The 7 Fingers

The 7 Fingers (Les 7 Doigts)

Formation	2002
Founder	Shana Carroll, Isabelle Chassé, Patrick Léonard, Faon Shane, Gypsy Snider, Sébastien Soldevila, Samuel Tétreault
Founded at	Montréal
Purpose	Creation, production and touring of shows
Headquarters	2111 Boul. St Laurent. Montreal, Québec, Canada
Products	2017 Vice & Vertu 2016 Réversible 2016 Princesse de Cirque 2015 Triptyque 2014 Cuisine & Confessions 2014 Intersection2013 Le Murmure du coquelicot 2012 Séquence 8 2012 Amuse 2011 Patinoire 2009 Psy 2007 La Vie 2007 Projet Fibonacci 2006 Traces 2002 Loft
Website	www.the7fingers.com

The 7 Fingers is an artist collective based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The group is also known by the French "Les 7 Doigts de la main,” which is sometimes shortened to "Les 7 Doigts."

History

The 7 Fingers is a collective founded in 2002 by seven circus artists: Isabelle Chassé, Shana Carroll, Patrick Léonard, Faon Shane, Gypsy Snider, Sébastien Soldevila, and Samuel Tétreault. Following her immigration to Germany in 2008, Faon Shane gradually reoriented her career. For the past few years, the founders have appeared less often on stage and have focused on artistic direction.

The general management of the collective has been headed since 2003 by C.E.O. Nassib-El-Husseini, a political scientist, author, and former advisor to numerous governmental and non-governmental organizations both in Canada and abroad.  

The 7 Fingers Foundation was established July 14, 2016 to support the realization of new projects.

The collective is headquartered in Montreal (225 Roy Street East). Relocation plans are underway, as the company prepares to move into its new Creation and Production Centre, situated at 2111 Saint Laurent Boulevard in Montreal. The new centre is expected to open in 2018, following more than a year of renovations.

Awards and recognitions

• January 2003: Prix Nikouline at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris for a diabolo number performed by Patrick Léonard and Sébastien Soldevila.
• January 2007: Gold medal at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris for a hand-to-hand number choreographed by Shana Carroll and performed by Sébastien Soldevila and Émilie Bonnavaud.
• April 2008: Two Drama Desk Award nominations (Outstanding Choreography and Unique Theatrical Experience) for TRACES.
• 2012: Off Broadway Alliance Awards Best Special Event award for TRACES.
• January 2012: Gold medal at the Festival Mondial du Cirque de Demain in Paris for a Chinese pole number (an excerpt from the show PSY) performed by Héloïse Bourgeois and William Underwood.
• 2011: Listed in Time Magazine’s Top 10 Plays & Musicals (TRACES).
• 2010: Three Canadian Applied Arts Photography prizes for the poster of PSY by Varial.
• 2010: Helpmann Award nomination (Australia) for TRACES.
• May 2012: Off-Broadway Alliance Award for TRACES.
• February 2012: “Prix du CALQ” from the Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec for the North-American tour of TRACES.
• February 2015: “Artistes pour la Paix” (Artists for Peace) award in Montreal for the collective.
• March 2016: Co-winners with the Musée d'Art Contemporain de Montréal of the Grand Prix du Conseil des arts de Montréal.
• January 2017: Evolving Circus Award, USA.

Original touring shows

Vice & Vertu (2017)

Directed by three of the collective’s co-founders — Isabelle Chassé, Patrick Léonard, and Samuel Tétreault  — Vice & Vertu was performed July 10 to August 6, 2017 at the Société des Arts Technologiques (SAT) in Montreal as part of the city’s 375^th Anniversary Celebrations. Vice & Vertu was an immersive, three-hour, promenade-style performance for audiences 18 years and over. The production was a work of fiction heavily inspired by historic figures from 1920s to 1940s Montreal.    

The Circus Princess (2016 - present)

Directed by Sébastien Soldevila, The Circus Princess is an adaptation of the operetta by Emmerich Kálmán. Rehearsals were held Montreal before a run at the Moscow Musical Theatre. 51 performances were given in the fall of 2016. The show reopened in 2017 for a total for 67 additional performances in March, April, June, July, and October.  

Réversible (2016 - present)

Directed Gypsy Snider, Reversible was coproduced with the Théâtre du Gymnase-Bernardines (Marseille), Thomas Lightburn (Vancouver), and the Tohu, la Cité des arts du cirque (Montreal).

The showed premiered in November 2016 at the Université de Sherbrooke’s Salle Maurice O'Bready in Sherbrooke, Quebec (Canada). In March 2017, Reversible became the first circus show and the first show from Quebec to play at the Bataclan, following its reopening and renovations in the wake of the November 13, 2015 terrorist attacks. In its first year, the show was performed a total of 141 times. In 2017, the show was filmed in St-Etienne (France) by Red Velvet for French and Quebecois television.

Triptyque (2015 - present)

Under the artistic direction of Samuel Tétreault, The 7 Fingers partnered with three choreographers to create a performance composed of three acts:

• Anne & Samuel: a duo choreographed by Marie Chouinard.
• Variations 9.81: a handstand quintet staged by Victor Quijada (Groupe RUBBERBANDance).
• Nocturnes: a piece by Marcos Morau (La Véronal).

The show was coproduced by Sadler's Wells Theatre (London), Thomas Lightburn (Vancouver), the Tohu, la Cité des arts du cirque (Montreal), Albourne (Norwalk), and Danse-Cité (Montreal). The show’s official premiere was at the TOHU on October 14, 2015.

Patinoire (2011 - present)

The company’s first solo show, Patinoire, features 7 Fingers co-founder Patrick Léonard. The show was most notably performed at the Festival d'Avignon in 2014.

The Fibonacci Project (2007 - present)

A project centered on international artistic cooperation, The Fibonacci Project has been realized through numerous residencies throughout the world:

February 2007: Mexico City (Mexico)/ June 2008: Igloolik (Canada)/ July 2008: Montreal (Canada) / February 2009: Veracruz (Mexico)/ November-December 2009: Copenhagen (Denmark)/ November 2010: Barcelona (Spain)/ April-June 2011: Copenhagen (Denmark)/ June-July 2012: Buenos Aires (Argentina) / April 2016: Marrakesh (Morocco).

Past original productions

Cuisine & Confessions (2014 - 2017)

Directed by Shana Carroll and Sébastien Soldevila, Cuisine & Confessions brought live cooking directly on stage. The show opened the 2014 CINARS Biennale in Montreal and went on to be performed 381 times. The show was coproduced by the Centre national de création et de diffusion culturelles de Châteauvallon (Ollioules, France), l'Espace Jean Legendre (Compiègne, France), le Grand Théâtre de Provence (Aix-en-Provence, France), the Tohu, la Cité des arts du cirque (Montreal), and Thomas Lightburn (Vancouver).

Intersection (2014)

An interactive and immersive circus performance, Intersection was directed by Gypsy Snider and Samuel Tétreault, and was created in 2013 at the invitation of the TOHU to open the 5^th Montréal Complètement Cirque Festival.

Le Murmure du coquelicot (2013 - 2014)

The result of a carte blanche given by the Théâtre du Nouveau Monde (TNM) of Montreal, Le Murmure du coquelicot was presented as the TNM’s 2013-2014 season opener. Written and directed by Sébastien Soldevila, the show featured Rémy Girard, six acrobats, and Pascale Montpetit.

Séquence 8 (2012 - 2015)

Coproduced by the Nuits de Fourvière Festival (Lyon) and the Tohu, la Cité des arts du cirque (Montreal), Séquence 8 was performed for the first time at the Montréal Complètement Cirque Festival in 2012 and went on to be performed nearly 400 more times, reaching 300,000 spectators in 17 countries. The show was directed by Shana Carroll and Sébastien Soldevila. In April 2015, the show completed a three-year tour with a two-week run at the New York City Center.

AMuse (2012 / 2014) and AMuse, Un Dia (2013)

Created first in 2012 for the 60^th anniversary of the Auditorio Nacional de Mexico, this original, family-oriented production was remounted in the same performance hall in 2013. A 45-minute version was performed more than 150 times at the Feria de León in Léon, Mexico, in 2013 and 2014.

Psy (2009 - 2013)

Directed by Shana Carroll and Sébastien Soldevila, the show was performed 300 times between 2009 and 2013.

La Vie (2007 - 2013)

La Vie opened in New York with 100 shows in a Spiegeltent, before embarking on an international tour. The show was initially coproduced by Spiegelworld and Ross Mollison.

Traces (2006 - present)

The show had its world premiere in Montreal in January 2006, shortly before performing at the Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, Australia. With ten years and nearly 1900 shows to its name, Traces is considered one of the collective’s biggest successes. In 2011, the show played for one year at Union Square Theatre in New York.

Loft (2002 - 2013)

In 2004, The 7 Fingers were invited to inaugurate the TOHU (Montreal), the first circular performance hall in North America. Loft was performed for the opening of the Bourse Rideau showcase event in Quebec City. A documentary by Sogestalt Television on the company featuring excerpts of Loft was broadcast internationally on the channel TV5 Monde. Over the course of 11 years, the show was performed nearly 900 times for more than 300,000 spectators.

Artistic collaborations

Paramour (2016 - 2017)

Shana Carroll (The 7 Fingers) was the director of acrobatic creation and choreographer for this Cirque du Soleil production^.

Darcy Oake, Edge of reality (2015)

After an initial collaboration in 2014 for illusionist Darcy Oake’s television show, The 7 Fingers directed Darcy Oake’s touring show, Edge of Reality, in 2015.

Peter Pan (2015 - 2016)

In 2015, The 7 Fingers led the choreography and movement direction of Peter Pan 360²⁴ in the United States. Presented in the Threesixty Theatre, a 360-degree stage within a 100-foot high structure, Peter Pan was directed by William Dudley with original music by Benjamin Wallfisch.

Queen of the Night (2013 -2015)

In 2013, the company collaborated on Queen of the Night, creating the circus elements of the production, which played at the Diamond Horseshoe supper club in New York for more than 300 shows. The show was a fusion of theatre, music, circus, cuisine, and design.

Pippin (2013 - 2017)

The choreography and integration of circus into the Broadway revival of the musical Pippin was entrusted to The 7 Fingers. In 2014, the show was performed 420 times at the Music Box Theatre in New York.  Pippin also toured the US.

Il fait dimanche (2010)

This National Circus School of Montreal show was directed by The 7 Fingers.

Crime (2009)

The 7 Fingers staged and directed the National Circus School of Montreal’s show Crime.

Special events

• Bench Under the Stars (Manilla, 2017)
• Festival Ile Soniq (Montréal, 2017)
• C2 Montréal (2015)
• Olympic Games: Sochi 2014, Vancouver 2010, and Turin 2006
• Governor General’s Awards Gala (Canada, 2006)
• Luces Fugaces (Colombia, 2014)
• Bench/ The Naked Truth (Manilla, 2014)²⁸

Television projects

• Royal Variety Performance (2008)
• America's Got Talent (2011 and 2012)
• The 84th Academy Awards ceremony (2012)
• Le Plus Grand Cabaret du monde (2013)
• Darcy Oake: Edge of Reality (2014)