Camilla Faragalli, reporter
Funded by the Local Journalism Initiative
Marie-Josée Corriveau of Litchfield and her dance partner Jason Morel made it to the final round of the eighteenth season of the televised dance competition, France Has Incredible Talent (translated), which aired live on Dec. 22.
“It was a great experience, it was challenging, and it was a lot of fun,” Corriveau told The EQUITY of her time competing in Paris.
The show recruited the pair following their win on Canadian dance competition show, Révolution, in 2022.
“We were really excited. It felt like a nice recognition to get noticed by recruiters all the way in France,” Corriveau said.
The 30-year-old Montreal-based dancer grew up in Litchfield, where she began dancing at the age of four.
“We had to go to dance, we’re a dance family,” she said, explaining that her family owns and runs Pontiac’s Corriveau School of Dance.
Corriveau said she and Morel were asked to audition for France Has Incredible Talent with a piece they had performed during the Révolution competition.
The challenging number, choreographed by Corriveau herself, tells a story of domestic violence, in which Corriveau dances with her eyes closed.
“We didn’t know if this culture would relate to it [the piece], or if they’re going to like it, or if they’re going to understand it, but luckily enough our song is by an artist from France,“ she said.
The pair received the “golden buzzer,” for their performance at the audition, meaning they went straight to the semi-finals.
“Just to get the golden buzzer, have all the confetti fall down, everyone in the crowd after our dance chanting to give it [golden buzzer] to us … it was just surreal.”
Corriveau added that the golden-buzzer moment might be the high-point of the whole competition for her, which lasted from August to December of 2023, and involved three separate trips to Paris.
“It was really, really cool,” she said.
Corriveau said she dreams of one day choreographing for larger companies.
“We do these shows to get more work, to get more people to see who we are and what we can do, [and] create more opportunities for ourselves as a duo, but also individually.”
Corriveau’s dance partner Morel was born in France and has lived in Montreal since the age of 12. The duo have danced together since auditioning for Révolution in 2022.
“I think we share a lot of the same values when it comes to what we like in dance, style-wise, but also in our work ethic,” Corriveau said. “He’s always willing to put in the work, which I was able to see from our first few practices together.”
The pair is currently training to tour with Révolution in February, and will be performing in Gatineau March 21 – 24.