Artistic direction

Biography of the artistic director

Charles-Alexis Desgagnés is a self-taught queer artist based in Tiohtià:ke/Montreal. His company, Personne Danse, whose name echoes his journey away from mainstream institutions as well as the multiple choreographic bodies and alter egos he uses in his creations, is defined by a strong emphasis on dance movement as his primary vehicle of expression, whether virtuosic or somatic in its approach. 

Whether in his improvisational, solo, or group work, Charles-Alexis is particularly interested in the freedom offered by a disarticulated body evolving between total engagement and total disengagement. An insectoid floor work amalgamating the use of release techniques and implosion/explosion, as well as the state of vulnerability that can emerge from a dramaturgy inviting uncanniness as a vector of spiritual connection, color the choreographer's vision. Humor, gratitude, psychedelic plants, play, and circular collaboration are also integral parts of his artistic approach.

His career path has led him to train between New York, Toronto, Quebec and Montreal, and to work with big names since 2012 such as Harold Rheaume (Le fils d'Adrien danse and Cirque du Soleil), Tedd Robinson (10 Gates Dancing), Yvonne Coutts (Ottawa Dance Directive), Riley Sims (Social Growl Dance), Chantal Caron (Fleuve Espace Danse), Eryn Waltman (Conteur), Ismaël Mouaraki (Destins Croisés), Kyra Jean Green (Trip The Light Fantastic), Jason Martin (ENTITY), Janelle Hacault,  Samuel Tétreault (The 7 Fingers) or even Peter Jasko (Cirque Éloize).

Finalist of the show Revolution In 2018, Charles-Alexis saw this opportunity as a way to popularize contemporary dance to the general public. He also presented a work in a self-produced way with XNUMX performers, Mue érable, , which he transformed into a solo piece and presented at the Quartiers Danses Festival the following year. In 28, another self-produced group piece J'ai pleuré ce matin dans le métro brought together 23 performers of different levels on the stage of the Maison de la culture de Verdun as part of a summer internship. He recently choreographed in 2023 The whispering of the limbo, a work created especially for graduates of the École de danse de Québec, as well as Octopoda in 2022 for students from the École supérieure de ballet du Québec. Charles-Alexis is one of the seven choreographers who participated in Minuit quelque part, a work presented by Danse Danse and CAPAS in 2024.

Charles-Alexis was also part of the original American cast of Life and Trust in New York as a performer and choreographic collaborator. He obtained an O1 artist visa to participate in this immersive dance-theater creation of the producers of Sleep No More (Punchdrunk) from 2023-2025. In June 2025, he was a performer and choreographic collaborator on Mirror Mazefrom Laura Perron (Willow Seeds) at RIDCC in Rotterdam, the world's largest contemporary dance duo competition.

In 2023, he presented as a world premiere in Montreal The call of the embers, a 50-minute solo atl'Agora de la danseThe work was then presented at Série Danse 10 (Ottawa), The Citadel (Toronto) and L'espace DCL (Lévis) for a total of 11 performances, including an official selection at the biennale Parcours Danse in 2023. A 15-minute excerpt of the work will be presented in October 2025 in official competition at the prestigious Spanish Masdanza festival, as well as 7 times during a tour of the 6 Canary Islands. The solo short film A Dying Tree, created in collaboration with director Vincent René-Lortie, had its world premiere in February 2025 at the Slamdance Film Festival (LA), followed by several other festivals including the REGARD festival in March 2025. 

Charles-Alexis is currently researching and creating a group piece for 7 performers entitled The Silence of the ashes, a 20-minute excerpt of which will be presented at the Quartiers Danses Festival in September 2025 at La Cinquième Salle at Place des Arts. During the same festival, the performer-choreographer will present five times Open my eyes, a new immersive solo that will be presented in the loft at Chez Personne/Le 312. 

Charles-Alexis has been the recipient since 2021 of 6 creation grants from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec and the Canada Council for the Arts in his own name and on behalf of Personne Danse. He also participated in 5 peer juries (CALQ and the City of Ottawa) since 2020. He has been teaching beginner and advanced contemporary dance classes for adults, combining repertoire work, meditation, yoga, improvisation and partner work, since 2018 in Montreal.