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Stephan Choiniere in action photo by Parish Kohanim

   Stephan is a world-class acrobatic dancer and aerial artist, also accomplished as a scholarship NCAA gymnast, circus act choreographer, stunt man, and model. His creative recipe for the stage has included awe-inspiring skills with fluid phrasing and emotive story telling. Stephan co-created and performed with Sara Joel the featured duo, Body2Body, in over 1000 shows for Cirque du Soleil’s Las Vegas production, Zumanity. He is currently performing a variation of Body2Body at the Virgin Hotel, Las Vegas in the show, Lady Like - A Retro-Modern Burlesque. Prior to joining Zumanity, he was a principal performer with Anti-Gravity in New York City, integrating dance, acrobatics and aerials for the company’s original shows and corporate productions. With Anti-Gravity, Stephan appeared in such esteemed venues as: The Metropolitan Opera House, Madison Square Garden, Radio City Music Hall, as well as performing nightly at the award ceremonies of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games in Salt Lake City. He has also been a featured entertainer at special events for George Lucas, Richard Branson, George Soros, and Paul Newman. Stephan had featured roles performing and choreographing in Anti-Gravity’s full-length productions, Circus Diva, Crash Test Dummies, and Anti-Gravity Tour 2007. Additionally, he has been a featured performer in high profile benefits for Broadway Cares Equity Fights AIDS, and Dancers Responding to AIDS.

   On the creation side of productions, in 2010 Stephan resided in Singapore as the aerial straps act designer, associate circus choreographer, trainer and post-launch resident director for the 90 minute show Voyage de la Vie, a multi-million dollar theatrical rock circus spectacular, created by The Generating Company, UK. As well in 2012, an equally enterprising circus, martial arts and dance attraction in China hired Stephan as the aerial silk act designer & assistant circus choreographer for the creation team assembled by Mirage Entertainment, USA. Cirque du Soleil also acquired Stephan as a coach to the ensemble cast during the creation of Criss Angel’s Las Vegas show, Believe.



   In 2011, Stephan met another veteran of Cirque du Soleil, Angelina Puzanova, and began a partnership duo. This new act called, Fugazi, in the style of Body2Body, showcasing acrobatic-dance style with saucy characterization, is gaining accolades for its originality and high entertainment value. After its splashy premier at the Festival Siguientescena (International Festival of Alternative Performing Arts) in Querétaro, Mexico, Fugazi has been featured in special events, galas, Princess Cruises, Broadway Bares (NYC), The Box (NYC), Cirque-A-Palooza (Pasadena Playhouse, California), Le Plus Grand Cabaret du Monde (Magic TV, Paris), France’s Got Talent, and a regular featured act in CabaRAE, the variety show in Waikiki, Hawaii, as well as Teatro Martini dinner theater, (Buena Park, California). Fugazi made a stunning appearance at the 2016 Moisture Festival (Seattle), where it burned up three stages and was chosen as the closing act for the very popular annual collaboration with Teatro ZinZanni. Additionally, Fugazi was among the honored selections for the Pro Gala at the first annual VIVAFest (Vegas International Variety Act Festival) in 2017.



   As of 2015, Stephan has become the ambassador for a dandypunk in the projection mapped live performance act called, The Story Box. This piece was presented at the 5th International Varieté Festival in Gérmany to high acclaim. Meanwhile, he continues developing an innovative solo act (Spinning Ring) utilizing a miniature version of the popular circus apparatus known as the Cyr wheel.

 

   Translating his talents from the stage to the screen, audiences have seen him crash and burn in the movies While You Were Sleeping, Rookie of the Year, and It Runs in the Family; as Michael J. Fox’s regular stunt double on the sitcom, Spin City; in commercials for Cingular Wireless, and on television’s, Late Show with David Letterman, Late Night with Conan O’Brien, The Daily Show, and USA Up All Night. Courtesy of Zumanity, body2body has appeared in the television shows: Dennis Miller Live, MTV’s Diaries with Jennifer Alba, El Gordo Y La Flaca, and Despierta America. A modified version of the act is also featured in Cirque du Soleil’s television series, Solstrom, and Chris Rock’s film documentary, Good Hair. At Lucasfilm, for purposes of CGI, he has been the subject for motion-capture and extensive musculature anatomy reference for the Marvel feature film, The Avengers, where Stephan defined the movement for the character, Incredible Hulk.



   As an action model, Stephan has shot national and international print campaigns for Samsung, Capezio, Amway, Footlocker, Sanyo and Sports Illustrated, with additional images for Cirque du Soleil-Zumanity, in the magazines, Zink, and Playboy. He has appeared in several art books including Artistic Gymnastics by Fred Turoff;  Lois Greenfield: Moving Still and Airborne by Lois Greenfield; Broadway Bares: Backstage Pass; and 20 Years Under The Sun, by Cirque du Soleil. Stephan is also a principle model for the world-renowned sculptor, Richard MacDonald, now partnered with Cirque du Soleil at the Bellagio and City Center casino/hotels in Las Vegas. Richard’s sculptures featuring Stephan are on display at the galleries and in the book, The Art of Richard MacDonald Presented by Cirque du Soleil. He is also prominently spotlighted in a monumental, permanent video installation in Richard MacDonald’s joint art gallery with Cirque du Soleil at CityCenter, Las Vegas.



   As the subject for artworks, Stephan collaborates with other high-profile fine artists in photography and sculpture. His first hardcover photo monograph is currently in production. Together with a coterie of extraordinary colleagues, this book of fine art images catalogues Stephan’s original acrobatic-dance partnering in poses or caught in action. When not in front of the lens, he choreographs specialty acts and teaches creative workshops for dancers and variety artists. His unconventional choreography and exploration techniques have been enthusiastically received in coaching and workshops internationally.



   In 2005 Stephan was honored with an exclusive profile in Dancer Magazine as a “dancer/choreographer to watch.”

As a teacher, Stephan has also been on staff at The Ailey School (Junior Division Program), Sutton Gymnastics, NYC, and as team coach and resident choreographer at Le Studio school for aerial acrobatics in Los Angeles. He continues to teach workshops nationally and abroad. His distinct style of acrobatic-dance partnering has been showcased in New York at the historical Henry Street De Jur Playhouse; Symphony Space; the New Victory Theater; The Box, theater of varieties; the Main Event of Dancenow/NYC; Fire Island Dance Festival; and Broadway Bares Beach Burlesque.



   The development of an acrobatic-dance partnering language, along with a life-long study of consciousness-science, has lead Stephan to configuring himself a creator of evocative performances that foster growth and evolution. His vision melds a passion for both the fine arts and the performing arts, while nurturing an affinity for symbolism and transformational narratives. Stephan is a core member of, c3: Center for Conscious Creativity, a research and educational 501c3 arts organization dedicated to creating a better future through arts and media. He is an Artistic Director for c3: CreateLAB — a platform for the development of experimental works in the performing and expressive arts driven by innovation and emerging technologies.



   Stephan received a BFA in painting from Tyler School of Art, while on a gymnastics scholarship at Temple University in Philadelphia, PA.

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A detailed CV with recommendations can be viewed at:
http://www.linkedin.com/in/stephanchoiniere

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