RUBBERBAND (Montreal)

RUBBERBAND

Founded in 2002 by Victor Quijada, RUBBERBAND immediately imposed itself in Canada and abroad as an explosive one-of-a-kind troupe. In its very first year of activity, RUBBERBAND brought well-honed forms that deconstructed several principles of urban dance to the stage of Tangente. The company’s work quickly won over audiences and critics: in its end-of-season review, the Montreal daily Le Devoir included both Tender Loving Care and Hasta La Próxima in its pick of the five best dance productions of the year. A second creation cycle followed in 2003 when the company presented Reflections on Movement Particles with the support of Théâtre de L’L in Brussels and the MAI in Montreal.

The same year, RUBBERBAND presented Elastic Perspective, a grouping of pieces which highlighted the choreographer’s ability to exploit the rebellious aspect of Hip Hop and the richness of narrative movement. This work toured for six years and was performed more than a hundred times.

In 2004, Usine C hosted Quijada and his dancers in a residency which resulted in Slicing Static, a work that was named best dance production of the year by the Montreal cultural weekly, Hour (now Cult MTL). The following year, Anne Plamondon joined Quijada as artistic co-director and occupied this position until 2015. Also in 2005, the company performed in Japan, representing Canada at Expo 2005. RBDG’s renown continued to increase after that and touring opportunities multiplied, with as many performances in the United States as in Canada, along with frequent tours to Holland, Belgium, and England, where, among other works, sHip sHop Shape Shifting (2005) was presented.

From 2007 to 2011, the Cinquième Salle of Place des Arts hosted RUBBERBAND in a residency. Four new works were created during that period: Punto Ciego (2008), AV Input/Output (2008), Loan Sharking (2009), and Gravity of Center (2011). During this period, the company gave an average of 40 performances annually. Lecture-demonstrations were developed and instituted as cultural mediation activities following the presentation of each new work. The sessions have been highly successful among presenters who take advantage of this tool to develop their audiences. In parallel, the company supports the emerging generation of dancers by mentoring and through initiatives such as the Post-Hip-Hop Project, which, in its three successive editions, gave some twenty young artists from the hip-hop scene a first experience of creation and dissemination in a professional framework.

In 2013, RUBBERBAND presented Empirical Quotient, giving six dancers the opportunity to prove themselves in a complex, very physically demanding choreography — a demonstrable culmination of the RUBBERBAND Method. In 2016, the company brought Vic’s Mix to the stage, a work composed of highlights from its repertoire, a kind of “best-of” encapsulating the organization’s sizzling trajectory from its beginnings.

Along with its many short pieces and special projects, RUBBERBAND has staged 14 full-length productions, tours intensively in Quebec and the rest of Canada, and presents its works on a regular basis in several European countries, Mexico, and the U.S.A. Since 2017, the troupe has comprised 10 dancers from diverse backgrounds. Currently, RUBBERBAND is touring locally and internationally with Vic’s Mix and is adapting City Threads, its outdoor ambulatory piece for 40 dancers, for presentation in a number of cities. Since 2018, the company is also touring Ever So Slightly, its first production for a vast performance space, with a battalion of ten dancers and 2 live musicians.

Since 2002, Victor Quijada and RUBBERBAND have not only redefined break dance codes within an institutional context and enlivened the Quebec dance scene, but have opened the way for new creators fascinated by this dance form. Armed with a technique he conceived for dancers, the RUBBERBAND Method – an electrifying vocabulary combining the energy of Hip Hop, the refinement of classical ballet, and the angular quality of contemporary dance – and some 40 creations and collaborations in Canada and abroad behind him, Victor Quijada has always continued to evolve and innovate throughout his prolific career.

Born and raised in Los Angeles, the child of Mexican parents, Victor first danced in the b-boying circles and hip-hop clubs of his native city. He performed with Rudy Perez from 1994 to 1996, then moved to New York City to join THARP! After spending three years with that company and following a stint with Ballets Tech, in 2000 he came to Montreal to join Les Grands Ballets canadiens. In 2002, he founded RUBBERBAND, throwing himself into deconstructing the choreographic principles he had learned by blending them with the raw ideology of his street dance origins. His creations – numerous short works and 14 full-length productions – are distinguished by a powerful theatricality, the energy of improvisation, and certain codes of film language, the whole sculpted with an incomparable precision of movement.

For several years now, Victor has taught the RUBBERBAND Method throughout the world in workshops and internships for many dance companies, dance schools, and universities, as well as on a yearly basis in RBDG’s workshop for professional dancers; at the Académie du Domaine Forget in Charlevoix every summer; and in his classes at the Glorya Kaufman School of Dance at the University of Southern California (USC). As guest choreographer, he has created new works for dance and circus companies; notably in return commissions for Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Scottish Dance Theatre.

Besides his stage productions, Victor has been involved in almost a dozen dance films, as director, choreographer, or dramaturge. His short film, Hasta La Próxima, was a finalist at the American Choreography Awards in 2004. He also choreographed the music videos Man I Used to Be by k-os, La garde by Alexandre Désilets, and Elton John’s Blue Wonderful. His Gravity of Center – The Movie won Best Experimental Short at the CFC Worldwide Short Film Festival of 2012, among other awards, and was shown at several exhibitions and national and international festivals.

Victor Quijada was artist-in-residence at Usine C (2004 and 2006) and at Place des Arts (2007-2011), and has won many awards, including Britain’s National Dance Award for Outstanding Modern Repertory (2003), the Bonnie Bird North American Award (2003, U.K.), the Peter Darrell Choreography Award (2003, U.K.), the International Touring Award of the Canadian Dance Alliance (2012), and two awards from the Princess Grace Foundation-USA (Choreography Fellowship, 2010; Work in Progress Residency, 2016).

In December 2017, Victor Quijada received the award for cultural diversity at the Prix de la danse de Montréal and was, in 2019, one of the finalists for the 34th Grand Prix du Conseil des arts de Montréal as well as among the four finalists for the 2019 Charles-Biddle Prize, instigated by Culture pour tous and the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation and Inclusion (MIFI).

Yan Lee Chan – Lighting Design
Yan Lee Chan began studying lighting design and subsequently earned a degree in stage management and technical direction in the theatre arts program at Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe. He worked in Europe, assisting Olivier Duplessis and other dance artists before settling in Montreal, where he has worked in the performing arts for over a decade. Starting in his early teens, Yan performed as a sleight-of-hand magician and he has brilliantly applied these skills to lighting concepts that create stage illusions. He has collaborated with many Canadian choreographers and performing arts companies, including Sonya Biernath, Lin Snelling, Bill Coleman, Andrew de Lotbinière Harwood, Nicole Mion, Stéphan Gladyszewsky, Jenn Goodwin, Pamela Newell, Hélène Langevin, Momentum, Théâtre du Grand Jour, Théâtre du Rideau Vert, Ondinnok, and Pigeons International. He began his relationship with RBDG as a lighting designer in 2003, becoming the company’s technical director in 2009. This close collaboration has led Yan to accompany Victor Quijada in various commissions, notably with Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and Scottish Dance Theatre.

Jasper Gahunia (aka DJ Lil’ Jaz) – Musical Director & Original Music
Jasper Gahunia is a DJ, producer, songwriter, musician, and teacher. He began his career in the mid-nineties as a specialized DJ (turntablist), winning the Toronto DMC DJ competition title three times and becoming the Canadian DMC Champion in 1998. During this period, he also shared the International Turntablist Federation (ITF) Western Hemisphere Team title with his crew, Turnstylez; he became ITF World Beat Juggling Champ a year later. Jaz has graced stages worldwide as a DJ and keyboardist with Nelly Furtado and K-OS. At Toronto’s Royal Conservatory of Music, where he graduated in piano, Jaz currently teaches the first-ever Scratch from Scratch: DJ Fundamentals course. He has also collaborated with the Canadian Opera Company in the production of a series of mini-operas fused with hip-hop beats and scratching, and created the musical score for many of RBDG’s stage productions and commissions carried out by Victor Quijada.

Mathieu Leroux – Dramaturgy
Mathieu Leroux is a graduate of the performance and creation program of L’École Supérieure de théâtre of UQÀM. Co-founder and artistic director of the theatre collective Les Néos, he wrote, directed, and performed some 100 short plays over a five-year period. A solo work, La naissance de Superman, was presented in 2009, and his play, Scrap, ended the season at Espace Libre in 2012. Mathieu was co-adaptor, with director Louis-Karl Tremblay, of the classical Greek theatre cycle, Les Atrides, presented in Montreal in spring 2013; he also acted in this six-part saga. Recently, he collaborated in the writing and dramaturgy of Ludi Magni, presented by the Nouveau Théâtre Expérimental in spring 2015. He has danced for choreographer Helen Simard, performed with DJ Champion, and was rehearsal director for three productions by Solid State. Mathieu also founded and directed theatre company Putto Machine from 2004 to 2011, was part of the touring troupe of Théâtre Sans Fil – marionnettes géantes for eight years, and obtained his M.A. in French literature at U. de M. in 2011. His debut novel, Dans la cage, was published by Héliotrope in 2013, and his critical essay, Quelque chose en moi choisit le coup de poing, was published by La Mèche in 2016. Other publishing houses and magazines have also featured his writing, notably, L’Instant même and Flaneur Berlin. Besides his work with RBDG, Mathieu is collaborating anew with Helen Simard as dramaturge on the second and third instalments of a trilogy on American musician Iggy Pop.

Cloé Alain-Gendreau – Costume Design
Cloé Alain-Gendreau has worked in the performance arts since graduating from the theatre program at Cégep de Saint-Hyacinthe in 2009. Applying her talents to a wide spectrum of projects, she has been costume designer, stylist, scenographer, and props person in theatre, the circus arts, and dance. Her passion is the contemporary scene. Cloé’s experience includes work at Théâtre La Chapelle with Clap Clap (2012), Moi et une Love Letter (2013), and Cube blanc (2013); at Espace Libre with Tranche-cul (2014) and La singularité est proche (2017); at the Tohu with Psy (2010), Me, myself and us (2013), Cuisine et confessions (2014), Triptyque (2015), and Reversible (2016), as well as the open-air productions Grand coup de mauvais coups (2011) and Plyball (2016). After collaborating with RUBBERBAND in City Thread (2017), Cloé is excited by the prospect of following this up with  Ever So Slightly (2018).

Jean Bui
Jean Bui studied visual art and urbanism before deciding to explore the artistic and athletic potential of the human body through parkour and the circus arts. After general training for the circus in 2011, he completed the contemporary dance program at UQAM. He has worked with George Stamos, Manuel Roque, Katya Montaignac, and Maud Saint-Germain, and has appeared in music and promotional videos, television series, and feature films. He joined RUBBERBAND in 2015.

Daniela Jezerinac
Daniela Jezerinac grew up in Mississauga, Ontario, where she began dancing at a local studio. At the age of 15, she became a company member of Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre, where she stayed for three years. Upon her training there, she performed works by José Limón, Colin Connor, Kevin Wynn, Robert Glumbek, and Ofillio Sindadhino. She is currently finishing her studies at the Conservatory of Dance at SUNY Purchase College in New York. Jezerinac joined RUBBERBAND in 2018.

Emma-Lynn Mackay-Ronacher
Emma-Lynn Mackay-Ronacher resides from small town Kemptville, Ontario, where she started dancing at a local studio before moving to Montreal at the age of 14, to continue her training at L’École supérieure de ballet du Québec. After five years in the professional program, where she trained in classical and contemporary dance, she graduated at the age of 19. Upon graduation Emma began freelancing for renowned choreographers and companies, such as Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, Anne Plamondon Productions, Gioconda Barbuto and Veronique Giasson, among others. Emma-Lynn joined RUBBERBAND in 2021.

Jessica Muszynski
Jessica Joy Muszynski is a Canadian choreographer and dancer born in Burnaby, BC, where she began training in ballet at the Richmond Academy of Dance, before moving to Calgary, AB in 2012. A growing curiosity in dance led her to become self-taught in Hip Hop and Contemporary by mimicking YouTube videos. In May 2019 she graduated from University of Southern California with a BFA in Dance. During her time at school she had the opportunity to dance in excerpts of works by William Forsythe, Crystal Pite and Victor Quijada. Post-graduation you can find Jessica in a music video for a popular band called half•alive and in Germany performing with Aszure Barton & Artists. She joined RUBBERBAND in September 2019.

Jovick Pavajeau-Orostegui
Jovick Pavajeau-Orostegui was born in Miami, Florida, and began his formal dance training in Bogotá, Colombia at the age of 15 under the direction of Jaime Otálora. Later, he attended George Mason University where he received the Kidd/Stearns Dance Talent Scholarship and graduated with a BFA in Dance in 2020. He has attended workshops with RUBBERBAND, VIM VIGOR, David Dorfman Dance and Springboard Danse Montreal under the direction of Alexandra Wells – where he performed work by Lior Lazarof and Johannes Wieland. After graduating in 2020, Jovick moved to New York City where he was an apprentice with David Dorfman Dance. In his time in NYC, he also performed with VIM VIGOR and collaborated with other New York based artists such as Jordan Demetrius Lloyd, Robert Rubama, and Cameron McKinney of Kizuna Dance. Jovick relocated to Montreal in 2021 to join RUBBERBAND.

Brontë Poiré-Prest
Brontë Poiré-Prest hails from Montreal, Quebec. She fell in love with the art of movement at Ballet Divertimento, where she started her classical dance training in 2010. She then continued her studies at L’École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, where she had the fortune to work and collaborate with renowned choreographers such as Angélique Willkie, Hélène Blackburn and Alan Lake. Upon leaving school, she was invited to work with several well-established companies from Montreal such as Van Grimde Corps Secrets, Le Carré des Lombes and as a freelancer for Compagnie Marie Chouinard. Poiré-Prest joined RUBBERBAND in 2018.

Jerimy Rivera
Jerimy Rivera, a native of New York City, practiced gymnastics from an early age, but after several experiences with New York City Ballet, he decided to dedicate himself exclusively to dance. After training with Steps on Broadway, he broadened his stylistic reach to contemporary dance, Hip Hop, jazz ballet, and musical theatre dance. While an adolescent, he studied for two years at the JKO School at American Ballet Theatre under Franco Devita and Raymond Lukens before joining Manhattan Youth Ballet. Rivera continued his training at The French Academie of Ballet under François Perron and Nadège Hottier; in 2012, he toured with West Side Story – The Musical. In 2013, he moved to Montreal, where he danced with Les Grands Ballets canadiens for four years. Rivera joined RUBBERBAND in 2017.

Adèle Ross
Adèle Ross is a Montreal-native multidisciplinary artist who started her training by exploring contemporary dance, hip-hop and jazz. Through hip-hop, she developed a passion that lead her to chose the professional path. She then furthered her training at Ballet Divertimento where she worked with choreographers such as Amélie Rajotte, Christopher Rudd and Owen Montegue. In the spring of 2021, she graduated from The School of Toronto Dance Theatre where she collaborated with many choreographers including Pulga Muchochoma, Alanna Kraaijveld, Michael Caldwell, Roberto Campanella and Peggy Baker. To continue developing herself, Ross took part in different intensives with RUBBERBAND, Gaga People, Kylie Thompson Dance, VIAS, Domaine Forget and the Conexión festival. With Lou Amsellem, she is the co-founder of the collective Horizons which aims to explore contact, environment and sharing. She joined RUBBERBAND in 2021.

Ryan Taylor
Ryan Taylor, originally from Colchester, England, was introduced to dance via Hip Hop and breakdancing, joining Battalions Crew and participating frequently in European competitions. Training under Akram Kahn at the National Youth Dance Company inspired him to continue his dance studies at the London Contemporary Dance School where he was taught by Hofesh Shechter, Dane Hurst, and Sasha Roubicek, among other artists. In 2017, dancing in Rosalind by James Cousins Company at Edinburgh Festival Fringe, he won the award for Best Moment of the Festival. Taylor joined RUBBERBAND in 2017.

Paco Ziel
Paco Ziel began studying music and art at age 12 at the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes in Mexico, his country of origin. He won a scholarship to attend Estudio Profesional de Danza Ema Pulido, where he honed his technique and performance skills. He came to Montreal in 2011 to continue training in classical ballet at l’École supérieure de ballet du Québec. His choreography, Huapango, won first prize at the 2011 Bravissimo competition, and another work, Mexica, garnered positive reviews from Mexican critics. Ziel is a co-founder of the Montreal-based dance collective, Quantum. He joined RUBBERBAND in 2015.

Kaija Pepper’s latest book, Falling into Flight: A Memoir of Life and Dance (Signature Editions), was recently reviewed by the Vancouver Sun. She has written three books on Canadian dance, including The Man Next Door Dances: The Art of Peter Bingham (Finalist for the 2008 City of Vancouver Book Award, Dance Collection Danse Press) and, with Allana Lindgren, was co-editor of the anthology Renegade Bodies: Canadian Dance in the 1970s. Kaija has contributed to national and international magazines, anthologies, journals and theatre programs, and has been a regular contributor to the Globe and Mail. She is the editor of Dance International magazine, which moved online in January 2020.