Designer, author and artist NOAH SCALIN  turned his year-long artistic experiment into a career of bringing out the creativity in others. His talks and workshop guide participants through the practical steps to creativity he’s developed, in a way that’s interesting, entertaining, and applicable to every industry.

Noah Scalin is the founder of Another Limited Rebellion, a socially conscious design firm. His work can be seen in many publications including USA Today, Wired and The New York Times. His art has been exhibited at the Mütter Museum in Philadelphia, the Museum of Death in Hollywood, The International Museum of Surgical Sciences in Chicago and the Museum of World Culture in Gothenberg, Sweden. He has written a series of books on creativity: 365: A Daily Creativity Journal, Unstuck: 52 Ways to Get (and Keep) Your Creativity Flowing at Home, at Work & in Your Studio and his first book Skulls was featured on The Martha Stewart Show.

Sideshow performer, ILISE “THE LADY AYE” CARTER, takes groups through her evolution from mild-mannered financial editor to the celebrated “Sweetheart of the Sideshow” in order to help participants overcome their own fears, limitations and expectations in order to reach the next levels of creativity and energy.

The Lady Aye has worked with everyone from Rob Zombie to Cirque du Soleil. She has been featured on Discovery Channel’s Oddities & the WB’s Gossip Girl. Her press accolades include USA Today, AOL, Bust Magazine and the Village Voice’s Best of New York 2006. She is currently writing her autobiography, Pain-Proof: Becoming the Lady Aye, represented exclusively by the Einstein Thompson Agency.

Theater writer and slam poet ROB NEILL lets creativity take center stage in his talk, guiding participants though the steps that will help them develop new narratives in their professional lives.  By spotlighting creativity, spontaneity and structure; he is able to draw out participants’ hidden talent.

Rob Neill is the Managing Director and a founding ensemble member of the New York Neo-Futurists. He trained at the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, the National Theater Institute, and Grinnell College. He has written, directed and performed Too Much Light Makes The Baby Go Blind in both New York and Chicago since 1995.  His plays have appeared at the Ontological, P.S. 122, HERE, BB Kings, Cherry Lane & The Kraine, as well as in Chicago and Los Angeles. In addition to two books of poetry, Rob’s plays are included in the most recent Neo-Futurist books.  Performance credits include: Broadway: London Assurance; London: The Cherry Orchard; Regional: You Never Can Tell, Tartuffe, and The Real Thing; Off-Off Broadway: Spring Awakening, Hamlet and Doughboy.

Author, dancer and filmmaker, JENAI WEST uses the fundamental elements of tap dancing to show you how to step up your creativity. Audiences gain a new perspective on this uniquely American art form and learn how the skills she’s learned along her own creative journey can be used from the floorboards to the boardroom.

Jenai West received an MFA in Dance from The Ohio State University. She has performed with Brenda Bufalino, Savion Glover, Derick Grant, Lynn Schwab, Rumba Tap, Ritmico, and Tap City at The Joyce Theatre, Symphony Space, and the Duke on 42nd Street. Her documentary, Thinking On Their Feet has screened at The Wexner Center for the Arts in Columbus, OH, Southern Utah International Film Festival, and Newfilmmakers Film Festival in New York. In addition to being a dancer, choreographer, and teacher, Jenai has written four books about dance and contributed articles to The Village Voice, Dance magazine and Dance Teacher.

CHRIS “SHOCKWAVE” SULLIVAN uses his signature style of beatbox, improvisational soundscapes and vocal skills to create entire worlds that intrigue and engage.  Through performance and interaction, he encourages conversations and collaborations that help participants find new rhythms.

Chris Sullivan majored in Communication at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. In New York, he studied improvisational comedy with The People’s Improv Theater, The Upright Citizen’s Brigade Theater and instructors of Chicago’s Annoyance Theater. He began his career as a professional comedic beatboxer within the hip-hop comedy group “Freestyle Love Supreme” performing at The Aspen Comedy Festival, The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, The Melbourne Comedy Festival, South by Southwest and the 10th Anniversary for Paramount Comedy in London. Aside from performing solo he has also performed with Doug E. Fresh, Rahzel, Biz Markie and at venues everywhere from The Nuyorican Poets Café to Madison Square Garden to the New York subway. You can also catch “Shock” on “The Electric Company” teaching children to read weekday afternoons on PBS.

Scotch whiskey connoisseur, RICHARD CRAWFORD, uses the fascinating history and chemistry of the spirit to teach analytical, communication, and constructive criticism skills. Audiences learn how opening your senses, opens your mind to greater understanding and ultimately, a deeper engagement with the world around you.

Richard Crawford’s love for the “water of life” was inspired by both his father and uncle, who have been in the Scotch Whisky Industry for more than 25 years. Born and raised in Paisley, Scotland, Crawford moved to the United States in 1991 with a scholarship from the University of Alabama. For over 7 years he served as the brand ambassador for The Glenlivet and has hosted tasting events with Scottish 1st Minister and the British Ambassador and the The Prince of Wales. He has appeared on The Hannity Show, Fox News, CW11, BBC America, Bloomberg, The Street.com and has been featured in numerous magazines including GQ, Esquire and Whisky Life Magazine. In 2009, Crawford was awarded “The Certificate for Outstanding Contribution” by the James Beard Foundation.

Theater director and activist, MAYAHANA LANDOWNE leads you through her adventures crafting evocative performances, large scale public demonstrations and even parades. Audiences will learn how a strong leader directs attention, rather than simply directing people and how imaginative play can help you to motivate others into participation in the workplace and beyond.

Mahayana Landowne earned a NYU-BFA in acting and Yale School of Drama-MFA in directing. Her most recent productions include King Lear (Annex- Yale), Antony and Cleopatra (Greenwich Street Theater), Measure for Measure (Piano Store), The Wisdom of Obscurity (Nylon Theater Company). She also uses her skills for creative grass roots organizing including working with Metropolis in Motion to overturn the Cabaret Laws and the NYC Dance Parade which brings together over one hundred dance organizations to dance down Broadway every year. She has taught for 10 years in the CUNY system and is an adjunct professor at John Jay College in The Interdisciplinary Studies Program.

When IAN EDGAR first started remixing culture, he didn’t have the internet or iMovie to help him out. Armed with only his own relentless playfulness and curiosity he was able to test boundaries and help launch an entirely new art form. In this talk audiences learn how they can use the tools of a remix master to manifest the future. Play and the future will follow you.

Ian Edgar is a pioneering video artist, he veejayed before video decks, posted video to the Internet before YouTube and made mashups before it had the name. He has DJed in London squats, Ibiza hotels and Berlin galleries; Chicago museums, Los Angeles rooftops and Brazilian stadia. He played at the Playboy mansion, the Cosmopolitan in Vegas, on a cruise ship in the Bahamas, an emptied swimming pool in Cannes, at the top of a skate ramp in Bristol. He has performed with Chuck D and theWu Tang and played at Sundance, Raindance, Cannes, SXSW, E3, Glastonbury, Bonnaroo, The Webby Awards,Comic-Con and on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. He created official remixes for Motown, Fatboy Slim, Bob Marley, Public Enemy, Faithless, Phish and U2. He has been called a genius on CNN, “the best” by Newsweek and a jerk by Stephen Colbert.

Musician, researcher and audio identity pioneer, STEVEN MILTON, uses music and sound to connect participants with their work goals and skills in a whole new way.  Students learn to open their eyes and ears to new creative opportunities through the universal medium of music.

Steven is the co-founder of Listen, an audio branding agency based in NYC and Sydney, Australia. He creates sound identities, interactive experiences for clients including Virgin Mobile, Kodak, Bacardi, GE, TV Land, New Era, and Nickelodeon. Milton received a Master’s degree in Musicology from the New England Conservatory of Music and completed his thesis on the postmodern aesthetics in Beck’s album Odelay. As a performer, Milton toured internationally with the rock band, The Cloud Room and founded experimental group Lavalier.

Comedian and singer ELIZA SKINNER’S mantra is: follow the fear. By exploring song structure through a combination of popular and entirely improvised tunes, she shows how confronting fears and acknowledging desires can lead anyone to their creative pot of gold.

Eliza Skinner has been called “Shelarious” by no less an expert than RuPaul.  Her TV appearances include:  Late Night With Conan O’Brien, Showtime’s PopTudors, AMC’s LifeCoach, and TBS’s Are We There Yet?. Eliza has written for Glamour, Cracked, Showtime, PRI’s Fair Game, and the NY Press. Her blog, NastyCute, was featured on the Huffington Post and Late Night With Jimmy Fallon.com and was called “world’s most hilarious Tumblr blog ever” by TheFrisky.com. She is a regular at the UCB Theater (NY and LA). She performs musical improv with Diamond Lion and Baby Wants Candy, and co-hosts Magic Bag, a weekly stand-up comedy show in Hollywood