Nicole Assanti
Collaborator + Performer
can you come outside?
Nicole Assanti is a dance artist. With her Brooklyn-based dance company, Nikki and The Noise, Nicole creates nostalgic, anxious, and theatrical dance works. Her work has been shown in venues such as Cora Dance, Center for Performance Research, Triskelion Arts, and the Brooklyn Conservatory of Music. She has co-directed and choreographed music videos for artists such as Corina Corina, DJ Jen Urban, and Theo Lawrence. Most recently, Nicole was invited back to her Alama Mater, University of Florida, as a guest artist to teach and restage her work “When the lights go out, will you take me with you?” Since living in New York, Nicole has performed works by JoAnna Mendl Shaw and Brit Falcon, among other artists. She has taught Modern and Creative Movement at BAX| Brooklyn Arts Exchange and Cora Dance. Nicole is currently the Production and Creative Support Manager at Cora Dance. She continues to create work with her company, dance for JACKS, collaborate with local artist, and cultivate a teaching practice. Nicole has a BFA in Dance from the University of Florida, where she studied with artists such as Tzveta Kassabova, Raja Kelly, and Pat Graney. @nikkiandthenoise nikkiandthenoise.com
Rebecca Fitton
Collaborator + Performer
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Rebecca Fitton is an improviser, facilitator, and citizen whose work is largely informed by her experiences as a biracial immigrant. She has presented work in NYC at Gibney, Movement Research, Staten Island Arts, Triskelion Arts, LiVEART.US at the Queens Museum and Hemispheric Institute’s EMERGENYC at Abrons Arts Center, in addition to many non-traditional performance spaces such as bars, rooftops, and public spaces across New York, New Jersey, Florida, Wisconsin, and Salzburg, Austria. She has been an Artist-in-Residence at center space (Grand Rapids, MI), part of the Hemispheric Institute’s EMERGENYC 2019 cohort (New York, NY) and is currently a Fellow at LEIMAY (Brooklyn, NY). Fitton works as an administrator at Pentacle, facilitating their Education & Outreach programs, with Edisa Weeks/DELIRIOUS DANCES, coordinating the community engagement events, and with Will Rawls. She has been a part of Dance/NYC’s Junior Committee since 2018. @_rebecca.fitton rebeccafittonprojects.com
Kelsey Kramer
allistair johnson
Sound Design
ground-swell
Allistair is a sound artist and filmmaker living in Brooklyn interested in binaural and ambisonic recording. His most recent work was recording the sounds of Harlem, featuring Lauryn Hill and eight other musicians for the Tate Modern piece “Flypaper” by director Kahlil Joseph. He’s also the parent of two dumb but adorable animals, Cooper the dog and Murray the cat.
Kelsey Kramer
bradley johnson
Photographer
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Brad likes to paint and draw but rarely does either, but he does take a lot of photographs! He’s obsessed with Buffy the Vampire Slayer—what more do you need to know?
Maddie leonard-rose
Collaborator + Performer
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Maddie Leonard-Rose, a native of Brooklyn, NY, lives and works as a freelance dance artist in NYC. She holds a BFA in Dance from The Ohio State University where she performed in works by Bebe Miller, Stephan Koplowitz and Susan Rethorst, among others. For the past year Maddie has become an active member of the Contact Improvisation community in NYC and now co-hosts the Brooklyn Contact Jam that happens on Friday evenings. She is currently working with Treeline Dance Works and Serena Chang on long term projects. When she is not dancing, she can be found rock climbing, backpacking, or attempting to ride her bike with no handlebars. She is thrilled to be joining JACKS for this project!
Cecilia lynn-jacobs
Collaborator + Performer
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Cecilia Lynn-Jacobs is a Brooklyn-based performing artist. In addition to her performance work with JACKS, she has worked with The People Movers and performing artist Andrew Schneider, among others. As a voiceover artist, Cecilia has won multiple awards for her work on Wolf 359, Time Bombs, and Archive 81: Left of the Dial. Cecilia is the host of Deep Space Research’s podcast Transmission, a distributed reality production, and has moderated panel discussion and interviews at the METI Conference in Paris and the International Science Festival In Edinburgh. As a dancer and actor, she performed the role of Ana during Transmission’s premiere at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe Festival. She holds a BA degree from Wesleyan University and has been a member of DanceNYC Junior Committee 2016-2018.
debbie z. maciel
Collaborator + Performer
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Debbie Z Maciel, is a dance artist and educator currently moving and making work in Brooklyn, New York. Unbound by medium Maciel finds creative expression across genres with training in theater, literary and visual arts, while carrying her modern and contemporary dance sensibility with her. She was most recently seen dancing with installation artists Brendan Fernandes for the Smithsonian American Art Museum, Sarah Cameron Sunde in 36 PEAKS at the Baryshnikov Arts Center, dance companies JACKS, BOINK dance + film, Joanna Mendel Shaw's The Equus Projects creating site-specific dances with horses, and in Washington, D.C. as a partnering artist for Dance Exchange, working with intergenerational communities. In the past she has also performed with legendary contact improviser Nita Little, evocative performance artist Ann Liv Young, Neta Pulvermacher, Tzveta Kassabova, and site-specific Shua Group. She also makes her own work through her dance-theater company DZ Maciel. @dz.maciel dzmaciel.com
Kelsey Kramer
em Marie
Artist and Collaborator
ground-swell
Em Marie is a visual artist living and working in Brooklyn, New York. She received her BFA in 2013 from Rutgers Mason Gross School of the Arts, NJ. Recent exhibitions and screenings include: Volley Exhibition Series, Abrons Arts Center, NY, NY, 2017 (with Cindy Ji Hye Kim); Volley Exhibition Series, Abrons Arts Center, NY, NY 2017 (with Ben Browne); Situations, NY, NY 2017 (group screening); Rose Gallery, Redhook, Brooklyn 2016 (solo screening); Beatriz Viterbo Gallery, Queens, NY 2016 (with Diana Oh) ; Xoomba Loft, BK, NY 2015 (group exhibition); No Holds Barred, NY, NY 2015 (group exhibition). Em co-curated Rose Gallery, Redhook, Brooklyn from August 2015 through February 2017. She attended residencies Akademie der Bildenden Künste München Exchange 2013, and Vermont Studio Center 2013. emmarie.xyz
Debbie Mausner
Collaborator + Performer
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Debbie Mausner is a performer, choreographer, and teaching artist from Brooklyn, NY. She holds a B.A. in Dance from from Barnard College, where she performed works by Pam Tanowitz, Mark Morris, Caitlin Trainor, Trisha Brown, Lucinda Childs, and Joanna Kotze. Since then, she’s performed with Trainor Dance, Stephanie Nelson, Bryce Dance, JACKS, and visual artist Eric Gottshall. Debbie has showcased her performance and film work around NYC and Boston. She has taught creative movement throughout Brooklyn with Kinderdance, Mark Morris Dance Center, Brooklyn Arts Exchange, and Dancewave. In 2018, Debbie co-founded Current Showcase, an interdisciplinary showcase that aims to bring together artists working in different mediums. She is also a member of the 2019-20 Dance/NYC Junior Committee. @deb_maus + @debbiemakesdances
Mika Mintz
mika mintz
Photographer
ground-swell
Mika is a young artist who was raised in the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts and the arctic mountains of Swedish Lapland. She attended Colby College in Maine where she achieved her dual B.A. in psychology and dance. Mika is currently gearing up to begin her first year of medical school at the University of Miami Leonard Miller School of Medicine, where she hopes to create a balance between her studies, her art-making, and her love for the outdoors. She began dancing at the ripe age of three, danced fervently throughout her college career, and has been striving to foster this passion since. Her other love, photography, was inspired by her father, from whom she gleaned her skills. The intersection of these two art forms stimulates a synergism of creative currents--a synergy that Mika is eager to investigate further in her collaboration with JACKS. mikamintz.com
Benjamin roach
Collaborator + Performer
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Originally from Gallipolis, Ohio, Benjamin Roach is a movement research artist and educator based in Long Island City, NY. In 2018 he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance Performance & Choreography from Ohio University. While attending OU, he had the opportunity to work with artists such as David Dorfman, Jasmine Hearn & Kendra Portier, Meredith Lyons, Dance The Yard, Gladys Balin-Stern, Ani Javian, & Travis Gatling. In the Summer of 2018, Roach completed a Technical Production internship with The Yard on Martha's Vineyard. During his time there, he performed for the internal company Dance the Yard(Perception), as well as Rosie Herrera(Make Believe). In 2019 Roach, alongside Caitlin Morgan co-founded Piug Dance Theatre (piugdance.wordpress.com). In addition to his own company, he currently dances for Abby Z + The New Utility and JACKS. Roach has also worked with Josh Pacheco Dance Theatre, Dance The Yard, and eSKay Arts Collective. @ben_jamin_roach benjaminroach.net
Leah samuels
Collaborator + Performer
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Leah Samuels is a dancer and choreographer from New Orleans, LA. She has performed in dances by Jodi Melnick, Joanna Kotze, Okwui Okpokwasili, Juli Brandano, and Debbie Mausner. Her collaborative work with Cauveri Suresh has been shown at Columbia University, HATCH Presenting Series, and Fertile Grounds, and she has presented solo work at Current Showcase. Leah is always grateful to be in the room with Kels, Lex, and the entirety of JACKS. @leahsamuel_s
AMBER SCHMIESING
Videographer
ground-swell
Amber is a freelance videographer, editor, photographer, and live-stream director based in NYC! She loves to shoot dance, but also enjoys exploring new genres to film and I have done video work for musicians, corporations, theaters, and weddings too. She currently works for companies such as Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Nel Shelby Productions, Martha Graham Dance Company, and The Fleet. Amber has had short films featured in festivals throughout the world, most notably: Runner Up in Dance Camera West’s Emerging Artist Competition and Finalist for Best Young Filmmaker at Fastnet Short Film Festival. Amber teaches dance to kids from the ages of 4-17 in MN, NC, NY and NJ. amberschmiesing.com
Libby wolf
Collaborator + Performer
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Libby Wolf has leaped from Phoenix, AZ to New York City to live her dream as a performer and choreographer. She graduated Magna Cum Laude from Loyola Marymount University with a B. A. in Dance, along with a 200-Hour Teaching Certification in Yoga. While in school she had the pleasure to perform in works by Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Daniel Ezralow, Keith Johnson, Lillian Barbeito, and Roz LeBlanc Loo. Since moving to New York, Libby has worked with Inclined Dance Project, Netta Yerushalmy, Alex + Xan/The Median Movement, Jordan Lloyd, Katie Skinner, and Emily Craver/The Little Streams. She is excited to go on this adventure with JACKS. She served as a production intern for Movement Research. Libby explores her own creative voice alongside the incredible voices she collaborates and studies with.