(4/30) From Stage to Weightlessness: The Making of PARABOLES

When:  Apr 30, 2026 from 12:00 to 13:00 (ET)

RSVP Information: https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/zs475ua/lp/c8f1e247-bcc5-4069-a7cd-a1f895b9add5

AIAA LA Section and GDST-TC/MSP-TC online Webinar 4/30

(On-line presentation/webinar)

Thursday, April 30, 2026, 12 PM EDT (GMT-0400) / 9 AM PDT (GMT -0700)

Apr 30

From Stage to Weightlessness: The Making of PARABOLES

Presenter / Speaker:
Natasha Tsakos
Founder & Show Maker, SpaceWonders.co

Moderator:
Robert C. Wolcott, Adjunct Professor of Innovation at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, venture investor and Co-Founder of TWIN Global

Co-Moderator:
Jason Lee
Associate Professor in Residence, School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering, Univ. Connecticut;
Secretary and incoming Vice Chair, AIAA Gravity Dependent Science Technology Technical Committee (GDST-TC) (aka Microgravity Space Processes Technical Committee (MSP-TC))

(The speaker will present online remotely.)

Starbucks Willow and Long Beach (Meeting Room (very limited seats))
281 E Willow St., Long Beach, CA 90806
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Virtual location

You will receive a confirmation email with a URL.

Apr 30, 2026 12:00pm ET - Apr 30, 2026 01:00pm ET

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From Stage to Weightlessness: The Making of PARABOLES

In this session, hosted by Robert C. Wolcott, Adjunct Professor of Innovation at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, venture investor and Co-Founder of TWIN Global, Natasha Tsakos shares the story of Space Wonders: the first theatrical company for space. From 25 years of adventurous theater making to 15 years of space experience, she traces the path to PARABOLES, a fully choreographed performance in microgravity currently in preparation for flight. Join us and discover what it takes (physically, cognitively, creatively) to rehearse for a stage that doesn't exist yet, and why culture, performance, and the arts are the infrastructure of a thriving civilization, on Earth and beyond it.

Presenter / Speaker:

Natasha Tsakos

Award-winning director, performer, and producer

Founder & Show Maker

SpaceWonders.co

Natasha Tsakos is an award-winning director, performer, and producer exploring what happens when art enters environments humans were never meant to inhabit. She has performed across six continents, from TED and the Super Bowl with Cirque du Soleil to the G20 Summit, Discovery Channel, and Tribeca Film Festival. She speaks globally, including at the United Nations General Assembly and Google, on how art shapes innovation.

Her space training includes lunar parabolic flight and impedance studies at NASA JSC, neutral buoyancy at NASA Ames, astronautics and high-G aerobatic training at the IIAS, NASA L'SPACE Academy (first prize), and MIT's New Space Economy program. She founded Space Wonders, the first theatrical company for space, developing performances created in microgravity and brought back to Earth as immersive experiences, research, and education. Its flagship production, PARABOLES, is a fully choreographed performance in weightlessness, tracking performer biometrics (EEG) to study human expression and cognition in altered gravity. She is also a founding member of Duckweed Labs, a space food startup twice awarded by NASA. Natasha is a member of AIAA.

Moderator:

Robert C. Wolcott

Adjunct Professor of Innovation at the University of Chicago and Northwestern University, venture investor and Co-Founder of TWIN Global

Co-Moderator:

Jason Lee

Associate Professor in Residence, School of Mechanical, Aerospace and Manufacturing Engineering, University of Connecticut;

Secretary and incoming Vice Chair, AIAA Gravity Dependent Science Technology Technical Committee (GDST-TC) (aka Microgravity Space Processes Technical Committee (MSP-TC))

Disclaimer: The views of the speakers do not represent the views of AIAA, AIAA LA Section, or AIAA GDST-TC/MSP-TC. This event is not sponsored or endorsed by the venue / meeting room location.

[AIAA Los Angeles Section], [contact@aiaa-lalv.org], [https://www.aiaa-lalv.org]

[AIAA GDST-TC/MSP-TC], [https://www.linkedin.com/company/aiaa-msptc/]

Location

Dial-in Instructions:
Please RSVP https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/zs475ua/lp/c8f1e247-bcc5-4069-a7cd-a1f895b9add5 and the link/instructions will be in the Confirmation email shortly after the successful registration. Thank you very much.
Online Instructions:
Url: https://aiaa.zoom.us
Login: Please RSVP https://lp.constantcontactpages.com/ev/reg/zs475ua/lp/c8f1e247-bcc5-4069-a7cd-a1f895b9add5 and the link/instructions will be in the Confirmation email shortly after the successful registration. Thank you very much.
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Contact

Editor GDST-TC/MSP-TC

editor.aiaagdsttc@gmail.com