are getting everybody pumped up to support local businesses during the holiday season. Photo by @thistleandquillphotography

Krysta Shadish, owner of Flare Dance and Acrobatics and Michelle Hickok, of Zelma’s Awards, are proud “block captains” of the 400 block of Walnut Street for the Downtown Red Bluff Business Association. They do not take this role lightly because, for them, their association with each other and nearby businesses has become more like family than commerce. Krysta says, “Our community is what drives us, supports us and makes up our ranks.”

As a Redding native, Krysta never imagined how entrenched she would become in the Red Bluff community when she started her dance studio there, first known as Red Bluff Performing Arts Center, in 2014. What she first felt were unfortunate events, such as the flooding of her first studio and a premature exodus from her second, Krysta now calls fortuitous. “Across from the post office and on the 400 block of Walnut is where I needed to be,” she says with confidence.

Taking a chance on Red Bluff

“Redding didn’t need another dance studio,” Krysta says about her decision to open a studio in Red Bluff after growing up in Redding. Krysta graduated from Shasta High School and praises the wonderful choir program that was her launch pad into theater arts. Her family was very involved in Shasta High School’s theater productions and her dad even built a rotating stage for Les Miserables in their garage. Krysta danced with Redding Dance Center for nearly 16 years and worked at Enterprise High School as a sign language interpreter. Upon completing her Musical Theatre Degree at San Jose State, Krysta took the leap and bought a dance company in Red Bluff.

With initially only one student, Krysta could have seen her venture as a mistake. But, with emotion, she says the decision was perfect and those first years have impacted her life forever. That single first student was McKenna Watts, who died in 2020. Krysta explains, “McKenna had mitochondrial syndrome and her mom needed an activity to keep her moving. She would flap her hands with excitement every time she came to class. McKenna tap danced with us for close to five years and the joy she brought to my life made those first tough years more than worth it.”

Time with McKenna helped Krysta shape her vision for her dance studio, a vision she spells out on  the Flare website , “We believe in Commitment, Community and Character. We strive to instill those values in all of our students. The way we act and treat others says a lot about us and community is the cornerstone of our lives, personally, socially and professionally.” Krysta adds that “the Flare community is one of inclusivity and equitable access.”

Settling into her corner of Walnut Street

At the new location on Walnut Street, Chloe Hickok, Michelle’s daughter, became one of Krysta’s strongest community links. That may seem like a big statement given that Chloe is five years old, but it couldn’t be more true. Krysta explains, “I call Chloe ‘Red-Bluff-famous’ as she loves getting to know everybody and is such a cheerful, intelligent and empathetic girl. Chloe went to work with her mom next door at Zelma’s which meant she passed the studio windows several times a day—stopping to stare at the dancers through the window. Naturally she wanted to start dancing with us and so Chloe became my bridge to Michelle and to Michelle’s husband, Casey, and to the whole Red Bluff community.”

Krysta continues, “Casey runs Tech beside me in the sound booth during Flare’s performances at the State Theatre and last year he literally took me to my first rodeo. I helped set up the Jackson Dean concert at the Red Bluff Round-up, allowing Michelle to be mom to their sick kiddo and still fulfill her massive volunteer responsibilities.” Krysta teared up as she recounted the many ways the Hickok family has been there for her. “We support each other in work-life and life, be it a needed hug, fist pump in motivation/celebration or a shoulder to cry on.”

Flare’s staff: (left to right) Cassidy Byrd, Katie Lindsey, Krysta Shadish, Cloud Evangelista and Lisa Flader-Sakuma. Photo by @thistleandquillphotography

Community help and support in challenging times

The pandemic tested business owners’ tenacity and Flare’s location on Walnut was crucial to the studio’s survival. To help with health distancing guidelines the church behind the studio allowed Krysta to use their courtyard for practice and her landlord, Daniel Wigon, was a lifesaver by providing extra space indoors. Surprisingly, her enrollment increased during that time.

These days Flare utilizes the space at the nearby Kraft Building for pictures and events. Huge pluses on Walnut are having a built-in parade location for her students and also frequent waves to Jessie across the street at the Gold Exchange. Jessie has been a longtime mentor to Krysta and always sponsors at least one Flare student. Another neighbor, Kaci Rianda, from Overland Post, is spearheading Krysta’s nonprofit “Spark Dance Tehama” which will provide equitable access to dance.

Krysta concludes, “Basically if we hadn’t started making connections downtown, we wouldn’t still be here. Red Bluff is a city of helpers – and downtown is working to weave a stronger town through our youngest community members by uniting movers and shakers through philanthropic partnership and service.”

With such great community support, Krysta is finding more ways to give back and strengthen the Downtown Red Bluff Business Association. She is looking forward to Small Business Saturday and Flare’s “Window Wonderland” opportunities where her dancers will light up downtown businesses for the occasion. Her first Nutcracker performance will also be bringing beauty into the holiday season.

Krysta is so thankful for her Walnut family and the community at large for helping her develop a platform for her talented students. A poster hanging in the studio conveys the simple, yet powerful message Krysta wants to keep sharing with her students and to her neighbors, at the end of the day, no matter how challenging— “I’m proud of you.”