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Exploring humanity’s entanglement with more-than-human forces.
About Us

At the crossroads of circus, dance, and visual theatre, Corpo Imago confronts the myth of individual destiny, revealing instead a vast ecology where humans are fragile, complicit, and entangled with more-than-human forces.

Founded by circus and dance artists and Co-Artistic Directors Gabrielle Martin and Jeremiah Hughes, Corpo Imago emerged from their collaboration while performing as principal characters in Cirque du Soleil’s TORUK – The First Flight. CI became a space to pursue circus’s dramaturgical possibilities—where physical risk operates as a metaphor for humanity’s ancient negotiations with fate, divinity, and death—alongside the cathartic potential of contemporary dance to investigate the tensions shaping the human condition.

CI’s works have been presented across Canada, Australia, the United States, and the United Kingdom, including at Montréal Complètement Cirque and La Chapelle Scènes Contemporaines, Assembly Festival at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (UK), Gluttony at the Adelaide Fringe Festival (AUS), The Dance Centre (Vancouver), Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, Bass Coast, San Francisco Aerial Arts Festival, and dance Immersion (Toronto). CI has been Artist in Residence at The Dance Centre (2021–22; 2024–25), received The Dance Centre’s Isadora Award for Excellence in Choreography (2022), and won the IC Best Production Award at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe (2025). CI’s latest work, Drift, premiered at The Dance Centre in May 2026.

Beyond performance, Corpo Imago advances artist training and discipline development through subsidized aerial and acrobatic dance classes, workshops, and mentorship opportunities that expand access to interdisciplinary practice. See our Training page for more information.

Gabrielle Martin 
Executive and Co-Artistic Director
Gabrielle Martin

Gabrielle Martin is a choreographer and director creating interdisciplinary works at the intersection of contemporary dance, aerial arts, and visual theatre. Her practice investigates the tension between will and fate, centering the body in its struggle for agency. Drawing on over 1,400 international performances with Cirque du Soleil (TORUK) and Cavalia as an aerialist and dance artist, her work calls toward an embodied defiance—where risk, suspension, and resistance become choreographic languages through which to examine vulnerability, interdependence, and the contemporary tragic. She holds a BFA in Contemporary Dance from Concordia University, a Certificate in Dramaturgy from the Centre National des Arts du Cirque (France), an MA in Arts and Cultural Management from Rome Business School, and is the co-founder of Corpo Imago.

Parallel to her artistic practice, Gabrielle has been teaching aerial technique and body mind practices for over 20 years. She studied Kinesiology at Langara college, is an ACE Certified personal trainer, a fully certified STOTT Pilates instructor, and a Yoga Trapeze certified instructor with aerial conditioning expertise and a Gyrokinesis practice. 

Jeremiah Hughes

Co-Artistic Director

Jeremiah Hughes is a choreographer, director, performer, and co-founder of Corpo Imago whose interdisciplinary practice bridges contemporary dance, acrobatics, and physical theatre. Having trained in dance at the Canadian Dance Company, Randolph College for the Performing Arts, and Broadway Dance Center in NYC, Jeremiah launched his career on So You Think You Can Dance. He has since had the honour of performing internationally with artists including Taylor Swift and Bruno Mars, and in major productions such as PEEPSHOW, JUBILEE!, Britain’s Got Talent, Franco Dragone’s LE REVE, as well as Cirque du Soleil’s Viva ELVIS and TORUK. From 2015-2019, he toured as the lead male role of Ralu in Cirque Du Soleil’s TORUK - The First Flight, where he served as the show’s original Dance Captain. Driven by a passion for visual composition and theatrical storytelling, he approaches the stage as a sacred site of collective encounter—building visceral performance worlds where movement, image, and emotional intensity operate beyond language.

Photo Richie Lubaton

Our work is made possible by the contribution of all our collaborating artists, as well as our Board of Directors:

Nicole Rose Bond, Marcus Youssef, Davi Rodrigues, Vanessa Goodman and Mark Douglas.

Collaborating Artists

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Nicole Rose Bond

Nicole Rose Bond began her formal dance training at York University, graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts Dance cum laude in 2005.
 

Nicole has felt privileged to perform across Canada and internationally with companies such as Danny Grossman Dance Company, Toronto Dance Theatre, and Peggy Baker Dance Projects, and esteemed choreographers including Patricia Beatty, James Kudelka and Ryan Graham Hinds.
 

Since moving to Vancouver in 2021, Nicole has continued to add to her twenty years of teaching experience at Arts Umbrella, Modus Operandi and Simon Fraser University. She began choreographing professionally three years ago, and has just recently been nominated for a Jessie for her choreography in Lia and Dor.
 

Nicole is grateful that her vocation encompasses doing what she loves and is humbled by the beautiful arts community that she calls home.

Photo by Aleksandar Antonijevic

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Brianne Chan

Brianne 羨宜 Chan (she/her), is a freelance dance artist, teacher, and choreographer based in so called “Vancouver”. Since completing her training at Modus Operandi (2022), she has had the pleasure of working professionally and collaborating with many dancers in the vibrant dance community. Recent work and touring include projects with Anya Saugstad, Calder White, and Corporeal Imago. Teaching credits include Modus Operandi, Training Society of Vancouver, and Harbour Dance Centre. With an open mind and a willingness to explore, she takes risks, embraces experimentation, and welcomes the unknown.

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Marissa Wong

MARISSA WONG is a Chinese-Canadian dance artist who has the privilege to create, play and share on the unceded territories of the Skwxwú7mesh, Səlílwətaɬ, and xwməθkwəyəm Nations, also named Vancouver, BC. She is the Artistic Director for The Falling Company and her engagement in the Vancouver dance community demonstrates her capability to educate, produce, perform, and host works. Marissa strives to change the systemic structure in dance through facilitating inclusive and sustainable arts spaces. She is invested in continuous learning and her work reflects her observations of the human experience. For more information visit: www.thefallingcompany.com

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Juan Duarte

Juan Duarte is a Brazilian Contemporary Ballet trained dancer based in Canada. After graduating from Bolshoi Ballet School and moving to Vancouver, they/he have trained with Lamondance Company and Arts Umbrella Dance Company from 2015 to 2019.

After that Juan has worked with Ballet BC, and started to work as a freelancer where they/he have had the opportunity to work with Move The Company, Traverse City Dance Project, Corporeal Imago and Belle Spirale Dance Projects.

 

Juan continues to share their/his beauty and artistry with the world, and has been a powerful member of the queer scene in Vancouver. As an ambitious and dedicated performer Juan is looking forward to what the future has to offer, and is very excited to continue to explore the meaning of diversity in the dance industry.

Photo Rebecca Benoit

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Nasiv Kaur Sall

Nasiv Kaur Sall (she/her) is a Canadian dance artist and actor whose work shifts  between contemporary performance, film, television and theatre. A graduate of the Arts  Umbrella Dance Post-Secondary program, she has brought her distinctive physicality  and presence to creations by Kidd Pivot, Out Innerspace Dance Theatre, Furious Grace  Dance Theatre (Anya Saugstad), and many others.  

Rooted in embodied inquiry and narrative precision, Nasiv’s practice extends through  her choreographic works Tea (PuSh 2025, Small Stage 2024) and KAUR (2023). She is  currently developing a new dance-theatre work with collaborator Simran Sachar,  premiering in 2026. 

Beyond the stage, Nasiv has appeared in numerous Film & TV productions as an actor  and dancer for networks Nickelodeon, Disney, CBC, The CW, NBC, and Netflix.

Photo Luciana D'Anunciaçao

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Brenna Metzmeier

Brenna Metzmeier is a 28 year old multidisciplinary artist living in Vancouver BC. She is originally from Terrace BC, but completed her formal training at the Victoria Academy of Ballet, receiving a diploma in 2016. She has had the opportunity to work with Sawdust Collective, Pi Theatre, The Banff Dance Company, Inverso Productions, Vision Impure, Opera Box, State of Underdress, Little Chamber Music, Corporeal Imago, Wen Wei Dance, Edmonton Opera, Action at a Distance, Belle Spirale and is a founding member of the dance company CAMP. In CAMP she has co-created and produced several full length dance shows and been selected for multiple choreographic commissions. She has also been developing her own interdisciplinary solo work, and has performed the first iterations of her solo, I'I, at the Irish Aerial Creation Centre, The Dance Centre, through their 12 Minute Max programming, and at The Dance Deck.

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Arash Khakpour

Arash Khakpour (آرش خاکپور) is a Dancer, choreographer, and facilitator from Tehran, based on Coast Salish Territory (colonially known as Vancouver). Arash has over 15 years of practice in movement and performance and has been a company member and part of the EDAM ensemble since 2017. He explores the nuances of prejudices in the body as a way of inviting the unconscious to the conscious, and as a doorway to meet the unknown emotions. He sees dance as a relational process of physical, emotional, and spiritual discovery, and as a vehicle for social change.


Photo Luciana D'Anunciaçao

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Alex Tam

On the unceded traditional Coast Salish territory Alex Tam is a Vancouver-based dance artist. Tam started as an actor for commercial, film and theatre. At the age of fifteen, he discovered that dance could challenge him with immense possibilities for athletic expression. Tam received his dance education at Arts Umbrella, graduated from Modus Operandi and studied Fine Arts at Kwantlen Polytechnic University (Dean’s Honour Roll). Julia Taffe first introduced Alex to aerial dance with Aeriosa in the grand fir trees in Stanley Park. Over the past decade, he has performed works by: Aeriosa, Wen Wei Dance, Hong Kong Exile, Shay Kuebler Radical System Art, Crystal Pite, Company 605, Out Innerspace Dance Theatre, Mascall Dance, Deanna Peters, Science Friction, Joe Laughlin, Kinesis Dance, Serge Bennathan, Karissa Barry. He has toured and performed both independently and collectively at international dance festivals in Canada, United States of America, South America and Taiwan.

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Vanessa Goodman

Vanessa Goodman acknowledges that she lives, works, and creates on the stolen ancestral and unceded territories of the Coast Salish peoples, including the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Stó:lō, Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh), and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam) Nations. She holds a BFA from Simon Fraser University and serves as the artistic director of Action at a Distance Dance Society. She is drawn to art that carries meaning beyond aesthetics, using choreography as a means to explore liminal expressions within the human condition. Her choreographic practice weaves together generative movement and sonic embodiment to create immersive performative environments. She has received several awards and honours, including The Iris Garland Emerging Choreographer Award (2013), The Yulanda M. Faris Scholarship (2017/18), The Chrystal Dance Prize (2019 & 2024), the Schultz Endowment from the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (2019), The Isadora Award (2025) and participation in the "Space to Fail" program (2019/20). Longstanding collaborations include "Graveyards and Gardens" with Caroline Shaw, "BLOT" with Simona Deaconsecu, and multiple works with Loscil (Scott Morgan), Brady Marks, and James Proudfoot. Her work has toured Canada, the United States, Europe, and South America. www.actionatadistance.ca

 

Photo Ben Didier

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Darian Mark

Darian Mark is an international performer and artist based out of Vancouver, Canada.  Originally from Toronto, Darian has trained extensively in a variety of styles, including many circus arts.  He is a proud Stage Associate Member with CDTA and has completed all of the Acrobatic Arts modules.  In addition, Darian holds a Bachelor of Commerce from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson University), is a Reiki Level II Practitioner, and a 200HR RYT.  With vast experience performing on stages, TV and film, Darian is excited to continue sharing on projects that allow him to showcase his full mind, body and spirit.  He is humbled and grateful to be joining this production of THROE.

Select credits include: GCC Opening Ceremony 2022 (Cirque Eloize), Monster High 1&2 (Nickelodeon), Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist (NBC), Zombies 2 (Disney), Julie and The Phantoms (Netflix), PEARL (North American and China Tour), Starwater (Royal Caribbean), The Next Step (Temple Street Prod).

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Davi Rodrigues

Davi Rodrigues is a Brazilian-born Canadian writer, Artistic Director, and Resident Choreographer of Lamondance. With over 30 years of experience, he is renowned for his high-energy, immersive, and audacious dance style. Davi studied Physical Education at UCB and previously led Cia Criatividança in Brazil for 13 years. Since moving to Vancouver in 2008, he has become a driving force in the local dance community. Under his 14-year leadership, Lamondance became a charitable organization and a leading dance company and training program. Davi is a passionate mentor who prioritizes inclusion, equity, and affordability. His award-winning choreographies have been recognized, and he was honored with the 2025 Top 25 Canadian Immigrant Award. He is excited to collaborate with Corporeo as a Dance artist.

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Andréane Leclerc

Performer, choreographer, and educator, Andréane Leclerc has developed a somatic practice inspired by contortion to create transdisciplinary works based on cooperation, listening, and relational ecology.
 

Her company, Nadère arts vivants, presents contortion and dramaturgy pieces and workshops on contemporary interdisciplinary stages, both in Quebec and internationally.
 

Andréane also works as a dramaturgy and movement consultant and performer for various international projects.

 

Photo Valerie Sangin

CONTACT US

info@companyci.com

+1 514 912 5624

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Corporeal Imago Performing Arts Society is privileged to create and produce on the stolen, ancestral and traditional territories of the Coast Salish Peoples: Sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), Səl̓ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) and xʷməθkʷəy̓əm 

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