A dance scene in transition: New leadership and new directions for Vancouver dance institutions
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Dance In Vancouver 2024
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Dance Central
Dance Centre Publication
Editor's Note
Welcome to the Fall 2024 issue of Dance Central.
As autumn settles into winter, the dance community in Vancouver and beyond is abuzz with new possibilities and profound shifts. In this issue, Tessa Perkins Deneault explores the new leadership paths emerging across Vancouver’s dance institutions. Her article delves into how these evolving directions are influencing the city’s rich dance landscape and invites readers to consider what’s next for dance in this beautiful city we call home to. It’s a thoughtful look at how change, with the right vision, can bring new momentum and broader engagement.
This month also brings Dance In Vancouver (DIV), a highlight for dance enthusiasts, curators, and presenters worldwide. Since 1997, DIV has showcased Vancouver’s unique and eclectic contemporary dance, connecting the city’s artists with a global audience. From November 20-24, The Dance Centre will be transformed into a vibrant hub of performances, informal studio sessions, and discussions, offering a rare glimpse into both the works of established figures and the voices of an emerging generation. This year, we are thrilled to welcome guest curator Anthea Lewis, founder of Blulilli Projects UK, whose collaborative spirit promises to enrich the exchange of ideas and creativity that DIV embodies. With the backing of Dance Umbrella and FABRIC International, Lewis brings a unique international perspective that resonates with DIV’s mission to foster creativity, collaboration, and community engagement.
Looking ahead, our next issue will feature reflections and writings from some of the artists participating in Dance In Vancouver, giving readers an inside view of their creative journeys. We thank all artists who have contributed and we welcome new writing and project ideas at any time to make Dance Central a more vital link to the community. Please send materials by email to editor@thedancecentre.ca
We look forward to many more conversations!
Shanny Rann Editor
Anya Saugstad Paper Mountains © Bray Jorstad
FakeKnot - Croquis © David Cooper
A dance scene in transition:
New leadership and new directions for Vancouver dance institutions by
Tessa Perkins Deneault
As we approach the 14th biennial Dance In Vancouver showcase this year, a series of studio showings and mainstage performances for both local audiences and visiting presenters and curators, it is an appropriate time to take stock of the state of the city’s dance scene. At a time when a large generational shift is happening in many areas of our lives from employment to real estate, the same phenomenon impacts our dance community. Many of the dance artists who founded companies and laid the foundation for the Vancouver dance scene over the past few decades are reaching retirement age or moving on to new projects, and the community finds itself in a time of transition. The founders leave a legacy of established organizations ready for a new generation of artists who have been given the opportunity to build on that legacy while making their own mark. For small dance companies tied to the work of an artistic director, new leadership often involves a new name—it is one way for the new director to immediately imbue the organization with their own identity and mark a new chapter in which they can begin to build their own legacy.
Some recent transitions in Vancouver dance leadership are well-established. In 2016, Serge Bennathan transitioned the directorship of his company Les Productions Figlio to Ralph
Escamillan, who renamed it FakeKnot. Escamillan’s works have been presented across Canada and internationally. A studio showing of his most recent creation, MY HOUSE, will be presented at Dance In Vancouver, along with Croquis (2023) in a double bill with Ziyian Kwan’s Tendrils.
In 2021, Marissa Wong became Artistic Director of Amber Funk Barton’s company, the response., which she renamed The Falling Company. Wong’s works, such as Surrendurance, have been presented by The Dance Centre and as part of Dance In Vancouver 2017. Her most recent work, Family Room, premiered at The Dance Centre earlier this year.
EDAM, a company that has shaped the Vancouver dance scene for over 30 years, is in the middle of a major transition in leadership. Established by Peter Bingham, Jay Hirabayashi, Barbara Bourget, Jennifer Mascall, Lola Ryan, Lola MacLaughlin, and Ahmed Hassan in 1982, EDAM is a seminal company with deep roots and strong connections in the community. As Bingham prepares to retire, a succession plan is underway to pass the reigns to Olivia Shaffer, who is mentored by Bingham while in the role of Associate Artistic Director until she becomes Artistic Director in 2026.
Kinesis Dance somatheatro was founded by Paras Terezakis in 1986 after he emigrated from
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Dance Central is published quarterly by The Dance Centre for its members and for the dance community. Opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent Dance Central or The Dance Centre. The editor reserves the right to edit for clarity or length, or to meet house requirements.
Editor, Art Director & Layout
Shanny Rann
Copy Editor
Kaia Shukin
Design Layout
Becky Wu
Contributors to this issue:
Tessa Perkins Deneault, Anthea Lewis
Photo credits
Front Cover: Dancers Justin Calvadores, Ana Sosa, Bennett Tracz + Rachel Helten of soma anima arts (evolving from kinesis dance somatheatro) © Dominic Polubinski
Back Cover: Action at a Distance Soft Currents © David Cooper
Dance Centre Board Members:
Chair
Linda Gordon
Vice Chair
Andrea Reid
Secretary Tin Gamboa
Treasurer
Mark Weston
Directors
Jennifer Aoki, Yvonne Chartrand, Judith Garay, Arash Khakpour, Anndraya Luui
Dance Foundation Board
Members:
Shaadi Faris, Samantha Luo, Dallas McMurtrie
Chair Linda Blankstein
Vice-Chair Andrea Benzel
Secretary Anndraya Luui
Treasurer Janice Wells
Dance Centre Staff:
Executive Director
Mirna Zagar
Associate Programming Director
Raquel Alvaro
Associate Producer
Linda Blankstein
Director of Marketing
Heather Bray
Digital Marketing Coordinator
Lindsay Curtis
Development Manager
Catherine Butler
Membership Coordinator
Kaia Shukin
Outreach Coordinator
Yurie Kaneko
Comptroller
Elyn Dobbs
Venue and Services Manager
Crystal Lai
Founded in 1986 as a leading dance resource centre for dance professionals and the public in British Columbia, The Dance Centre is a multifaceted organization. The Dance Centre presents an exciting season of shows and events, serves a broad membership of 300 professional dance companies and individual artists, and offers a range of activities unparalleled in Canadian dance. The Dance Centre is BC's primary resource centre for the dance profession and the public. The activities of The Dance Centre are made possible bynumerous individuals. Many thanks to our members, volunteers, community peers, board of directors and the public for your ongoing commitment to dance in BC. Your suggestions and feedback are always welcome. The operations of The Dance Centre are supported by the Canada Council for the Arts, the Province of British Columbia, the BC Arts Council, and the City of Vancouver through the Office of Cultural Affairs.
Greece and studied at Toronto Dance Theatre, York University, and Simon Fraser University (SFU). In 2023, he began his succession plan before returning to Greece to continue his artistic practice. Rachel Helten became Associate Artistic Director under the mentorship of both Terezakis and Kinesis executive director Carline Dolmazon before becoming Artistic Director earlier this year. Helten has renamed the company soma anima arts to emphasize her focus on connecting movement to body and soul, while honoring the previous name with the inclusion of “soma”.
“I am very much connected to dance’s ability to liberate our bodies and liberate our consciousness, our hearts, and our souls. My future aim, and my aim for life is to amplify love and freedom through art,” says Helten. “We're going to continue honoring this beautiful lineage.”
Helten has always known that she wanted to be an artist. While dance is her main medium, she frequently collaborates with artists in other disciplines, including her brothers Benjamin and Jeremy Helten who are musicians and composers, her sister Sarah Helten who is a multi-disciplinary artist, and her partner Ezequiel Peralta who is a digital artist. Helten’s love for and dedication to dance as an art form has been clear since we were kids dancing at McBride School of Dancing in Surrey. In 2016, she graduated from the dance program at SFU’s School for the Contemporary Arts.
It was while she was a student at SFU that she
became familiar with Terezakis’ work. She first worked with the company when she was asked to be part of a community flash mob, a project she says the company will continue. She also plans to continue the company’s communityengaged work in schools and senior residences. One of their new initiatives is a collaboration with Lobe, a spatial sound studio where Helten will soon begin teaching dance classes. In terms of choreographic inspirations, there is some overlap as Helten and Terezakis are both interested in the concept of utopia. In the months before Helten took over the company, the two worked together on a new piece called Bright Shadow. “It was really precious for me to have space with Paras one on one, and also with the dancers,” says Helten. The piece is inspired by Carl Jung’s concept of the golden shadow, the idea that we hide certain positive things away when we should not be afraid to integrate them into our lives, such as being vulnerable, she describes.
“There have been so many things that tell us it's not safe to be sensitive, to be vulnerable, or even to be kind, or to have big, lofty dreams, or even it is not safe to be into herbalism or Indigenous wisdom,” says Helten. “For me, the bright shadow is the pulling up of humanity's potential and bringing back that wisdom. We need these utopic realities and these utopic gifts that we all have—that sensitivity, kindness, compassion, rebellion, revolution that we all possess, that has been oppressed or suppressed in some way.” It is a theme Helten often finds herself exploring in her work.
A 15-minute excerpt of Bright Shadow was
presented at Kinesis Dance’s annual fundraiser where members of the dance community honored Terezakis and marked the transition to Helten’s leadership. At this year’s Dance In Vancouver, a 30-minute version will be presented in a studio showing.
“A lot of the things that I'm doing now in this role of artistic director, I was doing before as a freelance artist, in terms of continuously writing applications and applying for things and putting yourself out there,” says Helten. “But now there is this infrastructure that Paras has built over 38 plus years that I get to feel held by.” She remains committed to sharing the healing power of dance with as many people as possible. “I do feel that through art, there's a lot that we can influence,” says Helten, “and that is why, secretly, I think it is oppressed.”
Another major transition happening this year is the leadership of the Vancouver International Dance Festival (VIDF). After leaving EDAM, Barbara Bourget and Jay Hirabayashi established Kokoro Dance in 1986. In 2000, they founded the Vancouver International Dance Festival. As the festival prepares for its 25th year, Deanna Peters and Victor Tran have stepped in as co-directors. Peters, as Mutable Subject, will be presenting her work as part of a Dance In Vancouver performance and conversation at Morrow, Ziyian Kwan’s artist-run centre, on November 22, 2024.
Peters and Tran plan to continue presenting “dance from all forms and cultures that is raw, kinetic and experimental.” As the festival has
always done, they will continue to include Butoh shows and free performances in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside. An exciting new element of the festival is the inclusion of street dance, a strength Tran brings to his leadership. They are also planning programming to align with International Women’s Day, which falls during the festival, and putting a focus on productions with live musical accompaniment.
“We have a history of selling out all our shows and creating a lot of social activities around performances. Those are things that we feel will really make the festival a celebration,” says Peters.
As the festival founders, Bourget and Hirabayashi leave big shoes to fill with their strong connections in the dance community. Tran says that it is a huge responsibility and at times it feels too good to be true, but he is looking forward to the new challenge. Peters, having danced with Bourget and Hirabayashi for many years and being involved with the festival in the past, feels a responsibility to uphold their vision. “It is a giant gift from Barbara and Jay,” says Peters. “I have been a bit blown away by how nice everyone is being in terms of reaching out, so many people are checking in with me.” She wondered what it all meant, and then realized:
Dancers Justin Calvadores, Ana Sosa, Bennett Tracz + Rachel Helten of soma anima arts (evolving from kinesis dance somatheatro) © Dominic Polubinski
“It means that all these people are ready to support us, to support our vision we are offering. They are letting us know that they have our back.” Similarly, says Tran, whenever he has had a moment of doubt about this new role, soon after he has received a sincere message of congratulations.
Peters and Tran have worked together many times in the past, although usually in support of one of their own projects. This is the first time they are co-leaders, and now that they have been in their roles for a couple of months, they are settling into a rhythm of figuring out who should do which tasks, and their existing
relationship means they know when each other needs help without being asked.
“I just see everything as an extension of my dance practice,” says Peters. She explains that they are both used to working on multiple projects at a time and have learned to quickly switch hats from one role to another, from artist to administrator, from friend to co-director.
“It’s similar to my practice in social dance,” says Tran, “with leading and following— knowing how to do both, knowing how to switch while you dance. And you can sometimes be both leading at the same time. Sometimes we'll be following at the same time or leaning into each other. The key thing is the adaptability that we have as a unit, as a pod of two that extends from my practice as a B-boy: the freshest and most victorious breaker is the one who can adapt the best to the situation, with a high level of commitment and integrity. It feels like we are in step.”
With so many existing relationships in the dance community, Peters and Tran are eager to involve as many artists and organizations as possible through collaborations or copresentations. Keeping their focus closer to home, their open call asked for submissions from local and national artists. Michelle Olson, Co-Artistic Director of Raven Spirit Dance, was brought on as a guest artist to be part of the selection committee. The scheduling structure of the festival will also mean that all artists will perform on a weekend, and there is less of a hierarchy in terms of prestigious venues.
In street dance culture, if you do not have a blessing from your OGs, your elders, you basically cannot move forward
Peters and Tran are committed to upholding the legacy created by Bourget and Hirabayashi while continuing to build on their own successful careers. “They were one of the first to hire me as a dancer when I started,” says Peters. At 44, she continues to present her own work and dance in others. “I'm going to honour Barbara and Jay by maintaining my artistic practice while doing this work with the VIDF and continuing to dance and perform for years to come,” says Peters. It is a fitting way to honour their legacy as Bourget and Hirabayashi have never stopped dancing.
“We feel like we have really been granted Barbara and Jay’s permission to own what we're doing,” says Peters. “They're excited to see what we are going to do, and they will be our guests of honour; they are going to be just as surprised as any other audience member. During the programming, we kept saying ‘we think Barbara and Jay will like this’ or ‘what would Barbara and Jay think’.”
“On the one hand, there is the official handoff, but then there is also the spiritual passing of the torch,” says Tran, “and they really did that for us. In street dance culture, if you do not have a blessing from your OGs, your elders, you basically cannot move forward, so having that from Barbara and Jay helped me dive in fully and be my authentic self.” Tran says he feels the gaze of his street dance community and their expectations now that he is in a position with some influence, but he also feels their support and enthusiasm.
Tessa Perkins Deneault is an arts journalist and freelance writer who regularly contributes to publications including The Dance Current and Dance International. She is the Associate Director of Marketing and Communications in the Faculty of Communication, Art and Technology at Simon Fraser University and holds an MA in Liberal Studies, BA in English and French literatures, and Post-Baccalaureate Diploma in communication from SFU. In her spare time, she takes ballet and tap dance classes and spends as much time as she can watching live theatre and dance. She recently published her MA thesis, Iris Garland: Modern Movement, and has contributed the chapter on dance for A Magical Time: The Early Days of the Arts at Simon Fraser University (Harbour Publishing, 2025).'
Ben Helten (Composer / Musician), Rachel Helten (Artistic Director / Choreographer / Dancer) and Ana Sosa (Dancer / Artistic Collaborator) © Lindsay Curtis
The 14th biennial Dance In Vancouver is coming up November 20-24!
This biennial event is the leading opportunity for presenters and curators from around the world to experience the dynamic contemporary dance of the Canadian West Coast. It’s also a great chance for audiences to see an exciting range of work by BC artists.
This edition’s guest international curator is Anthea Lewis, founder of Blulilli Projects UK, in association with Dance Umbrella (UK)–London’s International Dance Festival, and FABRIC International: here is her thoughtful and inspiring curatorial statement. More details about the event coming soon!
DIV CURATORIAL STATEMENT
As a child, I used to enjoy the challenge of a dot-to-dot puzzle, an image emerging as you draw a pencil line between each dot. The numbers gradually guiding you to reveal the picture hidden within the series of scattered dots that could look random at a glance. The opportunity to curate The Dance Centre’s Dance In Vancouver (DIV) platform this year has been a similar experience full of intrigue, questioning, moments of hesitation or breakthrough and doubling back to discover alternative pathways. It has been an enriching experience to meet with the artists I connected with in this city, discovering more about the creative community that inhabits this part of the world. It’s a
strange dynamic coming in as a guest curator programming people who have invested their lives in building the artistic community and their practices. My initial thought was, ‘What can I bring to this space?’. To discover somewhere you need to put yourself in it in some way, allowing the periphery to be permeable so a part of you can seep into it and some of it can inhabit a place within you.
While visiting I discovered the value in seeking the unseen or unspoken, investigating what isn’t as well as what is. The entry point was in discussion with some of the artists introduced to me by The Dance Centre, listening to their experiences and perspectives while offering an insight into who I am. Exploration around collaboration and exchange began to take place, I wanted to ‘work the dough’ of this format for presenting, to expand the framework and test the malleability of the edges. This programme is curated with the artists working, living and breathing in the city. I hope we have been able to represent a broad spectrum of the contemporary dance scene, with this attempt to create a wide-reaching platform that can show some of the nuance and range of work being explored.
I’ve been preoccupied with what exists in the in between, the distance, the time and more than just the proximity or time zones that are felt between London and Vancouver. How things are ever vibrating, shifting and in flux; the energy that resonates in an ever-nebulous landscape as we all turn over cells, pulsate and continually evolve. It felt important to place as much focus on the stages of making work, from initial concepts
through to post-creation reflections and all that occurs along the way. The gems are revealed in the unexpected as well as what is presented directly in front of us and enriched by the artists at different stages of their journey.
This wouldn’t have been possible without the invested relationships nurtured by those in the community who cultivate spaces to support other artists and offer a way in with guidance, care and opportunities to experiment with their ideas. Collaborating with our partnering venues is a highlight for me, they have developed the relationship equity and trust to engage with parts of the community that are less visible. As well as all the individual artists who have agreed to be a part of this programme, I’m excited to be sharing a programme alongside Raven Spirit Dance, and in collaboration with Morrow/ Odd Meridian Arts, Left of Main/plastic orchid factory, Progress Lab 1422/Company 605, Boombox/The Here for Now Collective, WhatLab/ Co.ERASGA who play an integral role in ensuring they bring others with them in the spaces they have curated.
Continuing the theme of what exists between, it’s not only the performances that bring out the essence of this dance community but the conversations, gatherings, sharing of food, and the opportunity for impromptu interactions. We have created a base at Scotiabank Dance Centre curated by a collective of artists as a space for rest, reflection, moments of activation and time to process, debrief, and decompress which is an essential part of the experience. I am grateful to all the artists and
companies that accepted the invitation to be in dialogue with me and shared themselves generously as part of this programme.
I look forward to audiences bringing their energy to this process by watching, feeling and listening intently to the rhythms that exist in this collective vibrating as well as the pauses that live in between.
I acknowledge that ‘Dance In Vancouver’ is taking place on the unceded, ancestral and traditional territories of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish) and səlil̓ilw̓ətaʔɬ (Tsleil-Waututh), colonially known as Vancouver.
Anthea Lewis/Blulilli Projects © Miguel Altunaga
Dance In Vancouver 2024 Schedule
WEDNESDAY NOVEMBER 20
8-9pm Performance Company 605 lossy
THURSDAY NOVEMBER 21
8-9pm Performance DIV Double Bill: FakeKnot Croquis + Ziyian Kwan/Odd Meridian Arts Tendrils
FRIDAY NOVEMBER 22
10am-late DIV Lounge
2-3pm Studio Showings + Conversation Starr Muranko/Raven Spirit Dance: Tracing Bones and Tahanan/Home Tasha Faye Evans: Seed
8-9:30pm Performance + Dance Party Lee Su-Feh Touch Me Hold Me Let Me Go
9:30-10:30pm Dance Party with See Monsters aka Bracken Hanuse Corlett and Dean Hunt
SATURDAY NOVEMBER 23
12 noon-1pm Studio Showing FakeKnot: MY HOUSE
8-9pm Performance Anya Saugstad Paper Mountains
9:30-10:30pm Performance Action at a Distance/ Vanessa Goodman Soft Currents
10:30pm-12am Closing Party!
SUNDAY NOVEMBER 24
10am-6pm DIV Lounge
1-5pm DIV Unstructured Dance In Vancouver 2024 comes to a close with an afternoon of informal artist-led offerings.
1-1:30pm Studio Showing
INVERSO PRODUCTIONS/Lesley Telford: Borrowed Time
1:30-2pm Studio Showing INVERSO PRODUCTIONS/Performance Research Project: Works in progress
2-2:45pm Ticketed Performance Joshua Beamish/MOVETHECOMPANY: SALT & Lost Touch
3-3:30pm Studio Showing Idan Cohen/Ne.Sans Opera & Dance: About Time
3:30-4pm Studio Showing Kay Huang/Crossmaneuver: Crossing + 安/Peace
4-5pm Sharing + Dance Party MascallDance: The A.I.R. Experiment
4:30-5pm Studio Showing soma anima arts (aka Kinesis Dance somatheatro): Bright Shadow
Pictured upper right: Lee Su-Feh © Yvonne Chew Bottom right: Company 605 lossy © David Cooper
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