RAIN

Founded in 1993 by Jeannot Painchaud (Co-Director) and co-founded by Julie Hamelin (Co-Director) and Daniel Cyr (Director of acrobatic research), Cirque Éloize is among the leaders of the contemporary-circus movement, performing a magical brand of circus artistry. Drawing on the multidisciplinary talents of its artists, the innovation of Cirque Éloize is expressed through the theatricality and humanity that emanate from its performances, as the company is combining time-honored circus acts with music, dance, theater, and performance in a new and original way. With five original productions to its credit, Cirque Éloize has staged more than 3,000 shows in some 200 cities located in 20 countries around the world. Since its inception, Éloize has focused on stage scripting, with acrobatics forming an integral component of the staging. Cirque Éloize has participated in many prestigious international festivals, and in addition to its touring shows, the company develops customized concepts for special events across the globe.

Succeeding the two productions still on tour (Nomade – La nuit, le ciel est plus grand, 2002 and Rain, 2004), this new creation will complete the trilogy uniting once again the same creative team. The show will be a similar format than RAIN, with 12 artists on stage and 5-6 technicians, for a total of 17-18 persons on tour.

JEANNOT PAINCHAUD BIO

Founder and Co-Director of Cirque Éloize

A graduate of Montreal's National Circus School, Jeannot Painchaud's career has spanned two decades. He started out as an artist, working with various circus companies and multidisciplinary artistic groups for twelve years. He performed on stage or under the big top as part of a trio, a duet, and even solo, and toured the world constantly. At the start of his career, Jeannot travelled extensively throughout Europe as a public entertainer. He continued his training at the same time, mainly in acting, through a series of internships. An acrobat and juggler, Jeannot's specialty is artistic bicycling. In 1989, he spent some time at the Centre national des arts du cirque (CNAC) in Chalon sur Marne, France. He was a member of the Québec-based Cirque du Tonnerre company in 1990-1991, and he earned a bronze medal at the 1992 Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris for his artistic bicycling presentation. He then joined Cirque du Soleil on tour, which took him on his first trip to Japan.

In 1993, Jeannot founded Cirque Éloize with Daniel Cyr and Claudette Morin. During the early years, he performed on stage and directed the company's productions. In 1998, he left the stage to dedicate himself fully to the direction of Cirque Éloize. He has continued to focus on the company's evolution ever since, working in collaboration with Julie Hamelin, who is responsible for international development.

In 2001, Jeannot staged the first version of the show entitled Cirque Orchestra. The integration of other forms of entertainment with acrobatics is a driving force for Jeannot, and this vision demands the support of creators in the theatre and contemporary dance milieus. In 2001, Jeannot and Julie Hamelin met Daniele Finzi Pasca, a stage director and founder of Teatro Sunil, who has become a major influence on Cirque Éloize. Finzi Pasca has created two shows for the company: Nomade - At night, the sky is endless, for which Jeannot was responsible for artistic direction and collaborated on the writing; and Rain, for which the Painchaud-Hamelin team assumed responsibility the artistic direction. Jeannot is also the artistic direction and staging advisor for Typo, a show produced by Theatre T & Co., which was created by the directors of Cirque Éloize.

In 2003, Jeannot founded the first North American Circus Festival, the Semaine des arts du Cirque, which was held in the Magdalen Islands, where he was raised. A self-directed artist and entrepreneur, Jeannot's extensive travels have taken him to more than 30 countries, and today, he continues to pursue his dream and primary mission: to have the circus arts recognized as a full art form.

Jeannot Painchaud is also head of the Special Events department at Cirque Éloize, where he is responsible for the stage direction and development of customized concepts for large-scale projects that are presented around the world, including galas, corporate events, special television presentations, and more.

In 2005, Jeannot was invited by Daniele Finzi Pasca and Teatro Sunil to join the creative team for the closing ceremonies of the Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy. The 7-person team included 5 members of Teatro Sunil and 2 members of Cirque Éloize. As assistant to the stage director, Jeannot was in charge of the acrobatic components of the ceremony. Today, Jeannot Painchaud and Julie Hamelin are Co-Directors of Cirque Éloize.

Nebbia, a new creation, will emerge in 2007, specifically the third component of a trilogy initiated by Nomade and followed by Rain. Written by Daniele Finzi Pasca, this creation will be the product of a co-production by Cirque Éloize and Teatro Sunil, a company founded by the latter. Jeannot Painchaud will serve as the Director of Creation.

JULIE HAMELIN BIO

Co-Founder and Co-Director of Cirque Éloize

After studying psychology and communications in university, Julie Hamelin pursued her career in cinema before entering the world of the circus. She joined Cirque Éloize a few months after it was founded as assistant to Claudette Morin, who was General Manager at the time. Following Claudette's departure in 1998, Julie continued to build the Company with Jeannot Painchaud, and soon became one of its key players. She works in several areas within the Company, including marketing, where she helps to define the image of the young company, both nationally and internationally; market development, where she oversees the international outreach of productions; and creatively in the area of artistic direction, in collaboration with Jeannot Painchaud.

In 1999, Julie propelled the company onto the international market by producing a four-week series of the Excentricus show at the Edinburgh Festival in Scotland, hosting 150 international producers and presenters in the process. In 2001, she signed a partnership agreement with the largest talent agency in the United States, and has forged major partnerships in several European markets. Thanks to Julie's international development, the Company has presented more than 3,000 performances in more than 20 countries, and has participated in many prestigious international festivals.

In 2001, Julie and Jeannot initiated and cultivated a relationship with Daniele Finzi Pasca and his company, Teatro Sunil. This partnership led to the creation of Nomade - At night, the sky is endless in 2002, followed by Rain in 2004.

In 2003, she brought together partners for the production of the show Rain for which, as Creative Producer, she plays a determining role in the shows artistic direction.

During that same time period, Julie Hamelin and Jeannot Painchaud founded Theatre T. & Co, which produced and supervised the international promotion of a show by Jamie Adkins entitled Typo. Adkins is an artist whose evolution in Excentricus was observed with great interest.

In 2004, Julie developed a strategy that resulted in Rain being presented on Broadway for a six-week run, where it piqued the interest of the press and major producers. She subsequently developed the strategy for the presentation of a four-week run in a key theatre on the San Francisco Broadway circuit. Once again, the show garnered rave reviews from the press, and from producers on the American West Coast. The result: In 2006, Julie signed a partnership with two of the most important producers on Broadway.

In the summer of 2005, Julie was invited by Daniele Finzi Pasca and Teatro Sunil to join the creative team that assisted Finzi Pasca in the creation and production of the closing ceremonies for the XXth Olympic Winter Games in Turin, Italy. As "First Assistant Stage Director", Julie helped Finzi Pasca with the writing of the closing ceremonies, and was responsible for monitoring the progress of the project up to the point where the finishing touches were put on the final script. She also worked with the production department on the production process, and was responsible for overseeing the design of all group choreographies for the production team. Today, Julie Hamelin and Jeannot Painchaud are Co-Directors of Cirque Éloize.

Nebbia, a new creation, will emerge in 2007, specifically the third component of a trilogy initiated by Nomade and followed by Rain. Written by Daniele Finzi Pasca, this creation will be the product of a co-production by Cirque Éloize and Teatro Sunil, a company founded by the latter. Julie Hamelin will serve as the Creative Producer and will oversee the international release of the new production.