The New York City-based Phantom Limb Company has been critically acclaimed for its reinvention of traditional theatrical forms, such as marionette puppetry, in order to probe issues of contemporary life and modern consciousness. Erik Sanko and Jessica Grindstaff are founders, co-creators and directors of PLC.

Jessica is an installation artist, painter and set designer whose work ranges from tiny Victorian taxidermied music boxes to wax and chalk paintings to 15 ft. tall puppets built out of barn lumber. Over the course of the past few years she has collaborated with such diverse artists as Ping Chong Company, Ulrike Quade, Geoff Sobelle of Pig Iron and Rainpan, and Mark Z. Danielewski.

Erik Sanko is a lifelong musician having played with The Lounge Lizards, John Cale, Yoko Ono, and his own band Skeleton Key. Additionally Erik was a closet puppet maker making marionettes for art collectors.

In the fall of 2006 Jessica and Erik created their first marionette play together called The Fortune Teller. A two-week run was extended to a three month sold-out run and more recently it was brought to the UCLA LIVE Festival for a 17-show sold-out run.

Subsequently, this emerging company was approached by David Harrington of the Kronos Quartet and commissioned to create a new marionette/music piece to open B.A.M.'s Next Wave Festival 2007. That piece was called Dear Mme., and its success encouraged the foundation of PLC and our next collaboration, tentatively titled The Shackleton Project.