José Montalvo

After directing the National Choreography Centre of Créteil & Val-de-Marne, José Montalvo worked at the Théâtre National de Chaillot from 2000 to 2016, first as director of dance, alongside Ariel Goldenberg, then as artistic director with Dominique Hervieu, and finally as artist-in-residence, under the direction of Didier Deschamps. In September 2016, Montalvo became director of the Créteil & Val-de-Marne Maison des Arts. The son of Spanish political refugees fleeing the Franco regime, he first studied architecture and the semiology of plastic arts. He then began studying dance with Jérôme Andrews, Françoise and Dominique Dupuy and Jacqueline Robinson and later with Lucinda Childs, Alwin Nikolais, Murray Louis and Merce Cunningham.

Between 1986 and 1988 he received several major awards for his first choreographic works, danced by Dominique Hervieu, with whom he co-created all of his following works until 2013. Paradis at Lyon’s Maison de la Danse and Le jardin io io ito ito were internationally hailed for their originality, with Le Jardin obtaining the 2001 Laurence Olivier award for best dance production. Montalvo and Hervieu also shared the SACD award for choreography in 2006.

When Dominique Hervieu was appointed director of Lyon’s Maison de la Danse and Biennale in 2011, José Montalvo continued creating on his own (Don Quichotte du Trocadéro, Asa nisi massa, Y Olé !, Carmen(s), Gloria). He then went to Seoul where he created Shiganè Naï for the National Dance Company of Korea. In parallel to his choreographic work, Montalvo creates in situ events for and with local audiences, bringing together 300 to 3,000 people across many cities. For Bastille Day celebrations in 2017, he created Le Grand Bal, a participative work paying tribute to Messe pour le Temps Présent by Maurice Béjart and Pierre Henry, with 400 amateur participants and eight choreographers. In 2016, Montalvo was awarded the rank of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government.