La Soirée dont vous êtes les héros

A researcher and an independent artist, Mathilde Perahia explores circus devices and aesthetics for their capacity to provoke a shift in our relationship to the world. She holds a PhD from Concordia University, in which she studied Montréal circus performances as spaces for representing queer thought. Within this framework of socio-aesthetic exploration, her recent experience of motherhood led her to create a work on this theme. In doing so, she brings together her skills as a creator-dramaturg and performer, fostering the emergence of new circus forms shaped by intimate experiences placed in dialogue with social and philosophical reflections. She is the mother of Yaël, who is 4.

A multidisciplinary circus artist and a senior circus instructor, Élise Leblanc has been developing a practice rooted in social circus and alternative forms of circus performance for several years. A mother of two, each birth has profoundly influenced her relationship with creation and the stage, marking significant turning points in her artistic journey. Her rich and diverse path has taken her across Canada and the world, where she has created numerous circus acts and shows. Her work highlights a vision of circus as a tool for social transformation, sensitive expression, and dialogue between bodies and lived experiences.

A graduate of École Boulle in space design (Paris), Cassandre Chatonnier specialised in set design with a bachelor’s degree in Design for the Theatre from Concordia University. Since graduating, she has worked as a set designer, researcher, and teacher. She is particularly interested in the relationship between the performer and the space, and the different ways in which this relationship can inform her design practice. She holds a master’s degree in Theatre from UQAM on this subject, as well as a doctorate in Urban Studies (INRS), where she is interested in the relationship between Indigenous performance and the appropriation of space. She is the stepmom of a big Adrien and the mom of a small Cleo.

After completing her studies in visual arts at Université Laval, Geneviève Robitaille graduated from the professional training program at L’École de danse de Québec in 2015. She has worked with Lina Cruz since 2016, performing, among other works, the solo Tic-Tac Party and the group piece Morphs. Geneviève took part in Le Cri des méduses by Alan Lake and took on a role in Solitudes duo by Daniel Léveillé. She dances in ODE (premiered at the FTA in 2024) by Catherine Gaudet, as well as in Êtres de bois and the film Marée Noire by Fleuve Espace Danse, while also performing in previous works from both companies. She has also collaborated with Marie Lambin-Gagnon, La Otra Orilla, Social Growl Dance, Martin Messier, Sursaut, Jacynthe Carrier, Parts+Labour, Morgane Le Tiec, and Kimberley De Jong. In parallel with performing for other artists, she explores connections between visual arts and dance through a personal multidisciplinary art practice.

Gabrielle Lessard graduated from the Conservatoire d’art dramatique de Montréal in 2012. Alongside her acting career, she is involved in creative work and is interested in both writing and directing. Her latest play, La blessure, premiered at Espace Libre in 2022. The same year, she directed Brefs entretiens avec des femmes exceptionnelles at La Licorne, a production by Théâtre à l’eau froide, before devoting herself to Et puis par la fenêtre, nous pourrons voir les champs by Stéphanie Labbé. In 2024, her latest creation, JUDY, opened the doors of the Michelle-Rossignol theatre at the CTD’A. While continuing to devote herself to directing, notably with PàP, Gabrielle is frequently invited by professional theatre schools to direct the performers of tomorrow.

Leticia Hamaoui graduated from the Collège Lionel-Groulx Professional Theatre School with a degree in Theatre Production, Management and Stage Techniques. Since graduating in 2013, she has been involved in numerous artistic projects as a lighting designer. She recently participated in productions such as Incendies, directed by Elkahna and Ines Talbi at Théâtre Duceppe; La démagogie des dragons, directed by Vincent Kim for Productions Yuzu at Théâtre d’Aujourd’hui; Faire le bien, directed by Claude Poissant at Théâtre Rideau Vert; and Orgueil et préjugés, directed by Frédéric Bélanger. Increasingly involved in projects aimed at young audiences, Leticia designs lighting for productions such as Scriptarium at Théâtre Le Clou, Splendide Jeunesse for Projet MÛ, Chansons pour le musée for Mammifère, Sœurs Sirènes for Libre Course, and L’Arche de Noémie as well as Ma sœur for L’Arrière Scène.

Our artistic approach, born from a co-creation between mothers, unfolds a somatic and scenographic circus language to give voice to intimate experiences that also resonate socially. At the crossroads of circus and performance, we explored the metaphorical power of circus and its ability to experience the world differently, as is often the case with motherhood. Our maternal bodies might just be the most acrobatic of all!

Our collective physical writing, rooted in trust and intuition, emerged through a question-and-answer process in motion, grounded in our lived experiences as mothers. Throughout the creation, our personal stories of this transformative journey intertwined with philosophical reflection, taking shape through gestures, forms, and relationships — with one another, with matter, and with space.

We align ourselves with a form of contemporary circus where scenography becomes a dramaturgical partner: acrobatic apparatuses, bodies and materials engage in dialogue to carry intimate testimonies. A circus that documents, gives voice to other bodies and embraces transdisciplinarity without losing its essence.

Marbella Carlos AKA Joy Rider is a queer, Manila-born interdisciplinary movement artist based in Montréal. She holds an MA in Creative Arts Therapies, a BFA in Visual Arts and a B.Ed. in Visual Arts Education. In her practice, she uses burlesque as a medium to explore themes such as identity, queerness, sexuality, decolonization, pleasure and joy, and has presented her work in venues across Canada and internationally. Her work has been supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, MAI (Montréal, arts interculturels), CanAsian Dance, Festival Accès Asie, Parbleux, LA SERRE – arts Vivants, Neighbourhood Danceworks, and more.

Eric Leong (they/he) is a queer artist of Chinese-Bruneian descent who performs as Komodo. Their artistic journey began with over a decade of classical piano training through the Royal Conservatory of Music, later evolving into an autodidact dance practice spanning salsa, voguing, whacking, and burlesque. As the founder of Paifang, a queer cultural event series in Montréal’s Chinatown, their artistic practice is deeply rooted in community, exploring themes of intergenerational connection, queerness, and diasporic identity.

Emily Divry (she/her) is an emerging burlesque artist also known as Lia Jasmine, who views sensual performance as a means to connect with her body and reach the erotic within. Her journey in burlesque began through her mentor Joy Rider’s Walang Hiya, in which she performed as a backup dancer, and she has since aimed to create her own burlesque identity. Her signature act, Blossom, combines her love of sensual movement and her experience breaking out of the shame that surrounds her sexuality. Blossom was accepted into Vancouver International Burlesque Festival in 2025 and selected as the Fresh Faced Feature.

I blend Filipino cultural traditions with neo-burlesque to create performances that are sensual, playful, personal, and politically charged. Burlesque, for me, is a medium to claim agency over my body and sexuality, while Filipino dance, costuming, and storytelling provide a deep cultural vocabulary and heritage to work from. I weave these forms together to craft comedic, sensual and sometimes subversive moments that challenge colonial narratives, interrogate acculturation and celebrate diasporic identity. My process often begins with a cultural image, rhythm or gesture, which I then blend or contrast with elements of burlesque. The result is work that revels in glamour and joy while creating space for complex conversations about identity, belonging, and liberation.