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Artist in Residence
During the 2020-2021 season, Irèni Stamou is one of the Artists in Residence with Public Energy Performing Arts in Peterborough, Nogogiwanong" place at the foot of the rapids," Ontario.
In her work in progress entitled Bone Stories Reimagined, Irèni explores multiculturalism, violence against women and restoring our connection to the earth within a series of solo pieces.
Gallery
Biography
Irèni (Irene) Stamou is an award-winning Canadian choreographer and dancer with critically-acclaimed choreography. She is known for interweaving contemporary and multicultural dance forms and is recognized internationally as profoundly imaginative and poetic.
Born in Athens, Greece, Irèni's family moved to Canada when she was five years old. She grew up in a traditional Greek upbringing within Montreal's multicultural center, a melting pot of arts, culture, and languages. A graduate of Fine Arts from Concordia University, Montreal, majoring with honours in Contemporary Dance under Elizabeth Langley's direction. Irèni founded her Montreal based dance company Métaspora Danse and for two decades toured Canada, Europe, with New York and Costa Rica performances. She has received commissions for original choreography from Echine Do, Montréal, Les Jeunes Ballet du Québec, FMA, L' Ecole de danse du Québec, and Danse en Kortright, Belgium.
"Irèni Stamou brings life to her dance through an awareness of the breath, allowing the energy to circulate, making us feel light enter the heart while illuminating the body."
Guylaine Massoure – Theatre Notebook Montreal
Irèni Stamou is a recipient of The Canada Council for the Arts, Conseil des Arts et des Lettres du Québec, Conseil des Arts de Montréal, and Multiculturalism Canada.
Irèni has taught somatic workshops at The University of Costa Rica and won a Choreographers award for Mia Zoi (One life) for national dancer Daniel Marenko 2008 at Festival de Coreógrafos XX1V.
Her dance work ventured to Granada, Nicaragua, where she performed and taught workshops at La Casa de Tres Mundos. In 2017 she choreographed The ancient Greek play La Orestíada by Aeschylus, adapted in Spanish by director Luis Fernando Gómez, National Theatre of Costa Rica.
In 2018, Irèni relocated with her family to Peterborough, Nogojiwanong, Ontario. She is active in the vibrant arts and yoga community and founded Irèni Movement Arts. Presently, Irèni Stamou is one of the Artists in Residence with Public Energy Performing Arts.
During these unprecedented times with COVID-19, Irèni continues her artistic and teaching practice, reimagining choreography and movement practices as a healing process for distanced spaces between dancer and audience, teacher and student in safe online sessions and site-specific performances. She is currently reimaging a series of solos for herself, ballerina Dreda Blow and other dance artists, bringing together collaborators from Ontario, Costa Rica and Québec: Bone Stories Reimagined 2020-21.
Recently she presented her site-specific choreography Inside the Sculpture in The Pivot Series October 2020, a Public Energy Performing Arts and Reframe Film Festival Production.