On April 28, New Brunswick’s First City Young Company will present Breathe Dance at the Centre scolaire Samuel-de-Champlain in Saint John, featuring the work of dancers and choreographers from as far away as Guelph, Ont. This annual showcase, which includes ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop and floorwork, has been presented during International Dance Week since 2022.   First City Young Company is a pre-professional performance company that includes dancers ranging from 15 to 23 years old. All company members are students at First City School of Dance. This performance is a culminat ..read more

For more than a decade, Saskatoon’s def SOL Productions and Saskatoon Salsa Dance Co. have been joining forces for their annual Boogaloo event, a winter showcase that blends the dance styles of the two studios. This year, it will take place on Dec. 16 in Saskatoon, featuring approximately 170 performers, ranging in age from three to 50+ years.  “The Boogaloo is basically a mashup of street styles and Latin dance styles … bringing together two communities of dancers,” said Amanda Murray, artistic director and founder of def SOL Productions. Her company focuses on hip hop and street dance c ..read more

dance Immersion’s 2023-2024 season celebrates 30 years with programming that stays true to its roots: founded by choreographer and instructor Vivine Scarlett, the company was created to produce and support the work of Black artists from Canada and around the world who practice both contemporary and traditional dance forms from Africa, the Caribbean, North America, South America and Europe. Alongside their programming, which will include Kenyan artist Fernando Anuang’a performing for the first time in North America, the company will also be offering a series of workshops and a mentorship progra ..read more

Artscape, which for over 30 years has developed and run spaces for artists to live, work and create in Toronto, announced on Monday, August 28 that it will be placed into receivership and end management of its facilities. The news comes as a result of the not-for-profit organization’s struggles handling its debt load and other financial obligations. In 14 projects across the city, Artscape offers 265 affordable residential units for artists and artist-led families, in addition to 125 spaces for commercial tenants. Artscape Daniels Launchpad, a creative entrepreneurship hub, serves 500 members ..read more

On Thursday, July 13, Andrea Peña and Artists (AP&A) opened the Venice Biennale’s 17th International Festival of Contemporary Dance with the world premiere of its latest work, Bogotá. Peña, a Colombian based in Montreal, is the first artist to win the Biennale’s call for new choreographic work by an artist under the age of 35. When selecting Peña as the winning choreographer, Wayne McGregor, director of the Biennale’s dance department, described Bogotá as “a radical and innovative proposal that convinces in its brave and raw approach to new movement exploration and evolving hybrid forms ..read more

Calgary’s own Decidedly Jazz Danceworks (DJD) has been invited to perform at the prestigious, world-renowned Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival this summer. DJD will be joining an array of U.S. and international dance companies for the festival’s 91st season. Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival or “The Pillow,” as it’s fondly referred to, is a 220-acre National Historic Landmark located in the Berkshire Hills of Western Massachusetts close to the town of Becket. The land the festival occupies was bought by dance pioneer Ted Shaw. “It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere in the forest. It’s like the Banff C ..read more

This article was originally published in the Winter 2023 print issue. This article is published through our Regional Reporter Program. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts through the Digital Now initiative. Usually held in the United States, the 33rd annual International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD) Conference and Festival is coming to Toronto’s Sheraton Centre, Jan. 25-29. Presented in collaboration with dance Immersion, a Toronto-based presenter that produces and promotes dances of the African diaspora, this year’s conference is themed “Globally Connected ..read more

This article is published through our Regional Reporter Program. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts through the Digital Now initiative. Chaban Ukrainian Dance Regina celebrated its 50th anniversary by doing what it does best – bringing people together. On Feb. 4, the company held an evening of dance performances and shared memories from its history. Chaban’s first president, Bill Soloduk, spoke at the event.  Chaban is the longest-running Ukrainian dance group in Regina and classes are instructed by Oksana and Yuriy Sholdra, who moved to Canada from Uk ..read more

The Dance Current is Hiring an Editor-In-Chief Applications due: January 9, 2023 Job type: Full time  Career level: Upper management  Location: Toronto, with the ability to work remotely  Salary: $51,500 Dance Media Group/Groupe Danse Média is a charitable non-profit organization publishing The Dance Current in print and online. We facilitate critical conversation about the art, practices and people involved in the many dance forms across the land we call Canada. The organization strives to deepen engagement with dance communities through special publishing projects and educatio ..read more

This article is published through our Regional Reporter Program. We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts through the Digital Now initiative. A special anniversary was marked in St. John’s last month. Fifty years earlier, in 1972, the city’s first Cecchetti examinations were held. To mark the commemoration, local Cecchetti teachers organized a weekend of workshops, examinations, a demonstration and a reception. They invited the current chair of Cecchetti Canada, Mary Ross, for the celebration. Ross, who spent 30 years teaching Cecchetti work at The School of Dance in Ottaw ..read more