Vertical dance on walls 

Registration deadline

September 19, 2024

Language

French

Maximum number of participants

11

Cost

Description

With the participation of the RQD

When : September 27th, 28 th, 29th septembre 2024 (15h)

9h30-15h (half an hour break)

Where: Academie de Cirque

Description de l'activité

This intensive training activity offers the opportunity to experiment with and deepen the practice of aerial dance—or vertical dance—with harnesses on a wall using various creative and choreographic approaches. It also allows artists to enrich their technique, establish a common artistic vocabulary, and explore different forms of performance related to the discipline. This training is aimed at artists from the circus and dance fields who have at least some initial experience with the discipline or aerial work.

Objective: This intensive workshop aims to refine one’s technique in vertical dance and develop artistic research while creating a meeting and gathering point for artists with a basic level of experience. The goal is to create a common technical vocabulary and develop the vertical dance community.

Program:

• Safety Review (1h): Installation and checking of safety equipment, discussion of different attachment options.

• Technical Work (4h): Jumps, swings, walks, flips, and inversions.

• Artistic Research (5h): Exploration and creation based on various constraints, both individually and in partner work involving ropes and combinations of ground and rope.

• Choreographic Composition (5h): Consolidation of learning through the creation of a choreographic excerpt. Presentation of the work completed at the end of the workshop (optional).

Formateur.trices :

Le Trio Vertical 

Mathilde Heuzé

Originally from France and based in Montreal since 2015, Mathilde is a multi-talented artist. As a dancer, acrobat, choreographer/director, artistic director, and teacher, she has been active in contemporary dance, gymnastics, and circus arts since graduating from the Montreal Contemporary Dance School in 2018. In Quebec, her specialty is aerial dance with harnesses, including vertical dance, suspension, and elastic work. She has also been developing methods for both ground and aerial dance and acrobatics since 2019.

Claire Jeannot

A contemporary dance artist, Claire Jeannot graduated from UQAM and the University of Lille 3 in France. After eight months in Italy, she developed an interest in creation, underwent training in vertical dance, and confirmed her desire to play with heights and gravity. Her work, characterized by its ethereal gestures but deep connection to its environment, was presented at Place de la Paix in Montreal in 2022 with the co-creation "Jardins Suspendus." This work blends vertical dance, contemporary dance, and immersive installation in partnership with Quartier des Spectacles.

She also performs in Kim L.Rouchdy’s work, which features suspension. Her choreographic work has been presented at festivals (Adelaide Fringe Festival 2019, Arts Alley Festival, recipient of CDA award – 2020 and RAR award – 2021) and visual arts exhibitions (Verger Créatif 2021, Le Livart 2019). The environment has been an integral part of her contemporary dance approach since 2019, leading to her exploration of vertical dance.

Natacha Viau

Graduated in contemporary dance from UQAM in 2016, Natacha has participated as a performer in various contemporary dance projects presented at Tangente, Festival Tournant, Zone Homa, and Home Run. Natacha trained in vertical dance with the Bandaloop company in 2016. She then began working on projects in this discipline as a co-choreographer and performer in collaboration with Julie Villeneuve. These short pieces have been presented on both natural (Pointe-à-la-Croix Climbing Festival 2022) and artificial walls (Montreal Nuit Blanche 2019, 2020, 2023).

Following her participation as a performer in contemporary and vertical dance in "Jardins Suspendus" by Claire Jeannot and Geneviève Lauzon (Quartier des Spectacles 2022), she continues to develop her vertical dance practice with Claire Jeannot and Mathilde Heuzé in the trio Mouvement Vertical.

Vincent Poliquin-Simms

Navigating between circus and dance, Vincent has made his mark on stage. Whether on the ground or in the air, he has successfully combined genres to develop his own style. Introduced to dance within the Crescendo troupe, he discovered a true vocation and pursued collegiate studies at the Quebec Dance School. This allowed him to perform with various companies, including Le fils d’Adrien Danse, L’Opéra de Québec, Fleuve Espace Danse, and Pigeons International. Recognized as a professional by his peers, Vincent trains and teaches circus arts at the Quebec Circus School. His dual passions have led him to numerous productions, including Best of Broadway, Dufour Évènements Spectacles et Images, Cirque du Soleil, Celebrity Cruise, Ex Machina, Cirque Éloize, and more.

In 2010, he founded Look-Up Arts Aériens, a company specializing in vertical dance and swaypole. Integrating circus and dance into his creations In Situ on cliffs, skyscrapers, and in theaters, he is now recognized worldwide as a vertical dance artist.

The desire to establish harness work as a distinct discipline perfectly represents the mission of the company.