cirqueSaw is an award-winning production company creating remote theatre, animation, and zines, created by Nathan Leigh and Nicole Orabona. In addition to creating cirqueSaw together, living together, and raising a perfect cat together, they also have separate artistic bios, as seen below.
Nathan Leigh (he/him) is a composer, animator, writer, and activist. His work investigates storytelling through the interplay of cutting-edge and bespoke technology with classic handmade techniques. His stop motion animations for I Know What It Means To Be Free, The House On Stilts, The Tulsa Post-Modernist Society, I Have Quite A Bit of Data, and Washashores have been recognized by JFREJ’s The Mazals, Newark International Film Festival, Tagore International Film Festival, Short Stop International Film Festival, and Manhattan Rep’s STORIES Film Festival among others.
Nathan is the author of the plays Let’s Start a Zine, The Horse Thief, Orpheus the Liar, the short play suite The Hyperion, as well as the serialized musicals Sealand! and William Henry Harrison: Time Detective which received their initial runs as part of the Serials@TheFlea. With Kyle Jarrow, Nathan co-created the musicals Big Money (WTF Boris Segall Fellowship 2008) and The Consequences (World Premiere 2012 at WHAT). With the Liars and Believers ensemble, Nathan Leigh composed scores for adaptations of Song of Songs, Icarus, and A Story Beyond. With Megan Sass, he is the composer and lyricist for The Mad Scientist?s Guide (NYC Fringe 2015).
From 2010 to 2023, Nathan served as the staff music columnist for AFROPUNK. In addition to his regular column Sound Check, Nathan curated AFROPUNK’s monthly mixtape series from 2014 to 2023. In 2011, he became a founding member of the long-running activist arts collective The People’s Puppets of Occupy Wall Street whose signature puppet, Lady Liberty, was recently displayed at the Mus�e de la Civilization in Quebec City.
In 2012, Nathan released his debut solo album A Life In Transit, following it with Ordinary Eternal Machinery in 2017. Myths, Conspiracy Theories, and Other Stuff I Made Up To Sound Interesting with backing band The Crisis Actors was released in 2020. Nathan’s animated video for “The Immortan Joe Memorial Highway” won Best Music Video for Port Blair International Film Festival, Jersey Shore Film Festival, and Geek Fest Toronto. Nathan is currently at work on his debut feature film, a cyberpunk stop motion animation titled The Golem, expected out in 2025.
Nathan is a proud member of IATSE Local 829
Nicole Orabona (they/she) is an actor, director, producer, zine maker, and committer to the bit. They believe in the power of a stupid idea and thrive in collaborative and unconventional environments. As an actor, they have worked on over 30 interactive productions and prestige immersive events for clients that include Netflix and MGM. On-screen you can see them opposite Claire Danes in Hulu’s “Fleishman is in Trouble” or as Det. Arielle Lehane on “Law and Order.”
As a director, Nicole has a focus on new and devised works. Their live directing work has been seen at Feinstein’s/54 Below, The New Ohio, and TheatreLab. In addition to being cirqueSaw’s primary actor, she has produced and directed two micro-shorts, Washashores and I Have Quite a Bit of Data. Both shorts have been accepted into multiple international film festivals, including Manhattan Rep’s STORIES Film Festival. With Nathan Leigh she co-wrote and directed Lady Scientists, a Devised Meditation on Trope for Permafrost Theatre Collective. Nicole was a member of the 2022 Moxie Arts Incubator cohort, directing works by Jasmine Sharma and SMJ.
After a year as co-artistic director, Nicole now serves as the marketing director of Emit Theatre and is a member of the literary committee for WAM Theatre. 2023 recipient of a Mass Cultural Council Pandemic Recovery Grant, and a finalist for the 2023 R.Evolución Latina Doreen Montalvo “Do It Anyway” scholarship.
Nicole is a proud member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA, and Ring of Keys.
About our Values
cirqueSaw recognizes that producing work which engages with social issues requires that we practice our values. We believe that underpaying artists from marginalized communities does nothing to end their marginalization and are therefore committed to making sure all people involved in our productions are paid a fair rate for the work they do. Our fundraising and programming is built around a goal of maintaining a humane schedule and workload for all involved. It is central to our work that we only produce art which is achievable within our means and without relying on underpaid and unpaid labor. All donations to cirqueSaw help us towards this essential mission.
