Bettina Szabo

Bettina Szabo | Cuña

Cuña is a transdisciplinary project that combines dance, music and video mapping. The creation process started in the fall of 2017, thanks to the bursary Vivacité Montreal, and a mentorship residency given by Circuit-Est Centre Chorégraphique.

Coming from Uruguay, a country where women are considered second-class citizens, I discovered new freedoms as woman when I emigrated to Montreal. This change made me aware of self-imposed limitations that belong to my culture, but not to me. I realized that I was perpetuating the very same patriarchal dogma I was fighting. Unfortunately, I am not alone; all women do it, to different degrees and extents. However, these are social constructs that have been learnt, and they can be changed.

This phenomenon inspired me to create Cuña. My research is sub-divided by different life stages: childhood, menstruation, couples, motherhood, and menopause. I have gathered a full female creation team: Émilie Allard on video and visual conception, Keiko Devaux as composer and myself as choreographer and artistic director. Additionally, I count with the support of Angelique Willkie as dramaturge and Nelly-Eve Rajotte as consultant for video mapping. The cast consist of 5 dancers and an opera singer. They are all singular, of different ages, from different origins within Canada and the world. Giving me a diverse representation essential for this work.


Born in Uruguay, Bettina Szabo dances and choreographs in Montreal since 2007. She studies with Hebe Rosa in Montevideo, at Concordia University and EDCMTL in Montreal as well as with Rami Be’er in Israel. She continues her professional development master classes with Marie Chouinard, Dave St-Pierre and Guy Cools among others.

She dances for the Ballet de Camara de Montevideo (2004-2007), Kibbutz Contemporary Dance Company in Israel (2010), and Interlope in Montreal (2013-2014). In 2006 She creates the dance collective Jeli-Mien, with which she is warded the emerging choreographer and emerging interpreter award from the National Ministry of Culture and Sport from Uruguay.

Dance as a means of communication for her that enables a connection to the audience without limitation of language or social class. In 2014 she creates Noir=+, for percussionist and dancer, after a research residency at the CNSMD de Lyon. She is interested in interdisciplinary collaborative research, somatic movement, and sound exploration. She premieres Habitat in 2017 at the ZH festival after a dual residency at the Casa de Velazquez in Madrid, and Impuls Dance in Vienna. She currently is working on her new project Cuña, in Collaboration with Emilie Allard (visual art), Keiko Devaux (Music Composition) and Angelique Willikie (dramaturge), with support of the Canada Council of the Arts. An activist at heart, Bettina is panelist of the radio show Danscussions and Co., as well as member of the Regroupement Quebecois de la Danse, participating on the consultation of CIVE, addressing and change systemic racism amongst the dance community.