Jesse Factor trained at the Martha Graham School and danced with Graham II, and the Martha Graham Dance Company. Born in Sharon PA, Jesse grew up in Quito Ecuador and Bangkok, Thailand before earning a BFA from NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Factor’s work has been presented at the Boston Contemporary Dance Festival, Harvest Chicago Contemporary Dance Festival, OUTsider Festival (Austin), Milton Art Bank, RADfest (Kalamazoo), St. Mark’s Church in the Bowery (NYC), Fresh Fruit Festival (NYC), Queer Spectra (Salt Lake City) and House of Yes, (NYC). Factor holds an MFA from the University of Iowa and completed additional studies at the American Dance Festival and 92 St Y’s Dance Education Lab (DEL). Jesse currently serves in the Modern Dance unit at Point Park University’s Conservatory of Performing Arts.

Andy Hasenpflug (Composer/Music Editor) started his career with the drum set, obtaining a master’s degree in classical percussion. Mr. Hasenpflug currently resides in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he freelances and works as the music director for the dance department of Slippery Rock University. In the summers Andy is the musical director for the American Dance Festival in Durham, NC.

Tony Allgeier (Costume Designer) uses his 14+ years of design expertise creating projects ranging from full service interior design, luxurious upholstery, and high caliber costuming. Allgeier is artist-in-residence at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Fallingwater and competed on HGTV’s Design Star : Next Gen – reinforcing their brand of ‘Streamlined Androgyny’ and the notion that design has no gender.

Madeleine Steineck (Lighting Designer) has been working as a Lighting Designer and Master Electrician in western Pennsylvania since 2011. Companies she has designed for include: Mercyhurst University, MCG Jazz, Pittsburgh Festival Opera, New Hazlett’s CSA Program, Texture Contemporary Ballet, STAYCEE PEARL dance project, fireWALL dance theatre, Pittsburgh Playwrights Theatre Company, and City Theatre’s Young Playwrights Festival. She has also toured with Philadelphia artist, Raphael Xavier.

Creative Consultants Anya Clarke-Verdery (Long Island University, BFA) and Mitsuko Clarke-Verdery (Carnegie Mellon University, BFA) are the co-founders and artistic directors of MICHIYAYA Dance—a femme-centric contemporary dance company based in NYC and Pittsburgh. The duo created MICHIYAYA to honor contemporary dance and to center the experiences of queer women and nonbinary folx. Their work has spread nationally at Yale University, Brooklyn Museum, Andy Warhol Museum and been featured in Art Forum, Thinx, Vice i-D, and Medium.

Robert Ramirez (Director) works across the country as a director, actor, recorded voice artist, and vocal coach. His professional credits include the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis, The Denver Center for the Performing Arts, The Alley Theater in Houston, The Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the Public Theater in New York City. Recently, he performed here in Pittsburgh with Quantum Theater in Scenes from an Execution. Robert is a member of the National Theater Conference, Actors Equity Association, and currently serves as the Head of the School of Drama at Carnegie Mellon University.

Tucker Topel (Scenic Designer) a Pittsburgh based scenic designer and theater maker after growing up in the southern Wisconsin area. He is an alum of Point Park University.  Tucker’s most recent local design credits include: Andy Warhol’s Tomato (Pittsburgh International Classic Theatre), Million Dollar Quartet (Pittsburgh Musical Theatre), Angels In America (ELSEWHERE Theatre Company), Three Penny Opera (Mercyhurst University), and The Height of the Storm (FUSION Theatre).

Scott Andrew (Media Designer) (he/him/they/them) b. 1982, Waynesburg, PA, is a multimedia queer-oriented video, installation, performance artist, media designer, educator, and curator. Media Design projects include ’Suite Life’ at KST, ‘Underland x Alice’ at the New Hazlett Theater, and ‘Show Queen’, a 2023 NDP finalist and ongoing collaboration with Dance Artist Jesse Factor that grew out of a Freshworks presentation of ‘I Am A Haunted House’ at KST Alloy Studios.

Jellyfish is Stephanie Tsong and Ricky Mawzlin, a DJ duo/collective from Pittsburgh (USA). Self-professed music nerds their whole lives, they welcome dancers to a sweaty dance floor blanketed in neon + fog with sets that morph between italo, house, melodic techno, disco, electro, and beyond. They’ve DJ’d and hosted queer parties in Pittsburgh since 2017. They’ve also played such cities as New York, San Francisco, Detroit, Boston, Salt Lake City, Philadelphia, Columbus, and countries like Taiwan, England, and Mexico. Jellyfish strives for a dance floor where musical directions take a whirlwind of eclectic turns throughout the night. 

Jesse Factor, Concept and Performance

Robert Ramirez, Director

Andy Hasenpflug, Sound Editing and Remixes

Scott Andrew, Projections, Lobby Installation

Julianna Waechter, Jesse Factor, Tony Allgeier, Costumes

Travis Klingler, Aurora Borealis, Wig Designs

Tucker Topel, Set Designer

Madeleine Steineck, Lighting Designer

Anya and Mitsuko Clark-Verdery, Creative Consultants

New York Live Arts, guided by the leadership of visionary artist Bill T. Jones, collaborates with boundary pushing artists, advocates for their vision, and fortifies a creative future. The annual Live Artery Festival provides a space for artists to network and share their work with the general public and presenters from around the world alike, which leads to commissions, tours and the building of long-term relationships. Visit NewYorkLiveArts.org to learn more.