Based in Brussels since 2007, Gaël Santisteva was born in 1977 in Auch (France). Throughout his youth he had an intensive circus practice until he became a student at the National Center for Circus Arts in Chalons en Champagne, from which he graduated with the Russian swing specialty in 2001. Always very passionate about movement and theater, he naturally turned out of school to companies oriented towards choreography and theatrical performance.

He has been working as a performer for various dance, dance-theater or musical theater companies for 15 years. Circus has not left his mind or his body, it is even what very strongly constitutes the uniqueness of his personality on a set. After many years of reflection and contact with different creators, he started a personal search in order to produce pieces marked with his own identity. He continues on the other hand artistic collaborations as an interpreter in projects that engage a questioning and a renewal of his artistic vocabulary.

As a performer, Gaël has been working as a performer with Philippe Decouflé, Jean-Marc Heim, les Ballets C de la B -Koen Augustijnen, Cie Zimmermann/De Perrot, Eleanor Bauer. He co-created with Lara Barsacq two performances presented at Tanzhaus Zurich: Tonight, I love you ! (2012) and The Hide Show (2014). In 2016, Gaël Santisteva co-founded asbl Gilbert & Stock with Lara Barsacq.

In 2017, he created TALK SHOW before touring in France and Belgium in 2018/19/20. Parallel to that, he collaborates on other projects as a performer, artistic advisor or assistant for: Walking the Line by Benjamin Vandewalle, Noir M1 and Les Flyings by Mélissa Von Vépy, New Joy and Meyoucycle by Eleanor Bauer, Lost in Ballets russes and IDA don’t cry me love by Lara Barsacq.

Gaël’s second project - Garcimore est mort - premiered on November 18th, 2021 at Le Manège de Reims - scène nationale. In January 2022, Gaël Santisteva directed REAL // UGLY // SPARKLING, a collective show of 3rd year students from ESAC (Ecole Supérieur des Arts du Cirque, Brussels). In December 2022, he also directed Cabaret COSMOS for Ateliers Indigo, a Brussels association that supports artists with disabilities.

In July 2023, Gaël co-created Voie, Voix, Vois together with Saaber Bachir and Antoine Leroy in Théâtre des Doms, in the frame of Festival OFF d’Avignon.

In 2025, Gaël will create his third personal project : Pinata Cake (working title). The premiere series is planned for March 2025 at Atelier 210 (Brussels).

Gilbert & Stock asbl is the administrative structure for the realization of Lara Barsacq and Gaël Santisteva's artistic projects. Their artistic complicity pushed them in 2016 to set up a common structure while keeping an identity specific to each. Dialogue and exchange of ideas about protean artistic essays allow them to develop distinct and independent personal projects. Gilbert & Stock asbl has the primary vocation of a "think tank" (laboratory of ideas), to transform itself into a structure of production and distribution when a project takes shape more precisely and is in the need of to exist. It is in parallel syntony that Lara and Gaël trace their respective creative paths.