Jonathan is a creative producer and educator working at the intersection of emerging technology and live performance.
At the University of Maryland (UMD), he is a faculty member and founding program manager of the New Works Incubator in the Immersive Media Design program. There, he is developing curriculum to explore the experiential possibilities of emerging technologies (AI, robotics, XR) and training students from across campus to leverage technology for social impact. He also leads several multidisciplinary research teams using live performance to probe AI, robotics (DANCE^2), and quantum computing theory (Quantum Choreographies and Science & Music of the Bloch Sphere). He is the co-curator of the "Future Frames AI Art Exhibition" and is working with students to develop a virtual training simulation for the UMD Fire Engineering program. He has served as a conference organizer for national symposiums on the impact of AI in the arts and the role of embodied practices in robotics and spatial technologies.
Jonathan is the Co-Artistic Director of Smoke & Mirrors Collaborative (SMC), an award-winning, non-profit production company that creates original works for theater, film, immersive media, and the web around socially relevant themes. SMC’s work has been presented at arts festivals and institutions across the US, South Africa, Germany, and the UK.
Recent projects with Smoke & Mirrors include the VR experience, “City of Sand,” winner of an Oculus Launch Pad grant and the documentary web-series, "Tangible Hope Project" (Best Documentary Series-Baltimore Next Media Web Festival), about communities creating positive change across America.
He is also a pioneer in VR performance technique as a part of the groundbreaking studios Ferryman Collective and Double Eye Studios and was a puppeteer in the original Broadway casts of “War Horse” and “Life of Pi.”
Jonathan serves on the board of the Immersive Experience Alliance, a nonprofit consortium of academic and industry members dedicated to empowering creators, educators, & innovators to use immersive media for social good.
He is a guest lecturer at the California State University Northridge and has been a featured speaker at SXSW, Meaningful XR, AR/VR Policy Conference, (Re)Connect Festival, and universities around the country.
