Second edition will continue to support Canadian Dance Artists impacted by COVID-19

OTTAWA  – Following the success of its livestream series #DanceForth last fall, NAC Dance is pleased to announce a spring edition from March to June 2021 with nine new digital offerings from dance artists across Canada.

Cathy Levy, Executive Producer of NAC Dance, celebrates the extended lineup, saying: “Choreographers and dancers who presented their work in the first cycle of #DanceForth expressed how vital the opportunity was during this time of great uncertainty. We are so pleased to continue to support the dance community across Canada, and to deliver an experience that celebrates the diversity of this rich and dynamic art form. We invite audiences to discover the works of creators and performers with a diverse range of expressions, techniques and styles that showcase the depth and breadth of our incredible Canadian dance artists.”  

Leading up to their #DanceForth livestream performances, artists will be supported with a residency period at the NAC or in various rehearsal spaces across Canada to renew their performance practice, to experiment with video and to prepare the works for the camera’s eye.

#DanceForth performances will be livestreamed via the NAC website under the #CanadaPerforms banner and will be available for viewing until the Sunday evening following the end of the performance. This new edition will also partner with centres and presenters across the country including Toronto’s Dance Immersion in collaboration with Harbourfront Centre, and Calgary’s Springboard Performance. Four special commissions are included in the series: a land-based pre-recorded performance by Christine Friday which kicks off the series, and three other works created for the NAC’s Southam Hall and Fourth Stage.

The first performance of #DanceForth is Thunderbird Rising 2 by Anishinabbe contemporary dance artist and choreographer Christine Friday, on March 25th at 7:00 PM EDT. Thunderbird Rising 2 is an evocative healing journey; a transformative spirit of dance travelling through dimensional realms of existence - ancestors, dreams, blood memory and the land directly connected to the Anishinaabek way of living and being. This land-based performance is an NAC special commission, presented on the traditional tribal territory of the Temagami Algonquin Anishinaabek.

The complete line-up in this second edition of #DanceForth includes performances by:

• Christine Friday, Tip Lake - Lake Temagami, Traditional Tribal Territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabek Nation: March 25 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EDT
• Kunji Ikeda, from The Grand, Calgary: April 1, 2021 at 9:00 P.M. EDT
• Crazy Smooth and Tedd Robinson, from NAC Southam Hall, Ottawa: April 8, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EDT
• Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, from DJD Theatre, Calgary: April 29, 2021 at 9:00 P.M. EDT
• Rosanna Terracciano, from DJD Theatre, Calgary: May 13, 2021 at 9:00 P.M. EDT
• Laura Taler, from NAC Southam Hall, Ottawa: May 20, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EDT
• Alexandra “Spicey” Landé, from NAC Fourth Stage, Ottawa: May 27, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EDT
• Travis Knights, from Harbourfront Centre, Toronto: June 3, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EDT
• Jaz Fairy J, from Harbourfront Centre, Toronto: June 10, 2021 at 7:00 P.M. EST

THANK YOU TO OUR PARTNERS

The NAC Foundation wishes to acknowledge Facebook Canada, Founding Partner of #CanadaPerforms. Thank you also to Official Hotel Partner of NAC Dance, The Lord Elgin Hotel, and Official Rail Partner VIA Rail. The role of the Executive Producer, Dance, at the NAC, is generously supported by an anonymous donor.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL ARTS CENTRE

The National Arts Centre is Canada’s bilingual, multi-disciplinary home for the performing arts. As part of its Strategic Plan, the NAC’s vision is to lead and support the renewal of the performing arts sector. The NAC presents, creates, produces, and co-produces performing arts programming in various streams — the NAC Orchestra, Dance, English Theatre, French Theatre, Indigenous Theatre, and Popular Music and Variety — and nurtures the next generation of audiences and artists from across Canada. The NAC is located in the National Capital Region on the unceded territory of the Algonquin Anishinaabe.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:

Andrea Ruttan

Communications Strategist

National Arts Centre

1-343-998-4244

Andrea.Ruttan@nac-cna.ca