Dena Igusti is a queer Indonesian Muslim poet, playwright, filmmaker, producer, and FGC survivor & activist born and raised in Queens, New York. They are the author of CUT WOMAN (Game Over Books, 2020), which has been listed as a 2020 Harvard Bookstore Staff Pick and a Entropy Mag’s Best Of 2020-2021, and I NEED THIS TO NOT SWALLOW ME ALIVE (Gingerbug Press, 2021). They are the founder of Dearest Mearest.

Their work has been featured in BOAAT Press, Peregrine Journal, and several other publications. Their work has been produced and performed at The Brooklyn Museum, The Apollo Theater, the 2018 Teen Vogue Summit, Players Theatre (SHARUM, 2019), Prelude Festival (Cut Woman, 2020), Center At West Park (CON DOUGH, 2021), The Tank (First Sight 2021 at LimeFest), and several other venues internationally.

They are a 2023 Asian American Writers’ Workshop Open City Fellow, 2023 Culture Push Fellow, 2023 More Arts Engaging Artist Fellow, 2022 NeXt Doc Fellow, 2022 Lime Arts Unfinished Resident Playwright and Synesthesia Resident Artist, 2022 Sundress Arts Resident, 2022 Best of the Net Nominee, 2021 Baldwin For The Arts Resident, 2021 Hook Arts Media Digital Connections Fellow, 2021 Rogue Theater Festival Playwright-in-Residence, 2021 City Artist Corps, 2021 Stories Award Finalist, 2021 LMCC Governor’s Island Resident, 2021 Broadway For Racial Justice Inaugural Casting Directive Fellow, 2020 Seventh Wave Editorial Resident, 2020 Ars Nova Emerging Leaders Fellow, 2020 Spotify Sound Up cohort member, 2019 Player’s Theatre Resident Playwright, and 2018 NYC Youth Poet Laureate Ambassador. They are a Converse All Stars Artist and UN #TOGETHERBAND Global Ambassador.

Jack Towhey Calk is an NYC-based writer and voice actor from Chicagoland, and is excited to return to The Motor Company after participating in its 2021 Celebration of New York with an audio installation beneath Hell Gate Bridge in Astoria Park. His writing has been produced or developed at The Tank, The Asolo Rep, InVersion Theatre, Hudson Theatre Works, St. Lou Fringe, First Run Theatre, and Pendant Productions. He consulted on Samuel D. Hunter's award-winning play A Case for the Existence of God at Signature Theatre Company. Previously he was assistant to Hunter (Lewiston/Clarkston at Rattlestick), Halley Feiffer (The Pain of My Belligerence at Playwrights Horizons), and James Manos, jr. (film & TV development). He voices Static Man in the hit horror podcast Archive 81, which was adapted into a 2022 Netflix series; other voice appearances include Ivar, Timewalker in Valiant Comics’ Archer and Armstrong: The Michelangelo Code and Kaylock in Pendant Audio’s long-running series The Kingery. Training: Columbia University School of the Arts (MFA, Playwriting), Saint Louis University (BA), Upright Citizens Brigade. For Ty and Packy and Jam.