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Interested in learning more about Dance Curation?

Hosted by CoFigure at the Dance Centre
677 Davie Street, 7th Floor
No RSVP needed, just show up!

Dancemakers Co-Artistic Producer Christina will be in Vancouver for their Industry week. Alongside past Dancemakers Guest Curator Lamont, they will host an informal coffee hour to meet Vancouver artists and audiences, answer any questions about dance curation and learn more about local Vancouver artistic practice. Snacks and hot beverages will be available.

Come hang out with us and chat about dance curation!

We are grateful to CoFigure Arts Residency for hosting us in their space at the Dance Centre

Artists

acCessibilIty

Yes! We prioritize accessibility at all events.

Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.

This performance does not include audio description.

In partnership with

Beyond lip service to diversity and outreach, what does a liberatory Dancemakers look like and how does it function?

How can a dance institution’s year-to-year activities be actively situated in the calendars of diverse communities? How can a dance institution be artistically empowering, equitable and safe(r) for BIPOC and working class artists? What are the structural changes that Dancemakers is putting into place to work more equitably with independent practitioners and diverse dance artists? What kinds of tools and understandings do we need to cultivate to navigate relationships in professional practice with more ease?  

Helen Yung of the Laboratory for Artistic Intelligence introduces the artist-researchers that have been in-residence with Dancemakers and in dialogue with Dancemaker’s guest curators. An overview of the research and recommendations will be shared for reflection and discussion. This will also be a chance to celebrate the season’s ending with guest curators, artist-researchers and Artist Producer Cara Spooner.

Inspiration for this includes:

Dr. Max Max Liboiron’s Civic Laboratory for Environmental Action Research (CLEAR) lab

Artists

acCessibilIty

Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.

All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.

This performance does not include audio description.

A conversation about dance, access and archiving performance.

Arts Assembly and Dancemakers have partnered to host a conversation on dance access, in particular for the blind / low vision community. Arts Assembly’s recent series two part series The Longest Way Round is the Shortest Way Home will be explored through this conversation, emphasizing the process and possibilities of programming and supporting inclusive dance, performance and visual art practices.

This talk is the launch of Arts Assembly’s archive recordings of The Longest Way Round is the Shortest Way Home which was intentionally designed with dance descriptions by Andrea Cownden in consultation with Amy Amantea.

Inspiration for this work includes:

Vocal Eye logo
Vocal Eye Describer Cafe

Artists

A panel discussion exploring the craft, practice and plurality of dance curation.

Curation, a field long associated with the visual arts, is becoming increasingly common in the field of performance and live arts. As Dancemakers continues its mission to incubate dance curators at every step in their career, we offer an opportunity to learn what the practice of curating can offer dance through the eyes of these bright and adventurous curators.

We think this panel would be great for:

  • Dance artists who are curious about innovating the way dance is presented
  • Folks interested in showing dance outside of traditional environments
  • Curious thinkers with a desire to be in residence to explore dance related questions
  • Choreographers practicing forms that have not been traditionally shown in “black box theatres”
  • Artists considering applying to the Dancemakers Guest Curator call for the first time!

Artists

acCessibilIty

Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.

All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.

Audio description will be available upon request.

An annual symposium exploring the craft, practice and plurality of dance curation.

Thursday July 17 2025:

11:00 – Arrival

11:30-1:00 – Curation Under the Surface (with Celia Green & Rumi Jeraj)

1:00-1:30 – Break

1:30-3:00 – Curating in Unconventional Spaces (with Shani K. Parsons & Abel Hagos)

3:00-3:30 – Break

3:30-5:00 – Research as Curatorial Method (with Christina de la Cruz & Sanjukta Banarjee)

5:30-7:00 – Call for Curators Q&A and Info Sessions

Friday July 18 2025

11:00 – Arrival

11:30-1:00 – A Decade Since ACAQ (with Dena Devida)

1:00-1:30 – Break

1:30-3:00 – Collaborative Dance Curation (with Nomadic Curatorial Collective & Parks N Wreck)

3:00-3:30 – Break

3:30-5:00 – Access in Dance Curation (with Arts Assembly & Shay Erlich)

5:30-7:00 – Cinq a Sept hosted by members of the CDA-DanceWorks IBPOC Artist-Curators Inaugural Cohort 

Inspiration for this event includes:

Artists

Celia Green

Celia Green’s practice spans choreography, writing, creation, and performance. Within their work they often consider gender, the fragility of identity, and freedom as guiding forces.

Rumi Jeraj

Rumi Jeraj is an Ismailli muslim hailing from Sherwood Park Alberta.

Shani K. Parsons

Shani Khoo Parsons (she/her) is an independent curator, designer, mother, and founding director of Critical Distance Centre for Curators.

Abel Hagos

As a Street Dance artist and community advocate, my work is rooted in the belief that dance is a powerful tool for expression, storytelling, and cultural preservation.

Christina de la Cruz

Christina de la Cruz is a Hip Hop dancer, artistic producer, curator of dance and performance and waitress.

Sanjukta Banerjee

Dr. Sanjukta Banerjee is an acclaimed Bharatanatyam, Mohiniyattam and Kathakali dance artist.

Dena Davida

Contemporary dance curator, anthropologist, educator, artist; also co-founder and managing editor of the TURBA Journal.

Cara Spooner

Cara Spooner is a choreographer, caregiver and caretaker as well as one of the Co-Artistic Producers at Dancemakers.

Erin McCurdy

Erin Joelle McCurdy is a writer, maker, and curator based in Toronto.

Emily Law

Emily Law is an artist, choreographer, producer, lifelong student, and mother.

Sarah Tumaliuan

Associate Curator, Public Programs and Learning at Museum of Toronto, co-producer of Parks N’Wreck and Dance artist with Mix Mix Dance and Holla Jazz.

Arts Assembly

Arts Assembly is a not-for-profit, community-centric arts organization that emphasizes artistic collaboration.

Shay Erlich

Shay Erlich (they/them) is a disability justice world builder living in Tkaronto.

Ibpoc Curators

The Canadian Dance Assembly, in partnership with DanceWorks, hosted a project that invited 10 Indigenous, Afro-descendant, and Person of Colour Artist-Curators in dance to gather in Toronto between May 12-17th, 2025.

acCessibilIty

Yes, the venue is wheelchair accessible including ramps into the building, elevators and wheelchair accessible washrooms.

All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.

Audio description will be available upon request.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Why aren’t there training facilities for manual wheelchair dancers in Canda?

Shay Erlich researched and considered how to best support manual wheelchair dancers across Canada and shared their findings in a virtual town hall.

Inspiration for this includes:

Artists

Discuss Tagore in Dufferin Grove Park

Sanjukta hosted a conversation in Dufferin Grove about Tagore’s poetic composition. The event was attended by fans of Tagore’s work as well as practitioners and spectators of South Asian dance theatre. Lively participation tapered into socializing and enjoying snacks and coconut water!

Artists

acCessibilIty

Yes, the discussion takes place in a park with paved paths.

All live events will offer ASL interpretation (upon request). Please contact us to request ASL Interpretation.

This performance does not include audio description.