Photo : Bashir Al Mahayni
un supervised
Selena Russo
Biography
At daycare, I play a game called “Find the Colour.” I call a colour out - red, yellow, blue, green - and the kids have to find it in the classroom. However when all of my attention is on the big items, the kids look at all the things unnoticed - a green sock peeking out from a shoe, the yellow circle of an “i” on the board, a red lint on a t-shirt.
I’m the girl that grew up in a Filipino/Italian houSehold.
I’m the girl that battled suburban borEdom with crafts and hobbies.
I’m the girl that loves to draw, paint, play the piano, read, sing, Laugh, dance!
I’m the girl whose name mEans the moon but brings the sun into every room.
I’m the girl that follows a cat dowN an alley just in case it leads her on a magical quest.
I’m the girl that skips down the sidewAlk and sings while riding her bike.
I’m the girl that is a clown, even at times when she’s not trying to be.
I’m the girl whose love of heR life is her cat.
I’m the girl that wonders if anyone will ever Understand her universe.
I’m the girl that has a big paSsion for working with young children.
I’m the girl that is inspired by their imagination, and mirrorS their playfulness in her movement.
I’m the girl whOse best friend is her inner child.
I’m SELENA RUSSO, and every day I try to find all those red lints, all the small joys, all the little magics.
Artistic Approach
As an artist, I’m interested in how I can integrate worldbuilding, comedy, and storytelling into my work. As a mover, I blend contemporary movement with theatrical expression, as well as mixing styles of hip-hop, acrobatics, and jazz funk.
In my creative process, I like exploring themes of childhood, kinship and nostalgia. Heavily inspired by the young children I work with at daycares across Montreal, I tap into my inner child and bring her with me into my creations. As if I’m experiencing the world for the first time over again, I want to rediscover the joys of the every day.
How can I find excitement in the mundane and miniscule?
A celebration of loneliness - all of the shades.
Boredom, confusion, playfulness, fear, that hollow feeling, freedom.
Who do you talk to? dance with? sing about?
A girl enters the stage, and makes a friend. The fragility of innocence, a multiverse of me’s.
The only person who’s with you for it all is yourself.