Dance Arts Institute

We are thrilled to highlight Dance Arts student Liz South .south (class of 2027) and their invited participation in SABO (Summer Arts Blast Off)! ✨

Co-directed by Marie-Josée Chartier and Darryl Tracy, this boutique-style summer intensive brought together six dancers from across Canada, including three from The School of Contemporary Dancers (Winnipeg), one from The School of Dance (Ottawa), one from TMU (Toronto), and Liz representing Dance Arts.
From June 1–13, participants trained and created in a company-like setting, taking classes across Toronto and engaging in creative processes with Darryl Tracy (), Yvonne Ng (), Maxine Heppner (), Kinaj (.co) and Dance Arts faculty and alumni Katie Adams-Gossage () and Kéïta Fournier-Pelletier ().

We are proud of Liz for this exciting opportunity and grateful to SABO for fostering such a rich environment for artistic growth, collaboration & creative exploration. 💫

“It has been so wonderful to begin my summer dancing and creating with the Summer Arts Blast Off program. As this process comes to a close, I am feeling fulfilled, challenged and enriched with many creative points of view. I am so grateful for this experience and I am looking forward to keeping in touch with all of my new friends and collaborators.” - Liz South

(1) class with Darryl Tracy (photo by Heidi Strauss)
(2) SABO ’26 cohort after their final showing (photo provided by Liz South)
(3) class with Darryl Tracy (photo by Heidi Strauss)
(4) SABO trip to the AGO (photo provided by Liz South)

Dance Arts is thrilled to celebrate the outstanding faculty and alumni who have been nominated for 2026 Dora Mavor Moore Awards. 👏🏼 We are so inspired by their creativity, excellence and artistry on the stage and in the studio. Congratulations to all the nominees! 💫

DANCE
🪨 gutted (Intimate Pairings: Program 2): Katie Adams-Gossage - Outstanding Original Choreography and Frédérique Perron - Outstanding Performance by an Individual
💛 Aakarsh (dance: made in /fait au canada Festival, Morrison Series): Tanveer Alam - Outstanding Performance by an Individual & Outstanding Original Sound Composition
🎤 Microphone Controller: Lukas Malkowski - Outstanding Performance by an Individual
🐦 Be The Bird (dance: made in / fait au canada Festival, Wolfe Series): Drew Berry, Sam Grist, Natasha P**n Woo - Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble & Outstanding Production
❤️‍🔥ZAYO (dance Immersion & Esie Mensah Creations, in association with TO Live): Eilish Shin-Culhane - Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble & Outstanding Production // Simon Rossiter (Lighting) - Outstanding Achievement in Design
INDEPENDENT THEATRE
👩🏼‍🐰‍👩🏽 Dance Nation (Coal Mine Theatre and Outside the March in association with Rock Bottom Movement): Sam Grist (Associate Movement Director), Rajvi Dedhia (Co-Movement Direction for ‘World on Fire’) - Outstanding Production
and
🔸 Michael Caldwell - 2026 George Luscombe Mentorship Award Recipient

✨ and an extra special shout-out to our friends at for their nominations for The Room Upstairs (Presented by DanceWorks and Toronto Dance Theatre + co-produced by DanceWorks and Holla Jazz in collaboration with Toronto Dance Theatre) and Make Banana Cry (Toronto Dance Theatre in partnership with Buddies in Bad Times Theatre) ✨

A heartfelt thank you from all of us at Dance Arts to everyone who joined us on Sunday to celebrate the Graduating Class of 2026 💐🎓💫 Extra special thanks to Janique for the joy she brought as the MC, to Surej for his emotional & comedic Valedictorian speech, to Bonnie Kim & Johanna Bergfelt for their incredibly moving & poignant speeches, to Joel for his very thorough & hilarious Class of 2026 Wrapped (not sponsored by Spotify) and of course to Heidi, our ever-inspiring Artistic Lead for her care and wisdom during grad, and her work and inspiration always. And to Rohee, Surej, Joel & Janique - CONGRATULATIONS! You did it! EVERYBODY DANCE NOW!

photos by .ca (thank you for capturing these beautiful memories!)

Congratulations to the Dance Arts Graduating Class of 2026. 🎓🎉💐

It’s hard to believe how much has unfolded over this past year. You’ve each met it with strength, care, and a real commitment to growing, both individually and together. Watching that evolution has been something special, and we feel lucky to have been part of it.

As you carry on your path, carry that same curiosity and drive with you. Continue to show up with creativity, integrity, passion, and determination; it will open more doors than you can imagine. Wishing you all the best in everything that comes next.

On behalf of the Dance Arts faculty and staff, congratulations - we are all so immensely proud of you. 😭💕

Introducing our newest Dance Arts Alumni:
Surej Surrendra
Janique Devine .dancer
Joel Lawrence
Rohee Uberoi

Photos by

Tonight is your LAST CHANCE to catch Landings. 💖

We invite you to join us in celebrating these incredible emerging dance artists and all the hard work they’ve put into their studies and dancing this year! 🎉

🗓️May 9th at 8PM & 2PM
🎟️Tickets: $20-15 - link in bio
📍Wi******er St. Theatre - 80 Wi******er St.

Photo 1: Wide Awake by Emily Gaultieri. Rehearsal Direction by Bonnie Kim
Photo 2: I’m Afraid They've Already Won by Emily Spearing. Rehearsal Direction by Val Calam
Photo 3: All In An Exhale by Eilish Shin-Culhane
Photo 4: Velour by Andrea Spaziani. Rehearsal Direction by Katie Adam-Gossage

photos by .ca

Crossroads Production Team:
Costume Coordination: Val Calam
Lighting Design: Emerson Kafarowski
Senior Technician: Aidan Jackson
Technician: Aden Altamirano
Stage Manager: Miah Lewis
Assistant Stage Managers: Tavia Christina & Kéïta Fournier-Pelletier

This is our graduating class’ FINAL PERFORMANCE AT DANCE ARTS 🫠😭 Come see all three cohort years perform in original creations by Emily Spearing, Eilish Shin-Culhane, Emily Gaultieri and Andrea Spaziani.

Tickets for the shows are located in our bio.

🗓️May 8th, 9th at 8PM & May 9 at 2PM
🎟️Tickets: $20-15
📍Wi******er St. Theatre - 80 Wi******er St.

Photo 1: Velour by Andrea Spaziani. Rehearsal Direction by Katie Adam-Gossage
Photo 2: I’m Afraid They've Already Won by Emily Spearing. Rehearsal Direction by Val Calam
Photo 3: All In An Exhale by Eilish Shin-Culhane
Photo 4: Wide Awake by Emily Gaultieri. Rehearsal Direction by Bonnie Kim

photos by .ca

Crossroads Production Team:
Costume Coordination: Val Calam
Lighting Design: Emerson Kafarowski
Senior Technician: Aidan Jackson
Technician: Aden Altamirano
Stage Manager: Miah Lewis
Assistant Stage Managers: Tavia Christina & Kéïta Fournier-Pelletier

LANDINGS opens tonight 🤩

The night you’ve all been waiting for! The final performance of the school year features Dance Arts students from all three years. Showcasing original works by Emily Spearing, Eilish Shin-Culhane, Emily Gaultieri and Andrea Spaziani. All of the dancers are excited to showcase their hard work and dedication in this show.

🗓️May 7th, 8th, 9th at 8PM & May 9 at 2PM
🎟️Tickets: $20-15 - link in bio
📍Wi******er St. Theatre - 80 Wi******er St.

Photo 1: I’m Afraid They've Already Won by Emily Spearing. Rehearsal Direction by Val Calam
Photo 2: Velour by Andrea Spaziani. Rehearsal Direction by Katie Adam-Gossage
Photo 3: Wide Awake by Emily Gaultieri. Rehearsal Direction by Bonnie Kim
Photo 4: All In An Exhale by Eilish Shin-Culhane

photos by .ca Jeremy Mimnagh

Crossroads Production Team:
Costume Coordination: Val Calam
Lighting Design: Emerson Kafarowski
Senior Technician: Aidan Jackson
Technician: Aden Altamirano
Stage Manager: Miah Lewis
Assistant Stage Managers: Tavia Christina & Kéïta Fournier-Pelletier

🌟Faculty Announcement: Shalon T. Webber-Heffernan 🌟

Dance Arts is excited to have Shalon teaching Contemporary Dance Contexts & Theories: Performance, Politics, & Aesthetics to our second year cohort. With a rigorous and thoughtful approach, they are guiding students through critical frameworks, while encouraging deeper reflection, articulation, and engagement with their evolving practices.

Shalon T. Webber-Heffernan is an independent curator, educator, and performance art scholar with a PhD in Theatre and Performance Studies. Her work engages somatics, contemporary art, and performance theory, with a focus on embodied practices and critical inquiry. She currently leads Curating the Village, a pilot project supported by Balancing Act Canada’s Level Up! initiative.
Her writing has appeared in Performance Matters, Theatre Research in Canada, C Magazine, Comparative Media Arts Journal, Peripheral Review, and Canadian Theatre Review. A core member of The Toronto Performance Art Collective (TPAC) and a collaborator with Hemispheric Encounters: Developing Transborder Research-Creation Practices, she has curated projects with FADO Performance Art Centre, the Blackwood Gallery, Vtape, and Sensorium: Centre for Digital Arts and Technology. Her research and practices have been presented internationally

🌟Spotlight on a Dance Arts Graduate🌟

Introducing our next graduate, Janique Devine. Janique shared with us some of their cherished memories at Dance Arts and what’s next for them. 🪩🎉

Janique’s final performance at Landings which is opening THIS WEEK! You do not want to miss this!

Photo by