Sylvie-Ann Paré
Born in Montréal in 1974, Mélanie Demers studied dance, literature, and theatre in Québec City before returning to her hometown to train as a performer at LADMMI, l’école de danse contemporaine. She graduated in 1996 and began her career working with several choreographers, including Danièle Desnoyers, Roger Sinha, and Paula de Vasconcelos. Two years later, she joined Ginette Laurin’s company, where she worked for nearly ten years while also collaborating with emerging choreographers. Alongside her work as a performer with O Vertigo, she began her career as a choreographer immediately after finishing her training.
From the start, her work captivated audiences with its originality, richness, and complexity. Her early creations were imbued with playfulness and humor, even as she was already exploring the darker aspects of the human condition. Light and refreshing in Les Oubliettes, Failles, and Le même ciel, her theatricality grew sharper with Mayday, created in 2006 for the collective Échine Dô, a work that foreshadowed the strangeness that now characterizes her style. The explosive energy of her beginnings softened into the sensuality of Transistor before condensing into the dramatic intensity of her more recent works.
A socially engaged artist, Mélanie Demers has taught dance in Kenya, Niger, Brazil, and Haiti, her father’s homeland, where she has been involved in the development of two cultural centers. The harsh realities of developing countries and the daily struggles of disadvantaged populations have reinforced her conviction that art only has meaning through its political reach and its ability to provoke reflection. From this perspective, she created Les Angles morts (2006), Sauver sa peau (2008), Junkyard/Paradis (2010), Goodbye (2012), WOULD (2013), and MAYDAY remix. Believing that there is always a reason to hope, even in the most difficult circumstances, she named her company MAYDAY, founded in 2007. To date, Mélanie Demers has created around fifteen works and presented them in some thirty cities across Europe, the Americas, Africa, and Asia.
Drawing from the source of infinite possibilities, WOULD is a reflection on failures, falls, and missteps that inevitably mark the imperfect journeys of our lives. Dancers Marc Boivin (winner of a Dora Award in Toronto for his performance) and Kate Holden face off like wild animals approaching each other cautiously. In 2013, a short version of WOULD was presented in Toronto by Firstthingsfirst, followed by a full-length version in Montréal at Usine C from April 8 to 11, 2015.
JURY NOTES
The members of the CALQ selection committee were captivated by the originality and boldness of the choreographic work WOULD, which skillfully combines text and movement. This creation was presented in its full-length version in Montréal at Usine C in April 2015. In it, Mélanie Demers asserts a strong and unique signature. She directs her dancers with precision, leading them to a brilliant performance. With a sharp reflection on the human condition and its bleak future, the work is tinged with sparkling humor.
Sabrina Reeves
