News - The Dance Current

Jobel Art for Earth Releases Dance Web Series as a Form of Region-Specific Activist Knowledge Transfer

Through partnerships with experts, the videos aim to convey solutions and optimism about environmental issues through dance

By Jenna Shummoogum

How Yukon-Based Theatre Decided on a Hybrid Model for Their Pandemic-Born Arts Festival

Gwaandak Theatre’s Awaken Festival opens up to some in-person programming while embracing the benefits of the digital

By Sadie Segriff

Seven Artists From Nunavut Participate in Drum Dancing Festival in Greenland

Katuaq’s Katuarpalaaq festival aims to celebrate and preserve Inuit culture through knowledge sharing

By Valérie Herdes

International Dance Day 2022: Weyburn Old Time Dance Club Holds the Final Event of its Season on a Day of Celebration

The club, based in Weyburn, Sask., has been welcoming people of all ages for roughly 60 years

By Ryan Bradshaw

International Dance Day 2022: Newfoundland Lawyers Put On Their Dancing Shoes to Support Easter Seals

The fundraiser was conceived by Debbie Parsons, who has been teaching dance classes for all ages and abilities at the organization since 2018

By Donna Ball

Beloved Toronto Dance Class Collective GMD Closes After 12 Years

Dance artists and teachers reflect on the collective’s impact

By Serena Lopez

CoMotion Festival Set to Be Biggest Disability Arts Festival in North America

The festival is an opportunity to promote a different way of looking at access

By Serena Lopez

New Professional-Level School Focused on Versatility Opens in Dorval, Que.

Sonia Clarke founded École nationale de danse du Canada to grow professional training in the province beyond contemporary and ballet

By Lucy Fandel

Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity Hires a New Director of Dance Training Programming

Alejandro Ronceria wants to honour the centre’s roots and create a space for rich collaboration

By Jenna Shummoogum

How Yukoner Nick Robinson Is Preparing Canada’s Breaking Team for the Sport’s First Olympic Appearance

As the team’s head strength and conditioning coach, Robinson is training the dancers for the first-ever Olympic breaking competition in 2024

By Valérie Herdes

CanAsian Dance Festival Celebrates 25 Years With a Virtual Multi-Week Event

The works featured in this year’s festival dissect multiple layers of Asian identity

By Serena Lopez

Bageshree Vaze Announced as Inaugural Dance Collection Danse Artist Researcher-in-Residence

Vaze’s research will highlight the history of South Asian dance in St. John’s, N.L.

By Candice Pike

(Mostly) Made in Quebec: International Festival of Films on Art Features an Unprecedented Number of Dancefilms

Out of the 33 dancefilms in this year’s festival, 60 per cent were made in Quebec

By Lucy Fandel

Living Skies Irish Dance Celebrates St. Patrick’s Day With Performances at Pubs and Retirement Communities

The Regina-based company will have live performances for the Irish holiday for the first time since 2019

By Ryan Bradshaw

How Alberta Ballet Brought New Audiences to Dance Through Portrait Ballets

Alberta Ballet closes out its portrait ballet series with PHI, with music by David Bowie

By Jenna Shummoogum

Making Space for Post-Pandemic Grief Through Performance

With restrictions on funerals and public gatherings, can dance provide a space of collective mourning?

By Candice Pike

Rows of red velvet theatre seats

Government of Canada Launches New Fund to Support Performing Arts Workers

The $60-million fund intends to help workers in a sector that has been hit hard by the pandemic

By Valérie Herdes

Buddies in Bad Times Theatre’s No-Review Policy Questions the Role of Art Criticism

Clayton Lee, The Rhubarb Festival’s director, said the policy challenges the industry to rethink how to archive the arts for future generations

By Serena Lopez

What Do Professional BIPOC Contemporary Dance Artists Want to See Post-Pandemic?

Four Calgary-based BIPOC dancers reveal how they envision the future, given the current challenges of creating in their industry and city

By Jenna Shummoogum

What Do Emerging BIPOC Contemporary Dance Artists Want to See Post-Pandemic?

The creators of NAPPY Dance Collective discuss some of the issues facing BIPOC artists in Calgary

By Jenna Shummoogum

How Vancouver Chinese Lion Dancing Teams Prepared to Celebrate Chinese New Year 2022 – Year of the Tiger

By Gina Fernandez

Yevshan Ukrainian Folk Ballet Ensemble Celebrates 60 Years

The company marks its anniversary with a long-awaited event

By Ryan Bradshaw

International Virtual Symposium Seeks to Address Racialization in the Ballet Sector

“The act of looking at a Black dancer and seeing them for who they are and not using their external appearance to facilitate a narrative that we’ve all seen as stereotypes, that act can have a great ripple effect,” said Livona Ellis of Ballet BC

By Donna Ball

As Manitoba Vouches for Its Omicron Hands-Off Approach, Dance Studios Are Left With Hard Choices

The responsibility placed on owners to make public health-related decisions without adequate guidance has been tough, said Maria Rawluk, co-owner of Drop in Dance Winnipeg

By Haley Pauls