Pushing The Boundaries of Dance
Presents
DIGGING IN GROUP ARTIST RESIDENCY PROGRAM
PROGRAM A
mother, my blood; father, my bones
Choreography by Payge Lecakes
Performance by Mackenzie Bingham, Sami Frost, and Zil Inami
Text Credits “Healing Ritual” by Whatever, Dad; “Is That All There Is?” by Peggy Lee, Lyrics and Production by Mike Stoller and Jerry Leiber
Audio Mixing by Payge Lecakes
Costumes by Payge Lecakes
Music Credits “Aviary Reverie - Waltz No. 2 in C” by Ann Annie and Eli Forest B Goldberg; “Facets” by Resavior, Composed by Will Miller; “Sentient Preludes: No. 10, Instead of Ashes, the Oil of Gladness” by James Piorkowski; “Michelle” by Yusef Lateef, Composed by John Lennon and Paul McCartney, Performed by Earl Klugh; “歩風” by Ironomi, Composed by Junya Yanagidaira and Yu Isobe.
Apogee
Choreographed by Will Pettigrew
Performed by Will Pettigrew, Josephine Brunner
Music by Michel Colombier
Costumes by Will Pettigrew
Entanglement: Steven's Stuff
Choreographed by Louise Heit
Performed by Louise Heit & Jess Ames
Sound Design by Gary Meister & Louise Heit
Costumes by Louise Heit
Folly Trio
Choreographed by Charlotte Aucella, in collaboration with performers
Performed by Sophie Ortiz, Camille Constanti, Charlotte Aucella
Music by Catherine Zeta-Jones, Chet Baker, OKRAA, Paco Amoroso and CA7RIEL, Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, and The Hit Crew. Track edited by Charlotte Aucella
Costumes by Charlotte Aucella
CHOREOGRAPHERS, DANCERS AND COLLABORATORS
mother, my blood; father, my bones
NOT A DANCE COMPANY is a New York-based movement arts collective whose work critically analyzes societal patterns, constructs, and impacts through performance as independent movement artists within a communal structure. It was founded by Payge Lecakes (they/themme) while studying at SUNY Purchase College’s Conservatory of Dance, where they graduated with a BFA in Dance (Concentration in Composition) and a BA in Gender Studies. Since its establishment, NADC has has performed as part of WestFest: Top Floor on Bank (‘26), Dancing Beyond (‘24, ‘25), and the Uptown Rising Performance Series (‘21, ‘23, ‘24), participated in such residencies as Green Space’s D.I.G. (‘25-’26) and Alpha Omega Theatrical Dance Company's STUDIO TO STAGE (‘25), and has contributed dance films at Dance Source Houston’s Barnstorm Dance Fest (‘25) and the Dance is Activism Film Festival (‘21), where they were awarded the accolade of “Best Choreography.” @notadancecompany | www.paygelecakes.com/notadancecompany
MACKENZIE BINGHAM is a NYC-based freelance artist, originally from Houston, Texas. They received their Bachelor of Fine Arts from the Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase College, with additional training at Northwest Dance Project, OpenSpace Dance, Vim Vigor, and Sidra Bell Dance New York. Mackenzie has performed in original and restaged works by Cat Cogliandro, Chris Ferris, Michelle Thompson Ulerich, Jaime Drye, Joshua Manculich, Franco Nieto, Marcus Jarrell Willis, Martha Graham, and Rosalind Newman. They have also collaborated, choreographed and performed with musicians, Johnny Butler and Eganam Segbefia. Mackenzie currently dances for Chris Ferris and Payge Lecakes’s Not a Dance Company.
SAMI FROST, Tampa native and graduate of Florida State University with a B.F.A in Dance, is a freelance movement artist, dance educator, and choreographer based in Brooklyn. She has danced for Water Street Dance Milwaukee, Tampa Modern Dance Company, Not a Dance Company, and The Mo.vement. Sami continues to develop her own artistic voice and has presented choreography at American College Dance Association, NewGrounds Dance Festival, National High School Dance Festival, Florida State University, WaterStreet Dance Milwaukee, Sarasota Contemporary Dance Company, The Tank NYC, PMT House of Dance and at The Young Choreographer’s Festival.
From the Bay Area in California, ZIL INAMI (they/them) is a New York-based artist and an Action Hero with STREB Extreme Action Company. They attended the Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase, graduating with a BFA in Dance with concentrations in production and composition. While at Purchase, they performed works by Paul Taylor, Seán Curran, Cain Coleman, Doug Varone, Trisha Brown, and 2nd Best Dance Company. A creative in many mediums, Zil enjoys making fun dance works, has a passion for videography and editing, and loves the backstage of a show.
Apogee
WILL PETTIGREW (They/Them) is a dancer, choreographer, and mime from Maplewood, New Jersey, currently based in Brooklyn, New York. A background in competitive gymnastics fostered an early love of movement that deepened through formal dance training. Will graduated from George Mason University with a BFA in Dance, receiving the Dance Faculty’s Award for Excellence in Choreography. Since graduating, Will has immersed themself in a range of movement styles through work with STREB Extreme Action and InDance under the direction of Hari Krishnan. These experiences have shaped their artistic process, pushing the physical limits of the human body while learning to weave diverse cultural influences into focused, authentic performances. Will’s work has been shown across the New York area and Internationally at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival in 2024.
JOSEPHINE BRUNNER is a New York-based dance artist originally from Baltimore, Maryland. She began her formal training at Baltimore School for the Arts and in 2023, received a BFA in dance from George Mason University under the mentorship of Christina Robson, Susan Shields, and Shaun Boyle D’Arcy. Josephine currently dances for Middle Child Dance Theater, LaHa Dance Group, and Clymove Dance and has worked with choreographers like Larry Keigwin, Corinne Lohner, Natalie Clevenger, Ashely Green and more. Josephine and Will are good friends and collaborators who have most notably presented their work at the 2024 Fringe Festival in Edinburgh, Scotland.
Entanglement: Steven's Stuff
LOUISE HEIT (dance artist/choreographer) Previous work has been seen at Center for Performance Research, Union Street Studio, Lenox Hill Neighborhood House, 92Y/Fridays at Noon, the streets and gardens around NYC, Laban Centre for Movement and Dance. Louise performed with Adaptors Movement Theater (Bessie Award-winning), Pink Inc., toured internationally – performing puppetry with Marquis Studios. She holds a BFA: NYU – dance and experimental theater, MA: Laban Centre, London and is a Certified Movement Analyst, NYC. Louise currently teaches through Together in Dance and has received several awards from the Brooklyn Arts Council to led creative aging modern dance classes for older adults. Many thanks to Jess for the patience and artistry to allow this piece to evolve, Gary Meister, my fellow choreographers in this cohort, Valerie and Lily of the Green Space, Kathy Malone, Jude Calder, my friends, family, my children – Molly and Marty, for their loving support.
JESS AMES is thrilled to be performing in her fourth piece choreographed by Louise Heit. She danced with Risa Jaroslow and Dancers for two years; Kriota Willberg’s Dura Mater for 10 years; performed in Mercy with Meredith Monkat BAM; in several works by Elizabeth Keen, and more. Jess studies (and loves!) ballet with Kelly Slough and Elisa Clark. She works as a freelance ASL Interpreter, and will be interpreting the musical "Girl, Interrupted" this summer at the Public Theater. She ran her first marathon in Rehoboth Beach last Dec. She thanks her wife Barb for her immense love and support.
GARY MEISTER is a sound designer, composer & music producer who’s worked extensively in film, TV, podcasts, theater & dance. His credits include Joe’s Violin (Oscar Nom.), In The Dark (Pulitzer Prize), The New Yorker Presents(Amazon), Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill, Queer Eye For The Straight Guy, Sesame Street, Fork In The Road, Death Row Stories (CNN), & additional projects for HBO, Showtime, Amazon, NBC, CBS, TED, VH1, MTV, etc. He’s also a member of the Balinese gamelan ensemble Dharma Swara, with whom he’s played sold-out shows at NY Philharmonic and CentralPark’s Summerstage. naturalistic.net.
Folly Trio
CHARLOTTE AUCELLA is a performing artist and choreographer originally from Northern Virginia. She most recently appeared in the Dance Theater Production of Scarecrow produced and choreographed by Mark Bankin. Her concert dance repertoire spans works by Merce Cunningham, Bill T. Jones, George Balanchine, and Netta Yerushalmy. She has performed at venues including The Tank Theater, West Beth, Arts on Site, and Lehman College. She earned her B.F.A. in Dance Performance from the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College in 2023, under the direction of Nelly Van Bommel. Charlotte's choreography has been commissioned and presented by the String Orchestra of New York City, American Dance Guild, and the Queens New Music Festival. In addition to dance work, Charlotte is expanding her physical comedy and theater practice through clown.
SOPHIE ORTIZ is a dancer, performance artist, and cheerleader. She is a proud 3rd generation San Franciscan, attending Ruth Asawa School of the Arts, further obtaining their BFA in the Conservatory of Dance at Purchase College. They have performed at the Brick Aux, Montalvo Arts Center, The Neuberger Museum of Art, La MaMa and on the streets of New York. Currently based in Brooklyn, Sophie is creating their own work, freelancing in various dance performances, and participating as a member of a 501c charitable cheerleading organization.
CAMILLE CONSTANTI is a dancer and instructor based in NYC. She studied in the Independent Program at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance and received her B.A. in Literature and Philosophy from St. John’s College, where she founded the St. John’s Dance Collective. Formatively trained in modern, ballet and hula, she has performed the works of Isadora Duncan, Loretta Thomas, Mark Bankin, Jacqulyn Buglisi, and Martha Graham. In 2025 she became a certified Classical Pilates instructor.
Upcoming at Green Space
Fertile Ground: June 21st at 7:00 PM
Dara Alina, Isaac Knuteson, Jackie Dodds
Lola Jenkins, Macee Eppard, Naliah Hernandez, Susanna Procario-Foley
Russel Chow (he/him) Is a lighting designer and graduate of UCSD where he received his BA in Theatre. His recent work includes And her Children (SoHo Playhouse), The Hasta La Muerte Tour (Las Cafeteras), and SEED (Malashock Dance). He is excited to work with Green Space on this exciting project. www.russellchowdesign.com
Dance Entropy inaugurated Take Root 17 years ago with the goal to aid in the continued development and performance of new dance work of various aesthetics. This curated monthly series supports dance makers by providing our venue, Green Space, with technical and marketing support for a paired evening of work.
About Green Space: Responding to the need for professional rehearsal space in the New York metropolitan area, Valerie Green and Dance Entropy, Inc., opened Green Space in November 2005. Located in Long Island City, Green Space serves the public by offering discounted services to individual artists and dance companies in a spacious 1800 sq. foot facility. Green Space's mission is to serve the Queens and general dance community by providing an affordable and welcoming environment for rehearsals, classes, and performances. Green Space embraces the diversity of Queens as a strength, encouraging exchange on an artistic, educational, and interactive level.
Produced by: Dance Entropy Inc.
Lighting Design by: Russell Chow
Programs Manager: Lily Cole
Box Office: Susanna Procario-Foley
This program is made possible, in part, by the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council, The Little Venue That Could Grant from the Howard Gilman Foundation and IndieSpace, The New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Kathy Hochul and the New York State Legislature, Dance/NYC’s New York City Dance Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program, made possible by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, The Harkness Foundation for Dance, Queens Borough President Donovan Richards. Additional support provided by BoA Private Bank, Chhaya Community Development, GNYADA, Robert S. Altman, Esq., PLLC; Leavitt, Kerson & Sehati Attorneys at Law; Mathis Pfohl foundation/ Plaxall Inc.; Gerard T. Dolan, LUTCF; Boyce Technologies, Inc.