Canada's first Integrated Dance Theatre Conference

Photo Courtesy of MoMo Dance Theatre

>> by Naomi Brand 
On November 16th, 2012, the first Canadian Integrated Dance Theatre Conference took place near Calgary. The conference brought together company leaders from five performance companies from across Canada that work with people with and without disabilities. The four-day event took place in an accessible retreat centre in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains and consisted of workshops, presentations and discussions facilitated by conference participants. The gathering was hosted by Calgary's MoMo Dance Theatre and attended by Propeller Dance (Ottawa), Les Productions des Pieds des Mains (Montréal), iDance (Edmonton) and Theatre Terrific (Vancouver). The conference was funded through the Canada Council for the Arts' new Deaf and Disability Arts office.

"Together in Dance" forum hosted by Flato Markham Theatre

>> by Samantha Mehra
On October 14th, Flato Markham Theatre hosted its inaugural "Together in Dance" forum at the Markham Civic Centre, which brought together artists, teachers, scholars, writers, administrators and entrepreneurs working in the dance milieu in York Region and Toronto. Proceedings began with opening remarks by Eric Larivière, the theatre’s general manager. Extending a warm welcome to participants and outlining the theatre’s continued mission to engage in discussion with various facets of the dance community to elicit positive change, he noted that this forum was a tool to create the discussion and togetherness the dance community needs for a healthy ecology. Larivière's remarks were followed by a series of short presentations about success stories in community engagement, featuring speakers Dee Adrian, Emily Cheung, Bonnie Craig, Dr. Mary Fogarty, Vivine Scarlett, and recent winner of the Walter Carsen Prize, Menaka Thakkar. Ontario's Minister of Tourism, Culture and Sport, The Honourable Michael Chan, was on hand to congratulate the organizers of the forum and to present panelists with certificates. Following a Bollywood dance workshop with Shiamak Davar (Interational Dance School), independent artist/consultant and former Toronto Arts Council dance program officer Soraya Peerbaye spoke of the state of dance in Markham and York Region, and revealed plans to develop a comprehensive inventory of individuals and institutions engaged in dance in the area. After a series of roundtable discussions on the topics of the Markham Theatre, education and dance organizations and schools, celebrity choreographer Tré Armstrong delivered the closing keynote speech.

Dance Ontario connecting dance in the province

Maxine Heppner at Dance Ontario's Connecting the Dots conference / Photo by Kathy Lewis

>> by Brittany Duggan
Dance Ontario recently wrapped up its inaugural Connecting the Dots conference at the Young Centre in Toronto’s Distillery District. The conference brought together educators, studio and venue operators, dance activists, animators and artists alike, as well as the funders and arts service organizations that serve the dance community of Ontario. Spread over three days – June 26th through 28th – attendees were invited to weigh in on issues that pertain to them and to their regions and to create action lists. Over the next two years, Dance Ontario will support the following communities: London, Orangeville, Barrie, Orillia, Sudbury, North Bay, Halton, Milton, Burlington and Hamilton, with its proposed activities. “These communities will develop partnerships across the sub-sectors (education/artists & venues/studios) and bring enhanced or new activities to broader markets within their regions,” commented Dance Ontario Executive Director Rosslyn Jacob-Edwards. Additionally, Dance Ontario will partner with the Council of Ontario Drama and Dance Educators to advocate to principals, faculties of education and the Ministry of Education to support dance educator’s needs as well as other partnered projects still to be confirmed.

Sharing and brainstorming was the work of the conference but the act of dance itself was not forgotten; dancers of all ages and genres were invited to perform at either the Performances by Competition & Youth Dance Teams, Studio & Professional Training Institution Showcases or the Professional Dance Showcase. The three-year Connecting the Dots initiative was made possible by funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
More: www.danceontario.ca

Youth dance conference brings Ontario dancers together

Mariano Abarca / Photo: Lauren Van Gijn & Bobbie Dhindsa

>> by Jaimée Horn
With the goal of educating students and teachers alike about the value, scope and diversity of dance in Ontario, the Pulse Ontario Youth Dance Conference provides equal opportunities for all levels of dance students to benefit from the experiential learning and discovery that dance can provide in non-competitive environments. This year’s conference, held at York University from May 10th through 13th, had close to 200 participants who were enthusiastic to take in the workshops, evening performances and social events. Keynote speaker Mariano Abarca, recognized internationally as having put Canada on the map for hip hop dance, received a warm and enthusiastic welcome from the dancers in the auditorium on Friday evening. His meaningful message directed to the youth and educators was to stay curious and creative. “Experience everything. Learn as much as you can and then build on that foundation. Be original. Ask questions. You are the scientists of this art form.” The conference, whose vision is to bring together dance students, teachers and dance professionals from across Ontario, manifested for the first time in May 2006. The conference is dedicated to providing students affordable opportunities to experience the art form, and develop their literacy and understanding of dance.

Canadian dance studies society adopts new name

>> by Samantha Mehra
The Canadian Society for Dance Studies/La Société canadienne d'études en danse (CSDS/SCDD) recently changed its name in order to be more inclusive of Canada's dance community. This change intends to reflect founder Amy Bowring's mission to "encompass a broad range of research areas including history, anthropology, movement analysis, ethnology, creative process studies, dance education, notation, dance writing and criticism." Formerly the Society for Canadian Dance Studies, under the new directorship of Kate Cornell and a transitional board, the society is in the process of incorporating federally under its new moniker. In addition to the name change, CSDS created a new set of by-laws and selected a new board of directors. CSDS will host the first conference under its new name in Montréal in 2012. The conference, titled "Collaboration: Intersections, Negotiations, Mediations in the Worlds of Dance", will be held in collaboration with the Festival Transamériques and the dance department at the Université du Québec à Montréal; the conference runs from May 31st to June 3rd, 2012.
http://people.uleth.ca/~scds.secd/English/home.html

CCCO visits Thunder Bay and Guelph

>> by Cynthia Brett

Cultural Careers Council Ontario (CCCO) visited Thunder Bay on June 17th and 18th to present its latest conference: "Creating a Living: Your Art, Your Business". The event included presentations from artists and professionals in Thunder Bay on how to "transfer creative planning skills to a business context," according to CCCO's website. Previously, the organization travelled to Guelph on May 25th for CultureCamp, an idea-sharing event for Guelph's Culture Days this September.

Performing arts medicine conference in Toronto

>> by Brittany Duggan
The Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA) and the Glenn Gould School of the Royal Conservatory of Music presented "Performance Awareness from Studio to Stage" in Toronto on March 26th. The day-long conference for teachers, performers, students and health care professionals working with performing artists was held in the Conservatory Theatre at the Telus Centre for Performance and Learning and included lectures, panels, live performance demonstrations and participatory workshops. The conference featured international dance medicine specialists, expert teachers and artistic directors, and was co-hosted by Dr. Bonnie Robson, of Pivot Sports Medicine and Orthopedics, and John Chong, president elect of Musicians Clinics of Canada. Lectures covered diagnosis and treatment of common dance injuries, hearing loss in the arts, and the neurobiology of injury and illness. A panel titled "Working with Artistic Directors to Prevent Injuries in the Studio and on the Stage" was moderated by Roger Hobden, sport physician and board member for Danse-Cité and BJM Danse; the panel was concerned with teaching practices that prevent injury at all stages of training. Demonstrations and hands-on workshops catered to the crowd of predominantly dance and music community members, with tips to prevent injury and ways for teachers to identify the early onset of injuries in students. "Performance Awareness from Studio to Stage" was the inaugural regional meeting for PAMA in Toronto. PAMA is an international member organization of physicians, therapists, trainers, educators, administrators, as well as performers and students interested in improving the well being of performing artists.