A Legacy of Dance

Brian McSween is the CEO/Artistic Director for Chattanooga Ballet (CHA Ballet). With his leadership the organization has shown growth in its professional company, school and community enrichment programs and he has helped to define the mission, “CHA Ballet serves through the power of dance.” Prior to CHA Ballet, Brian was the Ballet Master for Ballet Memphis under the direction of Dorothy Gunther Pugh where he was also commissioned for three works for the company. He has also served as a teacher for Grand Rapids Ballet School, an adjunct professor for GVSU and was the Associate Artistic Director for Joffrey Concert Group. His professional dance career was with Joffrey Ballet, Complexions and Aspen Ballet. He has also taught, coached and judged internationally. His wife Meg, also an artist with Joffrey Ballet, and he have three kids; Connor, Micah and Madelyn.

With over 15 years of experience in Arts Administration, Aly has enjoyed a rewarding career with major arts organizations, including Atlanta Ballet and the Hunter Museum of American Art, managing corporate, foundation and public funding initiatives, and two successful capital campaigns. Now with CHA Ballet, she seeks to coordinate funding efforts that will accelerate the company’s trajectory of artistic growth, fiscal responsibility, and community engagement. Aly has served on many industry boards and was a co-founder of DanceATL. Aly is deeply engaged in the local arts community, mom of two young aspiring ballerinas, and a yoga and barre teacher.

Originally from Detroit, Haley studied ballet for 14 years before graduating from the Interlochen Arts Academy. She then went on to receive a dual BFA degree in Costume Design and Fine Arts from the California Institute of the Arts. After a season with City Ballet of Los Angeles, Haley moved to Tennessee where she worked with Ballet Memphis for 8 years. During that time, she was a costumer for many other live productions and IATSE film projects, including Tennessee Shakespeare company, Netflix, ABC, Tennessee Ballet Theatre, Collage Dance Collective, and Theatre Memphis. She is thrilled to be joining the Chattanooga Ballet team this season.

Monica Alicia (Coates) Ellison was born and raised in Baltimore, MD. She earned a BFA in Dance Performance from Southern Methodist University. Her professional credits include ensemble work with Dayton Contemporary Dance Company 2 (Dayton, OH), principal work with Balance Dance Theatre (Brooklyn, NY), and guest work with Sudden Enlightenment Theatre (Queens, NY), including a performance in Seoul, Korea. Her last work before heading south was at the North Shore Music Theatre Company (Beverly, MA) and as an ensemble dancer in the off-Broadway production of Susan Stroman's Contact, directed by Tomé Cousin. Ellison’s teaching career began in Chattanooga, TN, and has included ballet, pointe, modern and jazz for beginner-through-advanced levels, at various dance studios throughout the Chattanooga area. She has danced and choreographed widely in Chattanooga, including choreographing for two operas at the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, Treemonisha, and The Gondoliers, for Scenic City Shakespeare and dancing with Ann Law. She loves to share her dance and movement knowledge with children and co-founded Move N Groove Kidz and Capoeira Chattanooga. Since 2021 she has taught for Chattanooga Ballet at the Boys and Girls Club and is excited to continue as she steps into her new role as Making Moves Coordinator.