Mathilde Altaraz is a prominent figure on the French contemporary dance scene. She met Jean-Claude Gallotta in 1970 at the Grenoble Conservatory of Dance, and under his direction she performed En attendant and Le Temps d’une histoire (honoured at the prestigious Bagnolet international dance competition).

After completong medical studies in Grenoble, she trained in modern dance under Mirjam Berns and then in New York.

In 1979, she and Mr Gallotta cofounded the Groupe Emile Dubois (which in 1984 became the Centre Chorégraphique National de Grenoble) ; she became Mr Gallotta’s assistant and performed in all of his works until 1994.

Ms Altaraz was a guest artist at the 1999 Avignon Festival, where she participated in the “Vif du sujet” performance series coproduced by the Société des auteurs et compositeurs dramatiques (SACD) and performed L’Incessante, a solo choreographed by Mr Gallotta.

In 2002 she appeared in the prmiered of 99 duos at the Théâtre National de Chaillot in Paris, and in May 2005 she performed the role of Anna in Les 7 Péchés Capitaux, codirected by Jean-Claude Gallotta and Hans Peter Cloos. In 2006 she takes part at the new creation of Jean-Claude Gallotta Des Gens qui dansent.