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Biography

Joni Österlund

Born in Finland, Pori is a dancer and choreographer living in Vienna since 2019.

The dancer started his training with the Dance School Liisa Nojonen while intimately connected to Pori Dance Company under the directorship of Liisa Nojonen.

Advancing to study in the Finnish National Ballet School, he worked with Jorma Uotinen (Black Water), Kenneth Greve (Snow Queen) learning also parts from Mats Ek’s Swan Lake.

After receiving a scholarship to attend dance master classes in Salzburg from Peter Breuer, Ildiko Pongor and
Fabrice Edelmann Joni chose to complete a Bachelor degree in Classical Ballet in Budapest’s Hungarian Dance Academy while dancing in works from Tamás Juronics (Magic Flute), Guyla Harangozó (Square Concert) and Seregi László (Sylvia, Faust).

During the years 2016-2019 Joni danced in a multitude of musicals, operettas and contemporary ballet evenings with the Eger Dance Company in Gardonyí Géza Theatre in the city of Eger, Hungary directed by Tamás Topolánszky.

Artistic Statement

The dancer-choreographer aims to build an archive of tools, experiences, and memories through research in connection with multidisciplinary artists. As an individual artist still looking to belong and share in a community, Österlund's priority is on understanding the artistically articulate ways of movement and its genre-specific ways to convey an idea outwards in the structure of performance art and theatre.

Current themes revolve around deconstructing and putting on display the patterns of our society as a highly sharing and communicative species needing to better oneself and the systems we have constructed around us. The interest is in opposites as a base for a conflict. Duality gives a reason to tackle a creative task. Österlund uses polarisation as a base to approach the performance aspect of putting the arts on display.

Österlund finds a balance between the severe and carefree creating dance through intuition while melding a multitude of different genres and creative expertise while discovering the unexpected.

JONI ÖSTERLUND

Born 14.08.1991 Pori, Finland

Judengasse 1A/1/15

1010 Wien, Austria

+43 676 561 5994

DANCER:

2019- Freelancer Dancer with:

Companies, Theatres and festivals such as: Die Neue Oper Wien, Theater an der Wien, Styriarte, Salzburger Festspiele, Volksoper Wien

Choreographers and Directors such as: Christof Loy, Klevis Elmazaj, Keith Warren, Ran Arthur Braun, Jörg Weinöhl, Matthias Oldag, Henry Mason, Francecs Abós

2016-2019 Theatre Gárdonyi Géza & The Dance Company:

Contemporary Ballet, Modern, Character dances, Improvisation, Pas de Deux, also singing and acting. Tasks as a soloist, corps de ballet, and duets. Plus all of the operettas and musicals by the theatre company.

ASSISTING DANCER:

2012-2013 Finnish National Ballet: La Bayadère, Le Corsaire, Snow Queen
2014 Szeged Contemporary Ballet: Josephslegende by Tamás Juronics
2014-15 The Magic Flute by Tamás Juronics

FILM & TV:

2017 SUNSET by Laszló Nemes

Roles of: Cadet, Dancing Soldier & Upper-Class citizen

CHOREOGRAPHER:

2020 Mind. Your Own Business. -Solo Vienna Austria
2019 Hintergedanke, Vienna Austria
2019 Creation, Dancearts Boris Nebyla Vienna Summer Masterclasses Choreography
2017 Urban Patterns, "Műhély Alápítvány" candidate
2017 In Vivo, International Dance Gala, Pori Finland
2014 Szürkület, Duet, Hungarian Dance Academy's choreography competition 3rd place
2013 Echo/Kaiku (excerpt), NextStep Exhibition, Helsinki Finland
2012 Rapscallion, for the Finnish National Ballet School Christmas Matiné in Alminsali, Helsinki Finland
2012 Echo/Kaiku, Artist in close up -festival, Helsinki Finland

Teacher:

2019- Vienna Dance Centre, Contemporary dance teacher
2019-2020 Dancearts Boris Nebyla, Contemporary dance teacher
2018-2019 Podium Dance School Eger, Contemporary dance teacher

Guest Teacher:

2019 Grand Assamble Festival Fundatia Simona Noja Workshops in Cluj-Napoca, Romania
2017 Liisa Nojonen International Summer Courses

PRODUCTION ASSISTANT:

2011-2012 Pori Dance Company:

On and off-stage, performance, production & tour assistant for the director Liisa Nojonen. Creations by Jorma Uotinen, Tero Saarinen, Marjo Kuusela, Jung-Eun Kim, Geon Hyauk Jin

Founder of Pop-up Project "EVIDANCE" 2017-2018:

Artistic sharing and exchange project between Hungary and Finland.

Connecting and informing the directing faculty of dance companies and the respective theatres in the sister cities of the Finnish Pori and Hungarian Eger. Resulting in artistic guest performances in Pori and Eger.
Interpretation and translation of artistic meetings in Finland, Helsinki with directorship of Miskolc Ballet meeting the directors of Alpo Aaltokoski Company, Susanna Leinonen Company and Pori Dance Company regarding the artistic exchange between the companies, festivals, dancers and choreographers. So far resulting in Alpo Aaltokoski performing in the HORIZONT Festival in Miskolc, Hungary

STUDIES:

2013-2016 B.A. CLASSICAL BALLET Hungarian Dance Academy (HDA)

Classical ballet, Modern, Pas de deux, improvisation

Class Teachers: György Szakály, Gábor Keveházi, Tatiana Vdovicheva, Wiesław Dudek, Tamás Topolánszky, Noemi Kulcsár

2011-2013 DANCER, VOCATIONAL DIPLOMA Finnish National Opera Ballet School

Classical ballet, Modern, Pas de deux, Mats Ek repertoire, improvisation, Flamenco, Pilates, Body conditioning

Class Teachers: Timo Kokkonen, Yannick Boquin, Jorma Uotinen, Kenneth Greve, Saima Kranig, Sándor Nemethy, Veli-Pekka Peltokallio, Minna Tervamäki, Ulla-Mari Mäkelä, Nina Hyvärinen, Leena Kalk, Jarkko Niininen, Riku Lehtopolku

Summer Courses & Workshops with various international choreographers and teachers:

Alexander Korobko, Alonzo King, Béla Földi, Damien Jalet, Eldad Ben Sasson, Fabrice Edelmann, Ildiko Pongor, János Misurák, Jose Carlos Blanco Martinez, Konstantin Karin, Meri Tankka, Mikko Lampinen, Neel Verdoorn, Pál Lovas, Peter Breuer, Riikka Tankka, Russell Adamson, Susanna Leinonen