Jesse Factor, M.F.A.
Assistant Professor
Director of Modern Unit
Contact Information
- Office: 625 H Lawrence Hall
- Phone: 412-392-6122
- Email: jfactor@pointpark.edu
Education
- M.F.A., Dance, University of Iowa
- B.F.A., Theatre, Tisch School of the Arts, New York University
- Teacher Training Certificate, Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance
Courses Taught
- Modern I, III, IV
- Dance Comp I, III
Background
Jesse Factor received a scholarship to the Martha Graham School and danced with the Martha Graham Dance Company and Graham II in repertoire such as Acts of Light, American Document, Appalachian Spring, Celebration, Clytemnestra, Diversion of Angels and Maple Leaf Rag.
Factor has also performed in work by acclaimed choreographers Robert Battle, George Faison, Stuart Hodes, Larry Keigwin, Gillian Lynne, Bulareyaung Pagarlava and Jerome Robbins. Additional performance credits include the North American touring company of Cats and the European company of Cabaret.
As regisseur for Graham resources, Factor’s reconstructions have been presented at The Joyce Theater and Inside/Out at Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival. Factor’s award-winning solo work is frequently presented in the context of dance, theatre and nightclub venues.
Factor is a certified teacher of the Martha Graham technique and completed additional studies at the American Dance Festival, The 92nd Street Y's Dance Education Lab (DEL) and Breath-Body-Mind practices through the Kripalu Center.
Professional Memberships
- Dance Studies Association (DSA)
- Martha Graham Resources (Regisseur)
Artistic Works
Performance
- Martha Graham Dance Company
- Graham II
- Cats National Tour
- Cabaret European Tour
Solo Work
- Boston Contemporary Dance Festival
- Midwest RADFest
- OutsiderFest
- Queerly Contemporary Dance Festival
- Fresh Fruit Festival
- Harvest Chicago Contemporary Dance Festival
Choreography
- Duet/Phasing, Suite Summer Dance Festival, Socrates Sculpture Garden, NYC
- Maidenhead, Harvard Ballet Company
Guest Classes
- Franklin & Marshall College
- Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance
- Movement Migration
- Northern Illinois University
- Peridance Capezio Center
- Sam Houston State University
- University of Western Michigan
Research Interests
- Dance Reconstruction
- Queer Aesthetics
- Pedagogy and Educational Philosophy
- Somatics
- Modernism
- Critical Theories in Dance
- Solo Dance
Grants and Awards
- Outstanding Dance Performance: Marthagany, All Out Dance, NYC
- Staff Pick: Golden Lanyard Award, RELIC, Minnesota Fringe Festival
- Critic's Pick: Twin Cities Arts Reader: RELIC, Minnesota Fringe Festival
- Kelly Strayhorn Theater Freshworks Residency, Pittsburgh, Pa.
- Work/Study Award, Dance Studies Association, The Ohio State University
- Obermann Graduate Fellowship, The University of Iowa
- Martha Graham Center of Contemporary Dance Merit Scholarships