Schermafbeelding 2025 04 14 om 16 35 32

Stanley Ollivier

Stanley Ollivier is a Brussels-based French-Caribbean dan­cer, per­for­mer, cre­a­tor, and DJ. With a back­ground in gym­nas­tics, they cho­se to take a dif­fe­rent path dri­ven by a need for cre­a­ti­vi­ty, going on to stu­dy dan­ce and musi­cal the­a­tre at the International Dance Academy of Paris (AID). They later pur­sued con­tem­po­ra­ry dan­ce stu­dies at the CNSMDP in Paris and at P.A.R.T.S., whe­re they obtai­ned both their Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Dance.

Stanley Ollivier explo­res alter­na­ti­ve ways of being, dan­cing, and coexis­ting, whi­le chal­len­ging domi­nant ide­as of nor­ma­ti­vi­ty and rigi­di­ty. Their cho­re­o­grap­hic tools use dan­ce as a medi­um to cre­a­te shif­ting spa­ces of ambigui­ty and fan­ta­sy, balan­cing bet­ween frag­men­ta­ti­on and who­le­ness, decon­struc­ti­on and con­struc­ti­on, opti­mism and doubt. Their cur­rent inte­rests inclu­de dis­co­ve­ring new phy­si­cal nar­ra­ti­ves and ope­nings toward a con­scious inno­cen­ce, whi­le del­ving into the prac­ti­ce of the crus­hed, joy­ful, and per­sis­tent body. Their work enga­ges with ques­ti­ons sur­roun­ding the role of enter­tain­ment in con­tem­po­ra­ry dan­ce, con­tex­tu­al shifts, iden­ti­ty, humor, care, and versatility.

They have col­la­bo­ra­ted with a vari­e­ty of resi­d­en­cy pro­grams, pro­duc­ti­ons, and inter­na­ti­o­nal artists, inclu­ding Kamel Ouali, Tatiana Seguin, François Rousseau, Lasseindra Ninja, Iván Pérez & The Heidelberg Dance Theater, Pippin, Disney Channel pro­duc­ti­on, Lila & John, Nina Muñoz, Lila Magnin, Collective LA 360/​Sarah Deppe, Cie Tabea Martin, Brahim Tall, Geert Belpaeme, Soa Ratsifandrihana, Léa Vinette, Calixto Neto, workspa­ce­brus­sels, CCN Orléans, Tanzhaus Zürich, and others.

They are part of the Ballroom Scene and per­form as a DJ under the name STANLEY. They have play­ed at various venues and radio sta­ti­ons inter­na­ti­o­nal­ly, inclu­ding Rinse (FR), Kiosk Radio (BE), The Lot Radio (US), Ola Radio (FR), Drift Radio (CPH), Radio Panini (CPH), DecorAtelier (BE), Atelier 210 (BE), Lafayette Anticipations (FR), and KFDA (BE). Additionally, they are co-foun­der of Entwined, a radio show in resi­den­ce at Kiosk Radio that offers a plat­form for artists to pre­sent their work or research in rela­ti­on to music.

Following ear­lier per­for­man­ce works such as Sorry not Sorry (2019), PARADE (2021), The Mirror Stand (2022), and Just A Taste (2024), Stanley is cur­rent­ly devel­o­ping a new pro­ject: Spine Of Desire: Wounds wit­hout tears, out of one skin in dia­monds and shit (2025). In 2024, they were nomi­na­ted for the PrixFintroPrijs (BE), an award cele­bra­ting emer­ging authors, artists, and performers.


Image © Miguel Soll