THE FACULTY

Click any image to MEET the faculty members.

The STAFF

MICAH BURGESS • executive DIRECTOR

Originally from West Virginia, Micah Burgess began playing guitar at age 9 and by age 15 he was playing professionally at local nightclubs and for corporate events. Micah credits his early professional experiences with broadening his musical taste and skill set. “When I started playing guitar I listened mostly to classic rock players and modern shredders,”, recalls Micah, “but once I started working regularly I found myself playing a lot of R&B, funk, blues, and jazz. We had to have a lot of varied material because our typical gig was four hours long!”

Upon graduating high school, Micah moved to Pittsburgh, PA to earn a Bachelor’s in jazz studies from Duquesne University. After graduating he settled into the Pittsburgh scene where he found regular work as a guitarist and guitar teacher. Several years after finishing his degree, Micah and his wife made the difficult decision to move to New York City so Micah could pursue a Master’s degree in jazz studies at New York University. Micah recalls, “I loved living in Pittsburgh, but the problem was that I was too comfortable. I wanted to go somewhere bigger to test my potential.”
Since moving to New York City in 2004, Micah has developed a varied career which includes performances with such artists as Lea Michele (Carnegie Hall), Tituss Burgess (Kennedy Center), Petula Clark (US tour), John Oliver, Matthew Broderick, Sir Ian McKellan, Bebe Neuwirth, Leslie Odom Jr., Rachel Dratch, Chris Meloni, Stephen Schwartz, Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty, Megan Hiltey, Jeremy Jordan, Chuck Cooper, Richard Kind, Danielle Hope, Charlotte Jaconelli, Stephanie D’Abruzzo, Seth Rudetsky, Harriet Harris, Katie Rose Clarke, Tracie Thoms, Shoshana Bean, Constantine Maroulis, Krysta Rodriguez, Joe Iconis, Fabian, Bobby Rydell, and Danny and the Juniors among others. His playing has been heard on television and radio including the 2014 Winter Olympics, ABC Family’s “Becoming Us”, and National Public Radio.

A staple on the NYC theater scene, Micah’s theater credits include School of Rock (Broadway), Scotland, PA (off-Broadway), Banana Shpeel (Cirque du Soleil), Soul Doctor (off-Broadway), Storyville (off-Broadway), and Tomorrow Morning (off-Broadway). He has also lended his talents as a sub guitarist on “MJ, the Michael Jackson Musical” (Broadway), “Kimberly Akimbo” (Broadway), “The Lightning Thief” (Broadway), “Be More Chill” (Broadway), “Beautiful, the Carole King Show” (Broadway), “Newsies” (Broadway), and “Soul Doctor” (Broadway).

As a composer, Micah co-wrote the score for “In The Magic of the Green Mountains”, a feature length documentary with Rob Cookman featuring Tony Trischka on banjo. Other composing credits include the Off-Broadway production of “The Hat Left Behind” as well as a documentary entitled “I Am Bombay”, a featured selection at the 2006 Indo American Arts Council Film Festival in New York City and the 2007 Stuttgart Film Festival Germany. In 2008, Micah released his first CD as a bandleader, “We Do Know You”.

As a guitar instructor, Micah has over twenty years of experience including adjunct positions at New York University, The New School, Duquesne University and the Queens Conservatory. He is a co-founder and Executive Director of Art House Astoria, a nonprofit conservatory for music and art in Queens, NY.

Jane Burgess • Director of marketing

Jane Burgess is a New York City-based singer/actor/instructor.

She has performed throughout the United States and Italy. She received her B.M. and Artist Diploma in vocal performance at Duquesne University (Pittsburgh, PA). Jane has appeared on opera, musical theater, and cabaret stages.

In 2009, Jane and her husband, Micah co-founded Art House Astoria, and Jane has since found herself busy teaching and co-directing for this ever-growing organization. The 2019-2020 season marks Art House Astoria’s 10 year anniversary! Jane is also the mother of two smart, energetic, creative, funny, and loving little boys; Charlie and Pete.

Trisha Lynn • Receptionist

Trisha Lynn is originally from Stone Mountain, Georgia. She attended the United States Naval Academy for 3 years as a physics major. After 3 years, Trisha felt her true calling was to pursue a career in modeling and she is now a published model. Trisha is also a designer, and creates clothing on the side. She is multi-lingual and plays three instruments- clarinet, trombone, and music mixer (the machine). Trisha was a part of the United States Naval Academy Drum and Bugle Corp and their gospel choir as a soprano.

Randi Hinds • Receptionist

Randi is a recent graduate from Cornell University who studied both Fine Arts and Film and who is thrilled to begin her career as an emerging artist and writer. Randi specialized in screenwriting and digital media and she is a fan of all things animated, with a slight bias towards the horror genre. Randi is passionate about art as well as diversity and ensuring that people of all backgrounds have the space to express themselves.

Nyra wise • Receptionist

Nyra, a recent graduate from Barnard College, is someone with a passion for storytelling and digital media, dedicated to driving transformative change through nonprofit work, fundraising, social media management, and peer support. As a current lover of musical theater and former theatre kid, she loves seeing student performers shine on stage!

Tayloe Schinz-Devico • Office Assistant

Tayloe Annalisa Schinz-Devico's personality is bigger than her name. Tayloe is a resident artist at Pure Vision Arts in Manhattan. She takes great pride in her art work and her work at Art House Astoria. Tayloe is thrilled to be back to work. She enjoys being part of the team and keeping everything clean and healthy for all of the Art House staff and participants.