Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal

Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal
Name	Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal
Founded	1972
Founder	Gilles Lauzon
Location	Montreal, Quebec, Canada

Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal is a contemporary dance company based in Montreal, Quebec, founded in 1972. The company has been associated with a lineage of choreographers and artistic directors from Montreal's performing arts scene, touring internationally to venues such as Lincoln Center, Sadler's Wells Theatre, Teatro alla Scala, and Sydney Opera House. Its work intersects with institutions like the National Arts Centre, the Festival de musique contemporaine du Québec, the Canada Council for the Arts, and partnerships with companies including BalletBC, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens, and international ensembles.

History

The company was created during a period of cultural ferment in Montreal concurrent with developments at Université de Montréal, Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec, and the rise of outfitters like the Place des Arts. Early years linked to choreographers from the Paul Taylor Dance Company, Martha Graham Dance Company, and influences from the Joffrey Ballet movement informed initial programming. Over decades the organization engaged with festivals such as the Festival d'été de Québec, residencies at the National Arts Centre, and commissions from institutions including the National Ballet of Canada and the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde. The company weathered economic shifts in Quebec arts funding, negotiations with municipal bodies in Montreal and grants from the Canada Council for the Arts to sustain touring and creation.

Artistic Directors and Choreographers

Directors and guest choreographers have included figures linked to major companies and institutions: founders and early artistic leaders associated with names like Gilles Lauzon and collaborators coming from Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Paul Taylor, Mats Ek, Sharon Eyal, William Forsythe, Crystal Pite, and Ohad Naharin-influenced practitioners. The company's roster of choreographers has featured commissions and works by artists tied to Merce Cunningham, Maurice Béjart, Trisha Brown, Jiří Kylián, and contemporaries from European houses such as Het Nationale Ballet and Les Ballets de Monte-Carlo. Affiliations with choreographic labs at Biennale de la Danse de Lyon and creative exchanges with the Western Arts Alliance and La Biennale di Venezia further diversified leadership and repertory input.

Repertoire and Style

Repertoire draws on contemporary, jazz, modern, and postmodern vocabularies with nods to theatricality from Cirque du Soleil and musical structures influenced by composers linked to CBC Music, I Musici de Montréal, and collaborators from the Montreal Symphony Orchestra. Signature pieces range across balletic lines referencing George Balanchine aesthetics, rhythmic phrasing akin to Bob Fosse, and experimental textures associated with Pina Bausch and Anne Teresa De Keersmaeker. Works often employ set and costume designers connected to Expo 67 veterans, set makers from Théâtre du Nouveau Monde, and lighting designers from National Theatre productions. The company's style emphasizes athleticism, musicality, and theatrical presence, presenting programs that have been reviewed in outlets such as The New York Times, The Guardian, Le Devoir, and La Presse.

Company Structure and Dancers

The organizational model incorporates artistic, administrative, and technical departments that interact with unions and associations like Canadian Actors' Equity Association, CEPTA, and funding bodies including the Quebec Arts Council. Dancer recruitment has attracted artists trained at institutions such as École supérieure de ballet du Québec, Royal Winnipeg Ballet School, The Juilliard School, London Contemporary Dance School, and conservatories affiliated with Université du Québec à Montréal. Guest artists and apprentices have arrived from companies including Ballet BC, Sydney Dance Company, Dutch National Ballet, and repertory exchanges with American Ballet Theatre alumni. The company maintains corps members, soloists, and principals, supported by rehearsal directors and répétiteurs formerly associated with Martha Graham Dance Company and Paul Taylor Dance Company.

Tours, Residencies, and International Presence

Tours have included North American circuits stopping at venues like Kennedy Center, Ontario Place, and McCarter Theatre; European legs with performances at Théâtre du Châtelet, Palais Garnier, and Teatro Real; and Asia-Pacific seasons in cities such as Tokyo, Seoul, and Sydney. Residencies and co-productions have occurred with institutions including Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Maison de la Culture Maisonneuve, Centre National de la Danse, and partnerships during festivals like Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival and Edinburgh International Festival. Touring logistics have involved collaboration with presenters such as Presenting Partners International and cultural attachés at embassies of Canada in capitals like Paris, London, and Tokyo.

Education, Outreach, and Community Programs

Educational initiatives connect to schools and conservatories such as Conservatoire de musique et d'art dramatique du Québec, École de danse contemporaine de Montréal, and community partners including Centres Jeunesses, YMCA Montreal, and municipal cultural programs in Ville-Marie (Montreal). Outreach projects have partnered with healthcare and social organizations like Montreal General Hospital programs, arts-in-education projects coordinated with Quebec Ministry of Culture and Communications, and mentorship schemes with the Canada Council for the Arts and Fondation du Grand Montréal. Workshops, masterclasses, and open rehearsals have been offered at venues including Place des Arts, Théâtre Maisonneuve, and universities such as McGill University and Concordia University.

Category:Canadian dance companies