DanceHouse, 149 Arts Society, and the National Arts Centre (NAC) have come together to envision a project in direct support of the dance community. On December 15, 2021 that vision will be presented virtually as NEXT: New Dance in Development – a residency and live stream sharing of works in progress from four  emerging Canadian choreographers.

Through NEXT: New Dance in Development, these emerging creatives –  All Bodies Dance Project artists romham pàdraig gallacher and Lance Lim, Shion Skye Carter, Ralph Escamillan, and Zahra Shahab – have been offered two weeks (November 29-December 14) of shared development time in the Fei and Milton Wong Experimental Theatre at SFU Goldcorp Centre for the Arts, a state-of-the-art theatre. Residency time includes access to technicians and all technical gear on site, allowing artists to begin playing with theatre resources they would not easily have access to in the studio. Following the development period, artists will gather on Wednesday, December 15 at 4:00pm PT for a 75-minute live stream of their works in progress. Everyone is invited to join the live stream as we witness new works beginning to unfold.

NEXT has been made possible with support from Canadian Heritage through their COVID-19 support measure, Canada Arts Presentation Fund Program, Support for Workers in Live Arts and Music Sector Fund. Through this unique funding stream, the three partnering organizations have generated contracts with over 30 arts workers, including choreographers and collaborators from across Canada, dancers, designers, composers, technicians, and production and administrative personnel. And for many of these creatives, NEXT will be one of the first times they are back in the studio and back in the theatre developing new work since the COVID-19 pandemic began. Additional support provided by the British Columbia Arts Council through Stronger BC: BC’s Economic Recovery Plan.

Read the full press release here.