top of page
Muse Team
GENEVIEVE SENECHAL
Core Committee, Marketing
Genevieve stumbled into blues dancing in 2012 at Oberlin College and can't seem to stop. She began organizing in Philly in 2017 and stepped down from the Powerhouse Blues board in the fall of 2023 in order to focus on Muse. You can still find Genevieve teaching and dancing with a level of joy she hopes is infectious. Her true loves include re-tellings of fairy tales, macaroni and cheese, and making art.
She is overjoyed to continue her role on the Blues Muse team this year as a core committee member, website manager, and PR coordinator. She loves her team and can't wait to dance with everyone in October!
JESSE BARBER
Core Committee, Volunteer Coordinator
Jesse first started dancing Blues and Lindy Hop in 2017, and fell deeply in love with blues after attending Steel City Blues the following year. When he was in Buffalo, there was no blues scene to be found; and so, he started a scene himself to get his fix and share his love of the dance with those around him. Mid-Pandemic, he landed in the DC area and has been bringing his passion and knowledge of Blues to others again. Jesse enjoys all that blues has to offer, but holds a special place in his heart for a comfy close embrace. If you want to find Jesse on the dance floor, it's easy: just look up!
MARJORIE BARTELL
Core Committee, Music Coordinator
Marjorie Bartell (she/they) has been social dancing Blues, Lindy Hop, and Balboa since 2016, and started DJing in 2019. She is passionate about dance and music history, and loves seeking out new local bands and artists to support in the local Jazz and Blues communities. You’ll often find her raving about some new show or movie on the internet, or nerding out about music or dance.
ANNIE VALOCCHI
Venue Coordinator
Annie Valocchi (she/her) is a Philadelphia dancer but previously an Oberlin dancer, Italy dancer, Western Mass dancer, and Boston dancer. She is very excited to be coming out of dance organizing retirement to work on the Blues Muse team this year as the Venue Coordinator. When not dancing or venue assessing she enjoys translating poetry, drinking tea, and searching for gems at the thrift store.
AMARA BENSON
Safety and Access
Amara (Uh-MAIR-rah) wants to live in a world filled with music and dancing! Music has been a part of her life since she was little. Her dad, who was a wedding DJ, got her into music and singing. She discovered Blues Dancing in the summer of 2015, from a high school friend and it changed her life!
As a Martial Artist and Criminal Justice Major, she aspires to protect and help people when they don't know where else to go and is one of Philadelphia's Powerhouse Blues Safer Spaces Coordinators. Having a safe environment where everyone can dance and enjoy themselves is her ultimate goal!
When she’s not dancing in Philly, you can find her hanging out with her family, playing Table Top Games or Recording her Podcasts. ASK HER TO DANCE! She tries to dance with everyone, but there isn't enough time in the day!
DEVON ROWLAND
Photographer
Devon Rowland has been photographing dance since they took their first camera to Lindy Focus in 2008. Now a full-time, professional photographer, they’ve been all over the world creating inclusive images that show the motion, emotion, and action of an event without getting in the way. From weddings to fire performance, boudoir to corporate events, Devon photographs a wide variety of subjects and is excited to be back in Philly to dance and photograph at Blues Muse!
ERICKA SKIRPAN
Housing Coordinator
Ericka has been a long time organizer in the immersive events scene. She loves to tell a good story, be it on the dance floor to music or through interactive theater. She's here to help people get folks settled into comfortable housing so they can enjoy the event without worries of where they can stay! During the day she works for a health equity non-profit and when she's not dancing, she's usually LARPing!
GABY MARANTZ
Treasurer
Gaby found her way into blues dancing from Israeli folk dancing and contra in the winter of 2014. She has also dabbled in fusion, east and west coast swing, zouk, and bachata. Find her for a dance if you want to get cozy, get silly, or spin her around a lot of times. Gaby is excited to combine her love of dance with one of her other passions, a well-made spreadsheet, as the Blues Muse treasurer.
Jaesic Wade
Safety and Access
Jaesic Wade [it/they] is so excited to be joining us at Blues Muse 2024 as our Access and Safety Lead! Jaesic has been a huge movement nerd all its life. With Blues, they have been a part of the community since 2014 in dancing, DJing, and teaching, but has taken a bit of a hiatus these last few years until this year! For the past 2 years, however, they have been cultivating knowledge and skill for developing more accessible dance spaces through Consent Academy classes, their time as a peer support specialist, and through their long term work of being a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice educator, consultant, and coach. For the last year, Jaesic has been working with Fen Lastra (Kennedy) through their joint project Changeling Spaces, an access and safety resource for policy, protocol, consultation, education, and facilitation. Together they are supporting dance scenes across the country to implement policy that fosters new culture for accessibility, inclusion, and safety.
As one half of Changeling Spaces, Jaesic will be consulting with Fen throughout our event to ensure we have an as safe and accessible event as possible! If you have any questions or accessibility/safety concerns prior to the event, please submit an inquiry to our Safety and Access Form. Otherwise, Jaesic can't wait to see you on the dance floor!
KATE DONOHUE
Safety and Access
Kate has been partner dancing since 2009, starting with the Argentine tango (which she has performed for Pope Francis!). She is passionate about dance as an art form and social dance, with its creativity, connection, musicality and community. Kate was led into blues dance 2+ years ago by one of her daughters and is now solidly grounded in the Philadelphia blues dance community as a Safer Spaces Coordinator for Powerhouse Blues and for Blues Muse. She’s committed to maintaining safe and welcoming dance space at Blues Muse and asks everyone to: become familiar with the Blues Muse Safe Space Policy, to have a blast at Blues Muse and to save her dance!
KAT PHILLIPS
Food Coordinator
She loves volunteering, organizing, and traveling to events & is thrilled to be a part of the Muse team!
KAT ROSE
Family Accessibility Coordinator
It was the fall of 2004 when Kat (she/her) and her dad, Norm, rented a VHS from the local library on How To Learn the Lindy Hop so they could attend the upcoming NYE Swing Dance. Did Norm know he was introducing his daughter to her life-long love of social dancing? Did he know she would find herself dancing to the Blues as well as Lindy? Did he know she’d travel several times a year to dance events and throw dance house parties and DJ for Blues dances and organize dance workshops and then marry a dancer and have dancer babies and then become the Family Accessibility Coordinator for Blues Muse 2024?!!?!? No, he did not. But now he does, because Kat still talks to him pretty much every day.
.jpeg)
KELSEY CHASE
Food Assistant
Kelsey (she/they) has been dancing blues and attending social dance events since 2015. She found her way into organizing as part of the Sweet Molasses Blues team in 2019, and is very excited to be working with the Blues Muse team in this post-pandemic world! Outside of the dance scene, you can find her mixing up cocktails, painting, or sprawling across surfaces with her two cats.
KYLE PATTERSON
Competition Coordinator
The Man.
The Myth.
The Mustache.
After these long years of Quarantine, much has changed for him, as it has for us all... After nearly a decade in the #MidwestIsBest brigade, he now finds himself in Oakland, CA where he can be found enjoying long walks on the beach, sunsets over the bay, getting a little sunburnt, and cheering #WestCoastBestCoast at every opportunity. Instilled with a passion for [healthy] competition from a young age, he's excited to make the leap from Competitor to Coordinator!
MORGAN DOYLE
VIP Coordinator
Bio incoming...
.png)
STEVE FOX
Master of Ceremonies
Oh snap, what up? It's Steven Fox! Steve (he/him) has been dancing Lindy Hop and Blues regularly since 2015 and 2017, respectively.
He's a big fan of cultivating the local community and making folks feel welcomed to the scene the same way he was when he started.
When he's not dancing or DJing he can usually be found practicing Karate, playing piano, or singing. Or, most likely, trying to 100% yet another video game
bottom of page