Marina Gomes started out in hip-hop with the Guilty crew in Toulouse, while at the same studying ballet and contemporary dance at the city’s Conservatoire. In 2012 she developed her work as a teacher and choreographer by taking part in projects for young dancers run by Fouad Boussouf’s Massala company. In 2017 she took over Fouad Boussouf’s teaching role at the Écoles Municipales Artistiques in Vitry-Sur-Seine. In 2018, she set up the Hylel company, first working in Colombia. From 2019 onwards she developed national and international artistic projects with the company in Marseille. In parallel with her dance career, Marina Gomes has lectured at Le Mirail University in Toulouse and worked as a child protection counsellor for SOS Jeunesse.
Marina returned to Marseille to begin performances of her trilogy on the theme of working-class neighbourhoods with the piece titled Asmanti [Midi-Minuit] in 2021, then created Bach Nord [Sortez les guitares] in 2023 with young people from the Quartiers Nord in Marseille. Both shows were presented at the Festival de Marseille in 2023. La Cuenta [Medellin-Marseille] followed in 2024, focusing on the subject of score-settling from a women’s point of view.
Marina also did choreographic work for the cinema in 2022, for the series Terrain sensible directed by Aurélie Meimont and presented on Arte Digital.
In 2024, Marina was chosen by the City of Marseille to carry the Olympic flame in the Quartiers Nord, in recognition of her work and values in the region.
