HÉLÈNE BLACKBURN
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR AND CHOREOGRAPHER

Since 1983, Hélène Blackburn has made her daring choreographic voice heard in the contemporary dance world, both in Canada and abroad. She was trained in the Linda Rabin studios and at the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQÀM) and has performed with the Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault. Her dance, after 20 years of research, gives expression to a body of thought whose objective — in principle an outlook on human behaviour — has been shaped by studies in ethnography and theatre and ultimately takes the form of a passion for the dancing body. She views her creations as a collective act, and the name of the company she founded in 1989 reflects her social concerns and her commitment to a creative process based on collaboration. With each new creative voyage, Hélène Blackburn and her colleagues attempt to revitalize their vocabulary and approach with the intention of adding depth and vigour-together with a touch of derision.

By turns an artist committed to the advancement of her discipline, a sought-after choreographer and recognized teacher, Hélène Blackburn has also distinguished herself outside of CAS PUBLIC. She receives regular commissions from various companies and also collaborates, as a teacher and choreographer, with the main professional dance training centres in Canada and in Europe, including the LADMMI, Concordia University, UQÀM, the École supérieure de danse du Québec, the Laban Centre in London and the Accademia di Danza in Venice. More recently, her appearance in Leeds — located in Wales — in February 2006 drew considerable notice. Chase the Glowing Hours with Flying Feet, a piece she created for the Welsh company DIVERSIONS, based in Cardiff, was presented at the British Platform, where it was a major success.

In 1990, she captured the Canada Council for the Arts' Jacqueline Lemieux Prize in recognition of the originality and quality of her approach. In 1999, Hélène Blackburn received the Bonnie Bird Award for North America, presented by the prestigious Laban Centre in London. Combining intense physical engagement with an innate sense of theatre, Hélène Blackburn's fiery choreographic parts keep a deliberate distance from established codes and bring a critical yet humane perspective to bear on the human condition.