Student choreographic production

With outstanding training programs (regular, ad hoc and ongoing courses), the Dance Department at UQAM opens up myriad avenues of contemporary dance to students. Whether the student pursues a B.A. degree, a certificate, a specialized studies diploma, a Master’s or Ph.D., each one will be able to develop the skills required to pursue a career as a dancer, choreographer or teacher. A personalized structure is offered to all dance artists to enable them to expand their knowledge and enhance their dance technique. A key element of Dance Department training is the staged performances of the B.A. program, an opportunity for students to push beyond their usual limits and to refine their artistry. Whether creating or producing their own show or presenting a piece specially designed for them, or performing a piece from the repertoire of established companies, students are called on to give everything they have to the production. The presentations are platforms that allow an audience to appreciate emerging young talent, the dance stars of tomorrow. For this staged dance performance the Dance Department is presenting a double bill featuring two choreographers. Their work has attracted acclaim on many stages both here and elsewhere, and they have been asked to revisit excerpts from their repertoires.

Danièle Desnoyers is a leading figure of Quebec dance who in 1989 founded her own company, Le Carré des Lombes, which went on to present a dozen outstanding productions in Canada, the United States, Europe and Asia. Her choreography is characterized by a kinetic landscape of pure movement, and her artistic research is distinguished by the art of staging a convergence of dance, visual arts and music. Danièle Desnoyers has been a professor at the Dance Department since 2012. The choreographer Virginie Brunelle graduated with a B.A. in dance from UQAM in 2007. Over the years she has made her mark with pieces that have won over audiences with their humanism and humour. Her work focuses on the complexity of social relations, exposing the duality of social pressure and the individual’s search for personal freedom. Virginie Brunelle is inspired by the everyday social and personal to-and-fro, demystifying the human experience through dance.