Blog

National exchanges, youth and seniors, dance and film, residencies, a raffle, and more: our staff reflect on some personal highlights from the 2023-2024 season!

Every season I love the energy in the building when we have artists-in-residence or visiting artists in rehearsal and preparing for performances. Getting to see a new idea just beginning, or the evolution of a piece I have had the chance to see at different stages in its development process. This season I was particularly excited to meet Spicey and see Ebnflōh’s latest work La Probabilité du Néant. The choreography, the dancers, the music create their own living entity all together – I got fully lost in their world.
Kaia, Member Services

Our Power of Dance program continued to inspire and energize me, reminding me over and over how dance creates and holds space for us to listen, reflect and engage with ourselves, others and community. I also feel very grateful for our team and collective effort that enabled Power of Dance workshops to be delivered to school groups and seniors, serving hundreds of people from elementary school to over 80 years of age.
Yurie, Outreach

Seeing the work that V’ni Dansi, actor/filmmaker Jordan Waunch, and video editor/media designer Cande Andrade were doing in the theatre for a new dance film inspired by the Métis trickster figure Rou Garou during their DanceLab was really cool. The relationship between dance and technology keeps evolving and it never fails to amaze me. Plus the amazing breakdancer Phil Wizard provided a great message for International Dance Day. The Dance Centre team had a major fan girl moment when he came by for a visit, before he heads off to Paris as part of Team Canada.🍁
Lindsay, Communications

I started as the Venues and Services Manager this spring and it’s been great to meet the renters and tenants and attend some events that highlight the versatility of our building. One that stands out is the 12 Minutes Max showing in May in the theatre where we set up conversation circles to discuss the works the artists had shared. It felt very intimate and it was encouraging to see the passion of the staff here come through.
Crystal, Venue Services

My first season with The Dance Centre has been very exciting: getting to meet our donors and supporters, and the people who take part in our programs and use our building; harnessing the energy of our community to launch our first Annual 50/50 Raffle; and connecting with long-standing supporters who are eager to create a sustainable environment for future generations.
Catherine, Development

Our Discover Dance! Noon series has been running for (amazingly) 22 years and I never tire of hearing the great feedback from audiences, who love the performances, the format, and the affordable ticket prices. This season it was especially good to welcome back Ache Brasil who gave a fantastic performance for a sold-out and very appreciative house.
Heather, Marketing

“Getting to work with Dance//Novella, as a part of the Discover Dance! series, was extremely rewarding. Not only due to the warmth of the company and their collaborative workstyle, but also the potent impact the work has. One of those moments that make the hard work more than worth it, especially when you hear back from the audience about their love for the process.
Victoria, Tech Director

I really geeked out on Returns installation performance by interdisciplinary artist, Nellie Gossen and her crack team of collaborators (Erika Mitsuhashi, Jaewoo Kang and tone puorro with Emmalena Fredriksson, Nancy Tam, Paula Viitanen Aldazosa and Sierra Megas). Having been taught patternmaking and sewing by our mother, my sister and I spent the better part of our early years on the Singer creating one of kind pieces and Halloween costumes, so Nellie’s project really resonated on nostalgia and on all the nuanced levels of her immensely innovative process-based concept.
Raquel, Associate Programming Director

I believe we have much to be proud of this season, but particular highlights for me include our continued support for diverse artistic voices and practices, for instance having Adam Grant Warren – a dance artist who uses a wheelchair – as Artist-in-Residence. Adam was also part of Cross-Pollination, a partnership with New Works and the National Arts Centre which brought artists from Vancouver and Ottawa together to share practices in integrated dance and disability arts. Our exchange program with Circuit-Est centre choregraphique also sustains these national artistic collaborations. The commitment and enthusiasm of the artists, audiences and donors tell me that the work we do matters!
Mirna, Executive Director

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A shout-out to all the wonderful artists and companies who participated in our 2023-2024 season:

Artist-in-Residence: Adam Grant Warren, Sophie Dow DanceLab: Celeste English, Isak Enquist, Kaia Shukin, Rebecca Margolick, V’ni Dansi Discover Dance! series: Fiana Kawane + Shilpa Shankar, Calle Verde + Jhoely Triana Flamenco, Voirelia Dance Hub, Aché Brasil, Dance//Novella Global Dance Connections series: Stand Up Dance, Ebnflōh, Tangaj Collective, Arno Schuitemaker, Danny Nielsen International Dance Day: OURO Collective, Hustle at RS Dance Society, VanVogueJam, Action at a Distance Open House: Carla Naar, Voirelia Dance Hub, LFS Dance, Flamenco Rosario, Performance Clinic, TomoeArts,Kinesis Dance somatheatro, Lili Flamenco/Liat Har Lev, Isaac Gasangwa Open Stage #4: CollabArt Creations, Francesca Vergara, Jennifer McLeish-Lewis & James-Amzin Nahirnick, Kenzie Skoglund & Sam Meadahl, and Linda Hayes Projects and Partnerships: Circuit-Est centre chorégraphique, Co.ERASGA, The Falling Company, Matriarchs Uprising Festival, Nellie Gossen, New Works, Raven Spirit Dance, Shakti Dance Society, National Arts Centre, Vanessa Goodman/Action at a Distance, F-O-R-M Festival, Raven Grenier 12 Minutes Max: Kluane Peabody and Elizabeth Armitage, Perelandra Waddle and Jennifer McLeish-Lewis, Jay Gignac, Brenna Metzmeier and Yurie Kaneko

And thank you to our many generous donors who have made the above possible, along with our funders: Canada Council for the Arts, Canadian Heritage, the Province of British Columbia, the BC Arts Council, and the City of Vancouver.

Our 2024-2025 season details are coming soon. Meanwhile please consider supporting our work by making a donation.

Photo credits top to bottom L to R: The Dance Centre team with Phil Wizard/TDC; Kaia Shukin/Carla Alcántara; Bayview Elementary/TDC; V’ni Dansi/TDC; Ebnflōh by David Wong; 12 Minutes Max/TDC; Aché Brasil/Luciana Freire D’Anunciação; Lorraine White-Wilkinson/TDC; Dance//Novella/David Cooper; Natsumi Sophia Bellali/TDC; Erika Mitsuhashi/The Returns Team

Explore dance performances currently presented by The Dance Centre. Each season, you’ll find new dance shows. See what’s on today.