SANTOS SALON SERIES with BALLETS JAZZ MONTRÉAL

Join Alexandra Damiani, General and Artistic Director of Ballets Jazz Montréal, for a special pre-performance conversation moderated by Charles Santos, part of the Santos Salon Series at TITAS/DANCE UNBOUND. Go behind the scenes of Dance Me: The Music of Leonard Cohen, the company’s acclaimed homage to one of Montréal’s most iconic artists. Developed with Leonard Cohen’s personal blessing, Dance Me brings together three internationally renowned choreographers to translate his music and poetry into movement. Damiani will share insights into why Leonard Cohen, how his unmistakable voice, lyrics, and music shaped the choreography, and how BJM brings his singular artistic world to life onstage.

ALEXANDRA DAMIANI (GENERAL AND ARTISTIC DIRECTOR) (she/her)

Appointed Artistic Director of Ballets Jazz Montréal the spring of 2021, then General and Artistic Director in 2025, Alexandra Damiani has been a major player in the dance community for over two decades. During her 10 years with New York’s Cedar Lake Contemporary Ballet (2005-2015), first as Ballet Mistress and then as Artistic Director, Damiani had the opportunity to work with and present a wide selection of contemporary dance choreographic languages by such internationally renowned choreographers as Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Crystal Pite and Hofesh Schecter. She also showcased the company in major cities and international festivals, including at the Lyon Biennale in France and Sadler’s Wells in London.

Originally from France, Damiani is a multidisciplinary artist who has been lending her expertise to the world of film, television, and advertising for many years. Her credits include playing the ballet mistress in Darren Aronofsky’s cult film Black Swan and working alongside Tanisha Scott on Cardi B’s performance for the 2019 BET Awards. She is also passionate about training the young dancers of tomorrow and has excellent connections with highly regarded institutions like Jacob’s Pillow and The Juilliard School.

Damiani trained in classical dance at the Geneva Dance Center, and later in the French capital with teachers from the Paris Opera Ballet. After winning the Bayonne competition in France, she received a scholarship to the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater in the US. She began her career as a dancer-performer in New York where she danced as a soloist with Donald Byrd/The Group and with the company Complexions, directed by Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson. Her career continued in Montréal with the RUBBERBANDance Company and later with Ballets Jazz Montréal, under the direction of Louis Robitaille (2002-2005).