about
about
Payge Lecakes graduated from SUNY Purchase College in 2023 with dual degrees, a BFA in Dance with a concentration in composition from their Conservatory of Dance and a BA in Gender Studies. They have participated in training programs with such artists as MICHIYAYA Dance (May 2024), Sidra Bell (MODULE, January 2024), and Doug Varone (DEVICES, May 2022) as well as multiple programs through Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance (2018-2022). From 2023-2024 they were an apprentice with Cat Coglinadro’s cat.astrophe!.
Professional Training
Payge began their training at Eleanor’s School of Dance (Albany, NY) at the age of three before joining Northeast Ballet Company (Schenectady, NY), under the direction of Darlene Myers, in 2014. After moving to New York City in 2016, they attended Manhattan Youth Ballet, under the direction of Erin Fogarty. Throughout their primary dance training, Payge attended summer programs with Joffrey Ballet NYC, American Ballet Theater, Houston Ballet, Alonzo King LINES Ballet, and Earl Mosley’s Institute of the Arts.
Primary Training
Despite focusing much of their primary training around classical and neo-classical ballet, Payge always felt a propensity for more contemporary forms of movement. This was only heightened when they came to terms with their genderqueer identity towards the end of high school, greatly impacting their comfort (or lack thereof) in ballet-centered spaces, many of which uphold and are intrinsically tied to binary understandings of gender.
In addition to their dance composition work, Payge has also served as a co-movement director and co-choreographer for The Conservatory of Theatre Arts at SUNY Purchase College for their production of Good Goods, directed by Stephanie Weeks, and Back County Crimes , directed by Leon Addison Brown. Payge is currently the Digital Media and Communications Manager for Earl Mosley’s Diversity of Dance (2021-Present) and has had experience acting as a Photographer (2024) and Guest Teacher (2020, 2022) for the organization. They are a freelance dance instructor and have taught technique and combination classes at such institutions as CARBON THE COLLECTIVE (2024) and Manhattan Youth Ballet (2018, 2025). Outside of the dance world, Payge has worked in professional administrative and tutoring roles and is a crafting hobbyist, primarily working with textiles, crochet, and collage.