Karissa Barry began her dance training at the age of 7. She studied at the Edmonton School of Ballet, the Cecchetti Dance Theatre in Edmonton and The Banff Centre. Moreover, she participated in the Ballet British Columbia's mentor program and the 2004 ImPulsTanz workshops in Vienna, Austria. Karissa started her professional career in 2002 in Vancouver with Wen Wei Dance where she spent five seasons with the company performing across Canada, Colombia and Singapore. She also performed for Amber Funk Barton, Alison Denham, Marla Eist, Movent Enterprises, Science Friction, and the Vancouver Opera. Karissa has created her own works for Cecchetti Dance Theatre, Dancestreams junior company, Twelve Minutes Max, Ballet British Columbia's Mentor Program, and Brief Encounters1. Karissa is an active member of the film and television industry as a dancer, and has choreographed the music video Time Breaks Down by Bend Sinister. Karissa is currently in Montreal, working with Sylvain Émard Danse and ezDanza.
			Following his studies in fine arts, Angelo Barsetti worked in dance and photography before beginning a career as a make-up artist with playwright Michel-Marc Bouchard in his production of Lilies at the Théâtre Petit à Petit. Since then, he has moved back and forth between theatre and dance, bringing out the essence and intensity of an impressive number of theatre and dance characters. His most recent work includes Sarah Kane's Blasté, directed by Brigitte Haentjens, and Normand Chaurette's Ce qui meurt en dernier, directed by Denis Marleau. Long time collaborator in Sylvain Émard's creations, Angelo also works regularly with Louise Bédard and Danièle Desnoyers.
			Born in Bécancour, Québec, trained at the École Supérieure de Danse du Québec. After graduating, he collaborated with the Jeune Ballet du Québec, the Grands Ballets Canadiens, the Banff Festival Ballet and the Opéra de Montreal. In 1994, upon receiving the du Maurier prize for promising young talent, he left Montreal for Europe where he became a member of the Badisches Staatstheater Karlsruhe and later the Stadttheater Moenchengladbach in Germany. In 1997, he was invited to join the Ballets jazz de Montréal, with whom he has performed on stages throughout the world. An eclectic artist, Eric has interpreted the works of more than thirty choreographers, earning particular distinction in pieces by Crystal Pite. In the spring of 2002, at the Défi de l'Excellence Mondor, he won the Prix du Jury and the Prix du Public for interpreting a duet by Edgar Zendejas. In the fall 2004, he leaves the bjm_danse and is invited to work with la Fondation Jean-Pierre Perreault and with Paul-André Fortier. Eric is collaborating with Sylvain Émard for his very first time.
			Since his graduation from the National Theatre School of Canada in 1999, Etienne Boucher has designed the lighting for several theatrical and operatic productions. In September of 2004, Etienne designed the lighting for Celestina, directed by Robert Lepage, which premiered in Barcelona. It marked the beginning of a fruitful creative collaboration with the stage director and his company Ex Machina: twice a laureate at the 2007 Soirée des Masques for his work on La Dame aux Camélias (2006) and Du vent entre les dents (2007), the collaboration continues with The Rake's Progress (2007) and Rossignol et Renard (2009), an opera by Igor Stravinsky. Etienne is currently working on the lighting design of Wagner's four piece epic opera The Ring of the Nibelung, which will première as the 2010 season opener of the Metropolitan Opera in New York. Scènes d'intérieur (2001) was his first time bringing to light Sylvain Émard's work; Wave marks his fourth collaboration with the company.
			Ginelle Chagnon started dancing professionally in 1971 with the Grands Ballets Canadiens, where after a decade in ballet, she turned to contemporary dance. In the 1980s, she was initiated to the work of rehearsal mistress for repertory dance companies Danse Partout and Montréal Danse. These years spent receiving first hand exposure to the creative process were highly formative and prepared her for the task of assisting in the choreographical creative process. The year of 1993 marks the beginning of a long and fruitful collaboration with artist and choreographer Jean-Pierre Perreault that continues on today, as she now attends to the preservation and perpetuation of his work. At present, Ginelle is working alongside Paul-André Fortier and Sylvain Émard on their new creation. She teaches contemporary technique at Concordia University, and occasionally at LADMMI, The Contemporary Dance School, as well as in other canadian and international professionnal venues. She also teaches numerous workshops in dance interpretation and creation.
			Montrealer and co-founder of the &records label, Michel F. Côté works with the groups Mecha Fixes Clock, Klaxon Gueule and (juste) Claudette. A performing arts designer, he pursues instability as a source of regeneration. In dance, he has collaborated with Catherine Tardif, Louise Bédard and Sylvain Émard. In theatre, he has worked with Wajdi Mouawad, Martin Faucher and Robert Lepage. An artist who relentlessly torpedoes his musical work so that nothing may stagnate, he describes himself as an audio "perlustrator". He has been a regular columnist for the magazine esse since 1999. He has published other texts here and there, all of which focus on social issues, the demise of politics and on what Jean-Luc Godard summed up with the phrase "Culture is the rule, art the exception". He has over 20 recorded productions to his credit.
			AnneBruce began her professional career in 1987 with Tedd Robinson at Winnipeg's Contemporary Dancers. In 1989, she left to study under Peter Boneham at Le Groupe de la Place Royale in Ottawa where she took part in the creation of the renowned Le Groupe Dance Lab. An exceptional dance virtuoso, she is muse to some of Canada's the most important choreographers. Over the last decade and a half, she has danced for Jean-Pierre Perreault (for eleven years), Lynda Gaudreau, Danielle Desnoyers, Harold Rhéaume, Dominique Dumais, Charmaine Leblanc, Ruth Cansfield, Paula de Vascancelos, Catherine Tardif and, of course, Louise Bédard, with whom she has collaborated on a great number of occasions. She is also a highly respected teacher, rehearsal mistress and artistic consultant.
			Musician and sound artist, Tim Hecker studied at Concordia University as well as University of British Columbia. He has worked with a wide range of international and Canadian recording labels such as Mille Plateaux, Fat Cat, Tigerbeat 6, Alien8/Substractif and with Force Inc under the name Jetone. While his releases all bear the mark of an eclectic and shifting approach to songcraft, the constant maintained has been a distinctly emotive quality. Throwing aside the technological fetishism and ironic posturing so endemic in the discipline, his work has been an attempt to bring an organic sensibility through rigorous digital means. He has presented his work extensively, including performances at IDEAL (Le Lieu Unique, Nantes, France, 2003), the Mutek Festival (Montreal, 2001), Video-In Gallery (Vancouver, 2001), Le Mois Multi (Quebec City, 2002), and the Transmediale Festival (Berlin, 2002). After having composed an original soundtrack for Pluie, Tim is again collaborating on the music for a new Sylvain Émard creation, this time with composer Michel F. Côté
			Born and raised in Toronto, Kate Holden is a graduate of the School of Toronto Dance Theatre and Etobicoke School of the Arts. Concurrent with her professional training, she performed frequently with PBJ Dance and Gabby Kamino. A member of the Danny Grossman Dance Company for two seasons, Kate now dances independently with many esteemed choreographers. Recently she presented a work by Roberto Campanella at "le Defi d’Excellence" in Trois-Rivieres, Quebec, winning both the "le Grand Prix" and the "Coup de Coeur". This coming season she will be interpreting the works of Sylvain Emard, Sasha Ivanochko, Michael Trent, Andrea Nann and Yvonne Ng. Kate is a member of CADA.
			Since graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada in Montreal, Richard Lacroix has designed sets, props and, occasionally, the costumes of several shows. In addition to working in theatre and contemporary dance, he has used his talents for puppet theatre, film and museum expositions. Renowned for his rich and fertile imagination, he has received several nominations and prizes, notably for his work on Le Porteur / The Star Keeper, which has been internationally acclaimed by both the public and critics since its creation in 1997. Richard has regularly designed for the stage, working with directors Martine Beaulne, André Brassard, André Laliberté and Louise Laprade. He is currently working on his seventh set design for Sylvain Émard. Richard Lacroix also teaches set design in several theatre schools.
			Effe (Francis Leclerc) graduated in applied electronic technologies to audiovisual and multimedia in 1998. He first began his career as a stage technician, and then as video manager for numerous touring productions, including for La Face cachée de la Lune, La Casa Azul and The Busker's Opera by Robert Lepage and his company Ex Machina, and for Amjad by Édouard Lock and La La La Human Steps. This experience sparked his interest in video art and in the integration of video into performance art. Effe finds inspiration in the work of video trailblazers Nam June Paik, Michael Snow and Bill Viola, as well as in more contemporary artists Dumb Type, Granular Syntesis and Big Art Group. In 2005, he creates his first video creation for Sylvain Émard's Temps de chien. In 2006, he was the video designer for the multidisciplinary performance Last Kiss by Claire Gignac and La Nef. Wave marks his third collaboration with Sylvain Émard.
			Born and raised in Nova Scotia, Sarah Murphy started her early dance training at Coastal Dance in Dartmouth. She left home at 15 to attend the North Carolina School of the Arts (NCSA), where she was a scholarship student in the modern dance program, graduating in 2006. While at NCSA Sarah danced soloist roles in works by Murray Louis, David Parsons, Teri and Oliver Steele, Brenda Daniels and Sean Sullivan. Currently, Sarah is a scholarship student at The Juilliard School where she will be entering her third year of the Bachelor of Fine Arts program in September 2008. During her first two years at Juilliard, Sarah danced in creations by David Parker, Adam Hougland and José Limón. Sarah would like to acknowledge David and Margaret Fountain of Halifax and the Nova Scotia Talent Trust for their continued support.
			David Rancourt is interested in the Arts as a mean of sharing. His artistic journey is influenced by several encounters. As a young artist growing up in the Abitibi-Témiscamingue (Québec), at 17 years old, he decides to move to Montreal and studies at LADMMI. During his graduating year in 2003, he experiences Sylvain Émard 's choreographic style on Tsunami, a commissioned work created for the finishing student of that year. He then takes part in the Caravan Stage Barge experience which will influence greatly his perception of Art, of the world and life in society. He then joins the Marie Chouinard Dance company, with whom he travels and dances extensively around the globe for the next two years. Temps de chien will mark his first involvement with Sylvain Émard Danse.
			Since graduating from the National Theatre School of Canada in 1984, François St-Aubin has designed costumes for more than 70 theatre productions, a dozen operas and some dance productions as well. Living in Montreal, he is under contract with all the major theatre companies of the city. In the summer 2004, he made his debut at the prestigious Stratford Festival of Canada, designing the costumes for an adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo. In 2000, he won the Best Costumes Award at La Soirée des Masques. Since 1994, he teaches costume design and costume drawing.
			Erika-Leigh Stirton is a graduate of the University of Guelph and of the Professional Training Program at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre. She has trained with such notable teachers as Patricia Miner, Risa Steinberg and Christine Wright, and has performed works by Sylvain Émard, Christopher House, Sasha Ivanochko, Allen Kaeja, Sharon Moore, Julia Sasso, and Michael Trent. Stirton's passion for movement evolved from her career as a rythmic gymnast, during which she represented Canada at three World Championships, the Pan American Games, and won five gold medals from the 1998 Commonwealth Games. Currently, she is pursuing her love of modern dance as a founding member of the Crazyfish Collective, and as a facutly member at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre. Recently, she has also worked with Black and Blue Dance Projects, The Kemi Collective, TILT sound + motion, and Zata Omm Dance Projects. Erika is a member of the Canadian Alliance of Dance Artists.
			Over the past 25 years, François Saint-Aubin has designed costumes for more than 70 theatre productions, a dozen operas and several contemporary dance productions. His talents are regularly called upon by most of the renowned Montreal theatre companies and stage directors, including René-Richard Cyr, Denis Marleau, Dominic Champagne and Robert Lepage. In the summer of 2004, he made his debut at the prestigious Stratford Festival of Canada, designing the costumes for an adaptation of The Count of Monte Cristo. This was to be his first of many experiences at the festival; he has since become one of the few outside collaborators working regularly on the festival's productions. François Saint-Aubin is a laureate of the 2000 Masque de la Conception des Costumes. Since 1994, he teaches costume design and drawing at Collège Lionel-Groulx.
			Darryl C. Tracy (dance artist, choreographer and teacher) has studied with Pat Miner, Edie Shaw, Risa Steinberg, Brian Webb, Peggy Baker among many others. He is member of the faculty of The School of the Toronto Dance Theatre and guest teaches about Greater Toronto area. Darryl has performed works by Darcey Callison, Holly Small, Julia Sasso, Marie-Josee Chartier, Michael Trent among others. He is co-artistic director with Heidi Strauss of Four Chambers dance projects having commissioned duets on them by Conrad Alexandrowicz, Guillaume Bernardi, Marie-Josee Chartier, Sarah Chase, Yvonne Coutts, Lesandra Dodson, Sylvain Emard and Julia Sasso. Darryl's own choreography has been seen on Canadian Children's Dance Theatre, 3M Dances, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, most performing arts high schools in GTA and at Series *:08 Series Finale, Dusk Dances and Dumaurier's DanceWorks.
			Catherine Viau graduated from LADMMI in 1995. From 1996 to 2006, she danced for Danse Partout, Sursaut, Sinha Danse, Bouge de là and O Vertigo. She has performed in the creations of choreographers José Navas, Pierre-Paul Savoie, Sylvain Émard, Estelle Clareton, Jean-François Déziel, Benjamin Hatcher, Lucie Boissinot and David Pressault. In 2003 and 2007, she was invited by Danse-Cité to participate in Les événements de la pleine lune, a series of improvisational performances directed by Daniel Soulières, Louise Bédard and Jean Derome. In 2006, she began working with Danièle Desnoyers' dance company Le Carré des Lombes, for whom she performed in Play it Again! and in their 2008 creation, Là où je vis which premièred at the Festival TransAmériques. Since 1999, she teaches technique, improvisation and dance repertoire in a number of renowned Montreal dance schools. She is a founding member of TransFormation, an annual intensive workshop that takes place concurrent to the Festival TransAmériques.
			Native of Calgary, Alberta, Megan Walbaum began dancing at the Alberta Ballet School of Dance. At the age of 14, she relocated to Manitoba to continue her intensive classical training at the Royal Winnipeg Ballet School. Afterwards, she continued east, to make the transition into a professional training program in contemporary dance at LADMMI in Montreal. Immediately after graduating in 2006, she apprenticed at the Compagnie Marie Chouinard. She has since danced for Lucie Grégoire and has taught Sylvain Émard repertory at LADMMI. She pursues independent projects with peers as part of HAND/EYE Co.