New dance instruction resources from Human Kinetics

Cover for Dance Units for Middle School / Courtesy of Human Kinetics

Cover for Experiential Anatomy in Dance Technique / Courtesy of Human Kinetics

>> by Cynthia Brett
Teaching dance just got easier with two new releases from Human Kinetics, international publishers of sports and recreation resources: Dance Units for Middle School and Anatomy in Dance Technique: Eight Skeletal Explorations. Faced with increased presence of dance in elementary schools (middle school in the United States), coupled with teachers that lack dance experience, Judi Fey (MEd) created Dance Units for Middle School to address this issue. Specially designed for generalist teachers, this book/DVD combo includes three dance units for grades six through eight including improvisation, dance for athletes, and jazz dance. It also includes scripts for teachers, a music CD and a DVD with seventy-seven video demonstrations. Anatomy in Dance Technique was created by Jennifer Salk (MFA) to give dancers a better understanding of human anatomy, thus helping them to make better choices about movement. The DVD covers eight key areas of the body: shoulder joint; shoulder girdle; hip joint; knee joint; spine; rib cage; tibia and fibula; and ankle, tarsus and toes. A video instructor assists students in identifying these areas and provides movement and choreographed phrases for each.
www.HumanKinetics.com

New facility and scholarship for Dance Victoria

>> by Samantha Mehra

Dance Victoria recently announced the creation of The Chrystal Dance Award, a new scholarship worth $11,500 aimed at helping emerging dancers and choreographers pursue further studies at accredited institutions outside of Canada. It also aims to support mid-career dancers and choreographers interested in self-directed studies outside of Canada with a mentor, dance company, or via group activities (workshops, research, residencies). Named for Victoria pediatrician Dr. Chrystal Kleiman, who left a large bequest to the organization, the scholarship is open to both emerging and mid-career dance artists, and will be awarded for the first time in Spring 2011. Applications for the scholarship will be available on January 2, 2011 at DanceVictoria.com. Only dancers resident in Western Canada may apply. Dance Victoria has also acquired a new 11,800 square-foot facility at 2750 Quadra Street after six months of negotiations with the former owner of Victoria Arts Connection. The facility offers three fully outfitted dance studios, three office suites, lobbies and a commercial kitchen. The facility, which is now Victoria's central dance community centre, offers ongoing programs as well as creation residencies, professional mentoring and the LOLA Projects. It has already become home to several dance companies including Boston Dance Collective, Shan-e-Punjab Dance, Wanda Kivitt Dance, Alma D'Espana, Red Hot Swing and others.
DanceVictoria.com

DSR is honoured with National Arts Centre award

>> by Jacqueline Hansen
La danse sur les routes du Québec’s (DSR) mission is to share dance, and on November 7th, 2010 it was recognized for its outstanding efforts with the 2010 National Arts Centre Award for Distinguished Contribution to Touring in the Performing Arts. The award is described as honouring “exceptional achievement in fostering the touring of live performing arts in Canada.” DSR Executive Director Paule Beaudry stated in a press release that between 20,000 and 30,000 people from across Québec annually come in contact with dance performances due to the work of DSR and its collaborators. The organization was founded in 1997.

Corynne Barron becomes new Mondor model

>> by Samantha Mehra

Corynne Barron, top 12 contestant in the second season of So You Think You Can Dance Canada (SYTYCDC), is the most recent face of Mondor, a company specializing in performance attire for dancers, figure skaters and gymnasts. Barron recently returned to England for training, where she had been prior to filming SYTYCDC. While there, Barron was chosen to work on a special project on the newest Royal Caribbean Ship (Allure of the Seas). Barron told The Dance Current, "To have opportunities such as So You Think You Can Dance Canada, Mondor and special projects on Royal Caribbean is an absolute blessing. I feel honoured to have had opportunities come my way, but it's from the support of my family, friends and good colleagues ... that have made my goals in life that much more possible." To see Corynne Barron as the Mondor model, visit http://mondor.com/en/style.php.

509 Collective classes to come to an end

>> by Naomi Brand
Come December 17th Toronto's 509 Collective will no longer be running morning technique classes. "There are several reasons for the Collective's end," says Canadian Children's Dance Theatre's (CCDT) Managing Director Michael deConinck Smith. "The most fundamental is that not enough dancers are able or willing to bear even the subsidized class cost." As well, a lack of availability of senior teachers and loss of class schedule posting in The Dance Current all "served to confirm that the community as a whole was no longer able or willing to collectively keep the classes going." The class was formed in 1991 as The Teachers' Collective by Patricia Fraser, Patricia Miner and Sylvain Brochu to provide a daily, affordable morning class for independent modern dancers in Toronto. In 2004, in an effort to help with some of the administrative load and expenses associated with the classes, CCDT took over the operation under the 509 Collective. Dancers with class cards are encouraged to use these by the closing date as there will be no refunds.

Randy Joynt wins Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award

Randy Joynt / Photo by Tony Nardella

>> by Samantha Mehra

Dancer Randy Joynt is one of seven artists who received a $15,000 Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton Award from the Canada Council for the Arts. The awards, which are distributed annually, recognize exemplary mid-career artists in the seven disciplines funded by the Canada Council. The awards were made possible by a bequest made by the late Victor Martyn Lynch-Staunton to the Council. Other winners included filmmaker Samer Najari, composer Analia Llugdar, visual artist Tricia Middleton, multidisciplinary artist Kristen Fahrig, playwright Dominick Parenteau-Lebeuf, and writer Philippe Gaulin. Those awarded were chosen from a pool of successful applicants from the 2009/10 Canada Council Grants to Professional Artists programs.

Stacey Tookey's "Joy"

Stacey Tookey in her "Strength, Joy, Tenacity" t-shirt / Photo by Doug Kieper

>> by Jacqueline Hansen
When choreographer and dancer Stacey Tookey was approached by the clothing company Sugar and Bruno to design clothes for dancers, it was all she needed to get started. “I have always been into fashion and I spend most of my time in dance clothes so I thought it would be an amazing way to have another creative outlet while making clothes that dancers would love to wear,” said Tookey. Tookey’s clothing line is called “Joy”, Stacey’s middle name, but also part of her design: the “Strength, Joy, Tenacity” t-shirts, three words Tookey thinks describe dancers most, also spell her initials, SJT.