Photo Pierre-Yves Jortay
Photo Marie-Laure Marciano

BIOGRAPHY : GENESIS

My journey began at the National Circus School of Châtellerault and its circus-study high school where I took my first steps as a circus performer. With my circus baccalaureate in hand, I rush into a logical continuation, but also into the discovery of a completely different way of looking at pedagogy and human relations : the professional training program of the Quebec circus school and the Quebec culture open their arms to me for my greatest happiness.

I experimented with many disciplines : aerial silk ; handstand ; acrobatics ; passing ; trampolines ; flying trapeze ; and finally duo trapeze.

2 years later I find myself faced with a dilemma, after an overflow of injury, I decide to extricate myself from this path. After all, at 19, how can I be sure that the circus is “my way” if I have never tried anything else?

I therefore returned to my native land of Brussels to study psychology and education at the Free University of Brussels and realized that I could indeed be passionate about other disciplines than that of the circus.

One thing leading to another, I discovered the world of pedagogy at the same time, and began my professional career as an all-terrain performer / Swiss-knife collaborator / creator in the performing arts.

· CV ·

Studies :

2010

National Circus School of Châtellerault

Circus apprentice

2013

Quebec Circus School

High school graduation in my pocket, I’m flying to Quebec !

2015

ULB

Path deviation, I take a plane in the other direction and start studying psychology

2018

Professional life

My bachelor acquired, I stop beating around the bush and immerse myself in the deep end of the performing arts.

BEGINNING OF MY PROFESSIONAL JOURNEY

2018 · 2019

With my bachelor's degree in psychology in hand, I began several artistic collaborations :

First within the Animals collective founded by Sébastien Chollet, Coralie Vanderlinden and Cyril Briant : as an assistant, I learned the mechanisms of creation alongside creators such as Thomas Depryck and Nicole Mossoux.

As a performer, I am embarking on the “Met Liefde” adventure, a dance-theater project led by Agathe Meziani. The project played at the Courant d'Airs festival in 2018. During the festival, I met Médéa Anselin, a young director who hires me in her graduating project  from Insas, “Lo Stupro - Corps”. 

As a circus artist, I am going to the ZipZap Circus School in CapeTown (SA) for 3 months to coach in the professional training and perform a brand new aerial silk act, marking my official recovery as a circus artist.

"Met Liefde" d'Agathe Meziani avec Gaspard Rozenwajn
Aerial silk class in Brussels

PSYCHO-CIRCASSIAN PEDAGOGY

Mostly confronted in my classes with a female audience between 12 and 60 years old, I link my two training courses as a circus artist and a psychologist to try to overcome the many insecurities, traumas and difficulties felt by many of my students in the context of a "sports" activity.

Circus becomes for me a field of experimentation and a tool with a goal: empowerment of my students through confidence in themselves and in their bodies, the attenuation of competition and comparison for the benefit of mutual aid and cooperation, the creation of supportive and benevolent links to promote a safe, joyful, qualitative and intergenerational learning climate. 

Summer Tender Training

ADVENTURES, DRAMATURGY AND COLLABORATIONS

2018 · 2020

In March 2019, I am joining Unicef in Turkey to perform circus shows and give workshops for children in the Batman area. 

These experiences of “circus-social” fed me and put into perspective my Western and wealthy vision of creating shows. Gradually, I fell in love with creation and trained in dramaturgy during practice workshops at La Bellone with Karel Vanhaesebrouck and Camille Louis, and at the KunstenfestivaldesArts as a “Young Art Reporter”.

I also learned about the Feedback method and dove into it to perfect my training as an interdisciplinary artist. At this time I also met Yvain Juillard and his show “Cerebrum, The Reality Maker”. I am discovering for the first time the possible intersections between neuroscience and the performing arts. I assist him in his mediation project in the form of workshops and exhibitions around the notions of reality. 

Young Art Reporter - KunstenfestivaldesArts 2019

CONTINUATION AND DANCES

2018 · 2020

At the beginning of 2019, I danced at the Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège in “Aida” choreographed by Michèle-Anne de Mey and Fatou Traoré.

This series of contracts as a dancer "Met Liefde" ; "Lo Stupro" and "Aida" confirm an intuition that has been present for a long time : I want to discover and explore this new field of possibilities that is contemporary dance.

I therefore began to train myself during numerous workshops and courses alongside Ayelen Parolin, Lisa de Boit, Ultima Vez, Clément Thirion in viewpoints, Michèle Swennen, etc….

In March 2020, we present "Lo Stupro" at the XS festival at the National Theater, the last pre-pandemic performance.

"Aida" Opéra Royal de Wallonie-Liège

THE SOLO
A CIRCUS CONFERENCE

Photo Fabrice Mertens
All informations about this wonderful show are here !
2020·2048

Quickly, this pandemic break time allows me to immerse myself in years of notes, theoretical material and reflections. I am starting a project in collaboration with Gaspar Schelck “waiting for the end of confinement”, a research without expectations or ambition.

A year and a half later, on October 1, 2021, we presented for the first time “Le Solo - a circus conference”, my first creative project, led by a fantastic multidisciplinary team (Lorette Moreau, Leslie Mannès, Kélian Christophe, Lauryn Turquin, and other wonderful people) and supported by many institutions (Maison de la culture de Tournai, Mars-Mons Performing Arts, La Roseraie, the CCBW, Up - circus and performing Arts, Wolubilis Cultural Center, etc… ..).

The show begins its tour in March 2022 (Up festival, Spa festival, Propulse festival, Le Delta, Brain Week in Aix-en-Provence, etc.), a tour that will continue in 2023 and 2024.

WHAT'S NEXT ?

2020 · 20...........

Various projects punctuate these years of creation: aerial fabric events, an “aerial stuntwoman” contract for two advertisements for the Solidaris campaigns by Bleustein Agency, the preparation of a creation-workshop for circus semi-pro and professional artist, the creation of “Tender Training” to share my unique body practice from various influences, shootings for photographers eager for movement, facilitation sessions and training in the feedback method, etc… 

Septembre 2022, two new energies are taking place:

- A new adventure alongside Julien Fournet (l'Amicale) for his project "L'Enfance Majeure" (creation 2024), which I accompany mainly for the body and choreographic parts.

- A collaboration with the company t.r.a.n.s.i.t.s.c.a.p.e (Pierre Larauza and Emmanuelle Vincent) on their project "An anatomy of movements" which will be built in several stages and in different places (Marni; the cafes of the Marolles) until its completion in March 2024 in Halles of Schaerbeek.

At the beginning of 2023, I begin the design of a new project: "The Laboratory of Somatic Explorations". This research on our relationship to the body and more specifically to the sens of touch will be shape little by little, at its own pace, over the next few years.