In conjunction with their MoMA Studio Residency, join Pageant cofounders Sharleen Chidiac, Lili Dekker, Jade Manns, Owen Prum, and Alexa West for a conversation, moderated by McClain Groff, about the collective processes and often invisible labor that undergird contemporary dance-making.
This event is free with Museum admission, but advance registration is required. Tickets will be available starting July 24, 2026.
Sharleen Chidiac is an artist working across dance, music, and video. She is the cofounder of Pageant. She has shown work at Pageant and KAJE, and was a spring 2025 resident at the Chocolate Factory Theater. Chidiac is the lead singer of the art-rock band voyeur.
Lili Dekker is a New York City–based artist and director of performance works. She cofounded and co-runs Pageant, and works with Richard Maxwell and New York City Players, most recently as assistant director.
Jade Manns is a choreographer and cofounder of Pageant. Her work has been presented by Danspace Project, New York Live Arts, Issue Project Room, and Pageant, among others. Manns was a 2024–25 New York Live Arts Fresh Tracks artist and was recently named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch.”
Owen Prum is a New York City–based choreographer, dancer, and codirector of Pageant. His work has been presented by Pioneers Go East Collective, Sundays on Broadway, Under St. Marks Theater, and Pageant. This fall, he will perform in works by Alexa West at Beach Sessions and by Neil Greenberg at the Chocolate Factory Theater.
Alexa West is a dance artist based in New York City. Her work stages encounters between bodies and environments through demanding choreographic structures. She holds an MFA from Bard College, and her work has been presented by SculptureCenter and Performa. West is a co-founder of Pageant and has an upcoming Beach Sessions commission.
Moderator
McClain Groff is a New York–based curator, writer, and dancer whose research focuses on contemporary time-based media and performance. She is currently the assistant curator of High Line Art, and the dramaturg for choreographer Alexa West’s 2026 Beach Sessions commission. She previously held curatorial positions at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art. She was also a 2025–26 Dance Research Fellow at the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts. She received a BA from Vassar College and an MA from Williams Graduate Program in the History of Art.