Owner/Physical Therapist
PT, DPT, MBA, OCS, CSCS

Marissa T. Schaeffer, PT, DPT, MBA, OCS, CSCS (she/her) is the owner and founder of FlySpace Physical Therapy. A graduate of the SUNY Purchase College Conservatory of Dance, she earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy with honors from Columbia University and her MBA from Quantic School of Business and Technology. She is a board-certified Orthopedic Clinical Specialist and Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist with extensive experience in performing arts physical therapy and performance rehabilitation.

Marissa previously served as a Senior Physical Therapist at Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, where she treated students and company members, developed and co-led cross-training and wellness initiatives, and toured with the main company. In 2021, she founded FlySpace to create a space where performers can move confidently from rehabilitation back to the full demands of performance and life.

Today, Marissa leads FlySpace’s backstage and on-site physical therapy programs for performing arts organizations throughout New York City. She has worked with companies and organizations including Steps on Broadway, St. Ann’s Warehouse, Roundabout Theatre, Theatre for a New Audience, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, GALLIM, Gibney Dance, Pilobolus, Parsons Dance, HopeBoykinDance, and Emerge125, among others. She also coordinated physical therapy services for the national tour of Amal Walks.

Her recent theatre credits include serving as lead physical therapist for Pirates! A Penzance Musical, The Queen of Versailles, The Rocky Horror Show, and Anna Christie, among others.

Marissa’s clinical approach integrates orthopedic rehabilitation, movement analysis, strength and conditioning, and load management to help performers build the physical capacity required for the specific demands of their work.

Marissa has presented at performing arts medicine conferences and published in the Journal of Dance Medicine & Science and Orthopaedic Physical Therapy Practice. She has contributed to Dance Magazine, Dance Informa, Dance Teacher Magazine, Dance Studio Life, and Pointe Magazine, and is a writer for StageLync.

CLINICAL INTERESTS

• Performing arts physical therapy and dance medicine

• Return-to-performance rehabilitation

• Chronic and overuse injuries

• Low back, hip, and lower-extremity rehabilitation

• Foot and ankle injuries

• Shoulder and upper-extremity rehabilitation

• Movement analysis and movement coaching

• Strength and conditioning for performing artists

• Load management and progressive return to activity

• Injury prevention and performance optimization

SELECTED ADVANCED TRAINING

Marissa has completed extensive post-graduate training in orthopedic rehabilitation, performing arts medicine, movement analysis, manual therapy, and strength and conditioning. Selected advanced training includes:

• Load Adaptation & Athlete Performance — Tim Gabbett

• Dynamic Stabilisation of the Pelvis and Hip — Alison Grimaldi

• Movement Analysis and Treatment of Circus Shoulders

• Shoulder Assessment, Corrective Exercise and Programming — Eric Cressey

• The Performer’s Pelvis: Managing Pelvic Floor Dysfunction in Dancers and Artistic Athletes

• Institute of Physical Art (IPA) — PNF, Functional Mobilization, CoreFirst Strategies, and Visceral Mobilization

• North American Institute of Orthopaedic Manual Therapy (NAIOMT) — advanced coursework in cervical, thoracic and lumbopelvic spine and upper- and lower-extremity rehabilitation

• Kinetic Control: Optimizing Movement Health — SIJ and Pelvis — Mark Comerford

• Amplified Voice Manual Therapy, Level 1

• Emergency Medical Responder — American Red Cross

Physical Therapist
PT, DPT

Dylan Modugno, PT, DPT (He/Him) brings a passion for the performing arts and a deep commitment to helping artists stay strong, healthy, and resilient. With a Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Stony Brook University and a background in dance instruction, Dylan combines clinical expertise with creative insight to support performers at every stage of their careers.

He specializes in performing arts and orthopedic physical therapy, with extensive onsite experience across Broadway and professional dance companies. Dylan has provided backstage care and performance support for productions including Sunset Boulevard, Operation Mincemeat, Patriots, Shit.Meet.Fan, Old Friends, The Great Gatsby, The Notebook, and Empire the Musical. He has also worked with dancers from the Manhattan Youth Ballet, School of American Ballet, Dance Theatre of Harlem, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and collegiate programs at NYU, Pace University, and Marymount Manhattan College.

His backstage work includes acute injury triage, manual therapy, vocal massage, taping, and return-to-stage protocols—each tailored to the unique demands of live performance. Dylan ensures performers receive immediate, expert care that keeps them in peak condition throughout even the most rigorous schedules.

Outside the clinic, Dylan serves as adjunct faculty at Marymount Manhattan College, where he teaches Experiential Anatomy. His course empowers dancers with a deeper understanding of movement mechanics, injury prevention, and body awareness.

Dylan is dedicated to making rehabilitation both effective and educational, providing individualized care that helps performers return to the spotlight stronger than ever. At Flyspace, his mission is simple: to deliver informed, personalized support that helps artists soar — on stage ,in rehearsal, and beyond.

Physical Therapist
PT, DPT

Haley Loeffler, PT, DPT

Haley Loeffler, PT, DPT (she/her) is a physical therapist specializing in performing arts rehabilitation and orthopedic care. She earned her Doctor of Physical Therapy from Columbia University and holds dual bachelor’s degrees in Health and Human Sciences and Dance from Loyola Marymount University.

With a strong foundation in dance and a clinical approach rooted in movement science, Haley combines evidence-based orthopedic rehabilitation with an understanding of the unique physical demands placed on performing artists. She has particular clinical interests in post-concussion and vestibular rehabilitation, dysautonomia, hypermobility, hip and low back conditions, and foot and ankle injuries.

Haley is especially passionate about working with high school and collegiate dancers, helping young performers develop strength, resilience, and sustainable movement strategies as they navigate the demands of dance training. Her clinical approach incorporates movement retraining, progressive strengthening, manual therapy, and load management to support recovery and prepare patients for the demands of their activities.

Patient education is a cornerstone of Haley’s practice. She strives to make anatomy and movement science understandable and actionable, helping patients develop a deeper understanding of their bodies and the tools to independently support their long-term health and performance.

A native of Orange County, California, Haley has an extensive background as a dancer and has performed professionally in works by Debbie Allen, Bill T. Jones, and Paula Abdul, as well as for organizations including HBO and SHEIN. Through her work at FlySpace, she has treated a wide range of performing artists, including performers from Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Joffrey Ballet School, Steps on Broadway Conservatory, the Radio City Rockettes, The Metropolitan Opera Ballet, Ballet Hispánico, and St. Ann’s Warehouse, as well as Broadway productions including Hamilton, & Juliet, Smash, MJ The Musical, Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, The Lion King, and The Great Gatsby. Haley currently serves as the primary physical therapist for the Steps on Broadway Conservatory and has also served as primary physical therapist for several productions at St. Ann’s Warehouse.

Haley brings both her lived experience as a dancer and her clinical expertise to her practice, with the goal of helping patients return to movement feeling stronger, more confident, and better equipped to meet the demands of their work.

CLINICAL INTERESTS

• Performing arts physical therapy and dance medicine

• Post-concussion and vestibular rehabilitation

• Dysautonomia

• Hypermobility

• Hip and low back rehabilitation

• Foot and ankle injuries

• Adolescent and collegiate dancers

• Load management and progressive return to activity

• Strength training for dancers and performing artists

• Movement retraining and patient education

SELECTED ADVANCED TRAINING

Haley continues to pursue post-graduate education in performing arts medicine, orthopedic rehabilitation, load management, and the care of performing artists. Selected advanced training includes:

• Load Adaptation: The Training-Performance Puzzle — Tim Gabbett

• Institute of Physical Art (IPA) — Functional Mobilization I

• Beyond the Vagus Nerve — ReactivePT

• Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA) Webinar Series: Looking Back to Move Forward: Assessing Prior Fitness Levels to Inform Load Management in Performers

• Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA) 2025: Accessibility of On-Site Physical Therapy in Collegiate Dance Programs

• APTA Combined Sections Meeting — 2024, 2025, 2026

• FlySpace Backstage Triage Workshop

Front Desk Manager

Kelsey (she/her) is so thrilled to be a part of the FlySpace team for the last 3 years. She's the connecting link between our physical therapists, patients, and medical professionals. 

Kelsey is a graduate of Boston Conservatory at Berklee with a BFA in Musical Theatre and an emphasis in Songwriting. When she isn't answering your emails or communicating with your doctors you can find her writing music, picnicking in the park, or dancing her heart out in class. 

Having worked with FlySpace PTs on a chronic back injury, Kelsey can confidently say that there is no better place to seek physical therapy, especially specific to the performance world, than here at FlySpace! Kelsey hopes to be a welcoming, smiling face when you enter the clinic, don't be a stranger and say hello!

Front Desk Associate

Rachael (she/her) is so excited to be part of the FlySpace team as the Administrative Associate! She’s the friendly face connecting our physical therapists, patients, and medical professionals, helping keep everything running smoothly behind the scenes.

A graduate of Western Michigan University with a BFA in Musical Theater, Rachael is also currently a working actor in New York City. She understands firsthand the physical demands of the performance world and deeply values the kind of intentional, specialized care FlySpace provides to artists and movers of all kinds.

When she’s not answering your emails or coordinating schedules, you can find her auditioning, rehearsing and seeing as much live theater as possible. She’s so proud to be part of a team that supports performers in doing what they love — and she hopes to be a warm, welcoming presence when you walk through the door. Don’t be shy — say hello!

Mental Health Counsellor, MA 
Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

Andrew has been a fitness professional and certified strength and conditioning specialist for fifteen years. As a coach, he specializes in strength training, Olympic weightlifting, and the roots of behavior change. He holds a Master’s in Mental Health Counseling and has a particular interest in the role that systems such as culture, society, and mental wellness play in physical performance. He works with the general population, with performing artists from professional dancers to Broadway performers, as well as collegiate athletes. He believes that physical strength forms the foundation for all performance.

Motor Learning, MA Columbia Uni.
Industrial and Organizational Pyschology BS
Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist

Antoine has a been a fitness professional for sixteen years. He holds a master’s degree from Columbia University in Motor Learning and Control in addition to holding certifications in strength and conditioning, nutrition, corrective exercise, wave vibration training, and kettlebells. He has worked with collegiate, professional, and Olympic athletes as well as Navy SEALS, television personalities, professional dancers, Broadway performers, and laypeople. His philosophy centers on the notion that peak performance is relative. It is not one size fits all. Instead, each person requires an approach that will meet their unique demands. Therefore, any peak performance regimen should reflect and cater to those individual demands.