P R ODUCE R S ’ NO T E
WELCOME to the 21st edition of the Vancouver International Dance Festival. We begin by acknowledging that the 2021 VIDF takes place on the unceded territory of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the xʷməθkwəy ̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl í̓ lwətaʔ/ Selilwitulh (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, all 2021 VIDF performances will be livestreamed from the KW Production Studio in the months of March, April, May and June, so that we can ensure the safest conditions for presenting the outstanding work of Ne. Sans Opera & Dance, Company 605, Vidya Kotamraju, Yvonne Ng / tiger princess dance projects, CAMP, and Lamondance. Last September and October, we took on the challenge of how to produce the festival while
1
adhering to the Provincial Health Office’s COVID-19 mitigation policies. We used Kokoro Dance’s 4-camera livestreaming system to broadcast live performances of Kokoro Dance, FakeKnot, and Farouche whose 2020 VIDF shows had to be cancelled when Vancouver’s performance venues were shut down last March. We were surprised and delighted to discover that livestreaming captured the immediacy and excitement of live performance while offering visual perspectives that are impossible to duplicate in a live theatre setting. Livestream performances are edited in the moment with views that put audiences within inches of the dancers or hovering overhead, below, behind, or adjacent to them. No longer are you stuck to a single seat far from the stage. Camera operators become sometimes visible, sometimes invisible, parts of the choreography. Audience
Photo of Performers Name by Photographer
members, from the comfort of their own homes, can feel like they are on stage with the dancers.
Because of the economic downturn from the COVID-19 mitigation policies, we have decided to make all 2021 livestreaming performances free. We invite you to help us continue to bring performances into your living rooms by donating if you can. Welcome to the 2021 VIDF. Enjoy! Barbara Bourget and Jay Hirabayashi
