About Josean and Mikey Vargas-Rodriguez
Josean and Mikey are designers who own a shop called Luci & Dona on Monroe Avenue in Rochester. Josean has been inspired by fashion since age 16 where he taught himself sewing and designed dresses for beauty pageants. He studied Elementary Education and took a fashion course before launching “J.Vargas” in 2012, initially selling accessories with bow ties. Josean was recognized as one of Advocate magazine’s “40 under 40” in 2013. Then in 2017, the business shifted focus to designing for drag performers, rebranding as Luci & Dona in 2018 – named after both Josean’s and Mikey’s drag personas, Lucida Brite and Donatella Mirage. Mikey received his Bachelor’s degree in Fine Arts in Graphic Design from the Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and has worked as a designer for the Democrat & Chronicle, Gannett, and currently USA Today. 

About Charmaine Bynoe-Norsen
Charmaine is our Fiber Arts Coordinator at Community Arts Connection. This is Charmaine’s third year making costumes and props for Dancing with The Arc. She received her Bachelor’s degree in Studio Arts from Concordia University in Montreal and her Master’s degree in Photographic Preservation from the George Eastman Museum. Outside of work, Charmaine continues to do art, as she is a formally trained potter and stays fairly busy with her own ceramic business, Cave of New York. She is also a student of the Japanese martial arts “laido” where she enjoys training in the art of samurai sword fighting. If she were to choose a theme song, she would select “I Like That” by Janelle Monae or Bebop jazz music. Charmaine loves Dancing with The Arc because it offers the opportunity to turn a simple idea into a completed vision and being able to collaborate with others to bring the vision to life. 

About Caprial Pecchia
Caprial is a Direct Support Professional at The Arc of Monroe. She has been assisting Charmaine with costumes and props for some of the dancers. She has always had a love for art and design, but especially fiber arts. Caprial has been sewing since she was 7-years-old and has taught several sewing and puppet making classes in previous workplaces. When she’s not at work, she loves to cook, make arts and crafts, garden, and be outside in nature. What Caprial loves most about Dancing with The Arc is how passionate the teams are and seeing how hard they work to perfect their performances.