The last 20 hours of our crowdfunding have started! We are so grateful to all of you who have donated and shared. It is because of you all that we will be able to make TOGETHERNESS the way we intended.

As a collective working in times of isolation on a project about togetherness it means a lot to us that together with you, as if one big collective, we will get to continue the work!

Any amount of thanks is not enough, but lets start with 3585 'thank you's to all of you!

Pauline Van Nuffel

Belgium, 1997

In 2013 Pauline started the dance education at de!Kunsthumaniora in Antwerp. After graduating in 2015 Pauline continued her dance education at the Royal Conservatory Antwerp. In the second year of her education she went on an Erasmus program to the Iceland University of the Arts. In the third year she continued her education in Iceland to finish her bachelor there.

The first part of the year she did two month internship with the Icelandic Dance Company, were she worked on two pieces for the festival: Norður og Niður. One with Alexander Roberts and Ásrún Magnúsdóttir: The Great Gathering and one by Erna Omarsdóttir: At dusk, we embrace. As a graduation project she performed the piece End of an era which was created with Katrín Gunnarsdóttir.

Currently Pauline is freelance dancer and helping with the productional part of The Backyard. She is also teaching and creating a choreography for Dansschool Nathalie Dierickx vzw and choreographing for a musical in Sint-Jan Berchmanscollege in Brussels.

Meike Stevens

The Netherlands, 1993

Meike first studied Italian Language & Culture at Utrecht University. After obtaining her degree she started her dance education at the Royal Conservatory in Antwerp, where she graduated in 2018.

She danced in a duet choreographed by Zoe Leduc at Dansateliers Rotterdam (One Night’s Dance 2016). After her education she joined WArd/waRD - Ann van den Broek for the creation of Blueprint on Memory.

Recently she has been working for Reckless Sleepers and has been teaching in multiple schools in Belgium.

She joined The Backyard in december 2018.

Margot Masquelier

France, 1995

After completing a higher education of Classical Dance in Toulouse she began working as a freelance dancer for a.o. Les Gens-Charles Company with whom she performed HB12. After which, she then completed a technical skills diploma in Ballet, Contemporary and Jazz.

Margot continued on to the Junior Company of CobosMika formation in Spain for one year and then joined the Royal Conservatoire of Antwerp in 2017.

This is the place where she met Pieter Desmet. Since then she performed in two of his creations: as sweet as it gets and in Desolate Dreams for the art festival ‘MoMenT’ in Belgium.

In 2018 she worked with Ricardo Ambrózio on a piece called Bare and also on the repertory piece Satyagraha from Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.

More recently she has been creating the duet Hold Me Tight together with Machias Bosschaerts.

Hernán Mancebo Martinez

Hernán Mancebo Martinez is a Spanish dancer / performer born in 1990.

In TOGETHERNESS Hernán is dancing on a parking lot together with Bianca. They try to physically and emotionally escape their loneliness, not knowing they're heading straight to it. His dance is based on his Bachelor Solo, which he made in 2018.

Hernán was born in Granada. He began his career of movement in martial arts (Kung Fu), after years of practice and learning he became a Kung Fu teacher. After 6 years in Martial Arts he began his career as a contemporary dancer at the Reina Sofia Conservatory of Granada. Two years later he entered the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp.

Currently Hernán works freelance as a dancer. On the side he is still teaching Kung Fu and different trainings based on “The movement culture“.

Bianca Zueneli

Bianca is an Italian dancer / performer born in 1993.

In TOGETHERNESS Bianca is dancing on the same parking as Hernán. Her dance is based on her site specific solo Nancy, which she made in 2017. Together with Hernán they try to physically and emotionally escape their loneliness, not knowing they're heading straight to it.

Bianca began studying modern dance at a young age and during her youth continued experimenting various disciplines such as figure skating, acrobatics and aerial silks. She studied Set Design at the Venice Academy of Fine Arts, but her passion for dance drove her to Brussels, where she trained in various contemporary dance techniques. She then entered the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp, and graduated in 2018.

Currently she works and has worked as a freelance dancer in different creations:Les Pêcheurs de Perles by FC Bergman at the Opera of Antwerp, WEG by Ayelen Parolin in Brussels and for Zehra Proch in Marseille. In the last few years she started creating her personal work and since 2017 she is a coach and teacher at KunstZ Academy in Antwerp.

Júlia Godino Llorens

Júlia is Spanish dancer/performer born in 1996.

We meet Júlia in TOGETHERNESS stuck in an elevator. Her dance in the movie is based on her Bachelor Solo HER which she made in 2018.

Júlia started studying the Conservatory Institut del Teatre in Barcelona. Concurrently she studied sciences for 2 years. She continued her studies at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp after which she co-founded The Backyard collective.

Within The Backyard she has made the duet Picnic on the Moon together with Alexa Moya Panksep.

Meanwhile she is working as freelance dancer for a.o. the company Kopseer and UniaUna... And she has been creating her own work.

Klára Ešnerová

Klára is Czech dancer/performer born in 1993.

We meet Klára in TOGETHERNESS stuck in an elevator. Her dance in the movie is based on Pieter's site specific solo Ego Me which he made in 2017.

Klára graduated from the Duncan Centre Conservatory in Prague. She then went to study in multiple schools like the Escola Superior de Dance in Lisboa, BCDA Hungary and the Academy of Performing Arts in Prague. Eventually she graduated in 2018 at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp.

She is working now as a freelance dancer, teacher and choreographer. She worked with choreographers as Saju Hari, Micha Purucker, Lenka Flóry and more. She is also a licensed yoga instructor after receiving and intensive instruction in India.

For The Backyard she is currently choreographing Xposure. A new dance performance which will premiere in November 2021 in ccBerchem in Antwerp.

Daan Jaartsveld

Daan is a Dutch dancer/performer born in 1995.

In TOGETHERNESS Daan is the first person Alexa meets. He dances his solo Inter Rupture, which he made in 2017.

Daan started studying dance at ArtEZ in Arnhem. After two years he changed schools to study at the Royal Conservatory in Antwerp, at which he graduated in 2018.

Currently Daan is working and touring as a freelance dancer. He works for a.o. Maud Le Pladec in the performance Twenty-seven Perspectives and for Ayelen Parolin in the performance WEG.

Aki Iwamoto

Aki is a Japanese dancer/performer born in 1992.

We meet Aki in TOGETHERNESS stuck in an elevator. Her dance in the movie is based on her Bachelor Solo a=z which she made in 2018.

She has been dancing since she was 16 years old. After a nine year practice in the martial arts Kendo and a prize-winning cheer-dance experience, she continued a dance education in Tokyo where she graduated from the Japan Women’s College of Physical Education in March 2015.

Later she went on the study at the Royal Conservatory Antwerp where she graduated in June 2018.

Currently, she works for Maud Le Pladec as a performer in Twenty-seven Perspectives. Her personal creations include the solo a=z and the group piece Human of Dummies.

Alexa Moya Panksep

Alexa is a Spanish dancer/performer born in 1997.

Alexa is the protagonist of TOGETHERNESS. We see the film through her eyes and follow her on her quest in search of her friends and social connection.

She started her dance education at Institut del Teatre in Barcelona and later continued her studies at the Royal Conservatory of Antwerp.

She is currently working as a freelance artist, interested in both dancing and developing her own work. Within The Backyard she has created a duet with Júlia Godino Llorens, Picnic on the Moon.

She has worked with Antonio Ruz, Carolina Garcés Pellejero and with the company Wreckless Sleepers.

Machias Bosschaerts

Machias is Belgian dancer/performer born in 1994.

In TOGETHERNESS Machias portrays the Creature, a character he created for the site specific solo RADIANT in 2017.

He started dancing ballet at the age of six and later joined dance education at De!kunsthumaniora in Antwerp. He went on to study at the Royal Conservatory Antwerp to graduate in 2018.

Within The Backyard Machias designed the costumes for its first production It’s Gonna Be Horse and is currently choreographing the new dance performance Chapel of Love which will premiere in November 2021 in ccBerchem. At the same time he is working on the duet Hold Me Tight with Margot Masquelier.

Currently Machias is working as a ballet and contemporary dance teacher in various school in Belgium. He is also working freelance for Tuur Marinus.