CHRISTINE & PAUL

Christine Gouzelis is of Greek-Canadian descent and is one of the leaders of the Jukstapoz Company. After studying at the National Greek Academy of Dance, she received the DanceWeb scholarship for Impulstanz - Vienna in 2004. That same year, Christine began a long-term collaboration with choreographer, improviser and artist David Zambrano. After becoming a member of the Hellenic Dance Company, she came to dance for choreographers such as Wim Vandekeybus, Anton Lachky, Rootlessroot, Athina Vahla and Pascal Rioult. Christine has also worked with the Jasmin Vardimon's Company, affiliated with Sadlers Wells, and toured with works internationally until she was appointed rehearsal leader for the company in 2012. She has also been rehearsal leader for Anton Lachky Company and Athina Vahla. Since 2010, with the formation of Jukstapoz Company,
Christine leads workshops in dance and seminars for institutions and festivals such as the Venice Biennale, Greenwich Dance, Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts, Beijing BNU, Salzburg Experimental Dance Academy, B12 Berlin, 203Y Guangzhou, Western Australian Academy of Performing Arts, Dance Center Jette Brussels and Sadlers Wells. She was one of the lecturers at the National Greek Academy of Dance from 2011–2018. In 2014, Christine was invited as a guest choreographer at the Hong Kong Academy of Performing Arts for two years. She has created works such as Fragile Matter, Echoing Woods, Savage Symphony and Perplexed Harmony and was nominated by the Hong Kong Dance Alliance for Best Choreography and Best Ensemble for the work Fragile Matter.

Paul Blackman is one of the founding members of the Jukstapoz Company and is originally from Perth, West Australia. At a young age, Paul was literally thrown headfirst into the performing arts world by his acrobatic and circus trained mother. After graduating from the West Australian Academy of Performing Arts, he worked with the West Australian Ballet and then Buzz Dance Theatre touring interstate and regional Australia. Awarded 'best male dancer' in the Ausdance Awards 2006 and nominated for 'best dancer' Helpmann Award 2006. In 2007 was awarded 'best male performer' by Article19. He was invited to New York with Battery Dance Company to begin work and touring internationally, he was also one of the original members of the Dancing to Connect℠ programme which has now reached over 52 countries worldwide. Consecutively he joined the Jasmin Vardimon Company in the United Kingdom, creatively working and touring internationally until 2010. In this last decade and previously, he has encountered and worked with a diverse group of renowned Artists, such as Jan Lauwers, David Zambrano, Matthias Hartmann, Jasmin Vardimon, Alexandra Liedtke, Jozef Frucek and Linda Kapetanea, Jonathan Hollander, Susan Quinn, Athena Vahla, Felicity Bott, Chrissie Parrott and Simon Dow. He is also a choreographer and movement coach for contemporary and traditional operas working with an array of notable conductors, singers and musicians at the Salzburg Festspiele, Odeon of Herodes Atticus, Wiener Staatsoper, Theater Kiel, Salzburger Landestheater, Athens Megaron Mousikis, Mecklenburgisches Staatstheater. Currently, his main focus is the co-artistic directorship of Jukstapoz Company. Based in Athens - Greece and choreographing for multi-scaled commissioned works for international coordination. Paul continues to share his enthusiasm for the Arts by teaching & coaching dance/choreographic workshops throughout the world in various notable festivals, institutions and companies.