Guelph Dance Wishes You A Happy Holiday Season!

Photo: Anuta Skrypnychenko

From all of us at Guelph Dance to all of you:

A Very Happy Holiday!

May it be merry and bright

And full of dance!

And if you’re looking for something to do on New Year’s Eve, may we suggest our epic celebration:

Come celebrate our 15^th anniversary and the launch of our new name by dancing through the ages and counting down to 2013!

The Royal Family featuring Joni NehRita and Rufus John with Attila Toth and Adam Bowman will rock the house at this family-friendly event. Dance the night away to classic funk, soul, R&B and pop from the 70s, 80s, 90s and today! A supervised kids’ area with crafts, movies, and snacks will let your kids get in on the fun too. Try on our costume pieces to take some snapshots at our photo booth, enjoy some hors d’oeuvres and be social in the lounge, or bring your skates and duck out for an hour of supervised skating in Market Square. This party will have a little something for everyone! See how we can transform the 3 floors of 10 Carden into a magical getaway space!

Location: 10 Carden, across from Market Square at City Hall

Time: Doors open 8pm, supervised skating from 9-10pm, music from 9pm-2am
Price: Teens: $25, Student: $35, Adult: $50
             children 12 and under are free
Champagne, snacks, and noisemakers included! Cash bar.

Buy your New Year’s Eve tickets at:
Guelph Dance office
2^nd floor Trafalgar Building
123 Woolwich St
Guelph, ON
519-780-2220

10 Carden
10 Carden Street,

Guelph, ON
519-780-5030

Or online via secure Paypal transaction. 

The Shepherd’s Tale at DtDE

To celebrate the holiday season, we invite you to see Dancetheatre David Earle's production of The Shepherd’s Tale, a quest across time for the meaning of Christmas, encompassing the miracle of birth to honour a message of peace. Performers include esteemed local dance artists, as well as youth dancers, including some from the Guelph Dance Training program. Conceived and directed by David Earle.

Ben Harvey, the talented dancer above, appears as the Shepherd Boy in The Shepherd's Tale. This photo is from the GCDF 2012 Youth Moves series, choreographed by Karen Kaeja. Photo by James MacDonald.

Janet Johnson, Co-Artistic Director of Guelph Dance, teacher at Guelph Dance Training, and performer: I have had the pleasure of jumping back into a Dancetheatre David Earle project called The Shepherd's Tale.

It is a brand new holiday dance performance with earthy characters such as a Mary, Joseph, a young shepherd, an older shepherd, and angels etc.

It is a joy to be dancing with such a rich, talented cast including young dancers from the Guelph Youth Dance Company and apprentice company.  The studio has altered into an intimate theatre and there the dance story unfolds with outstandingly beautiful medieval music and David's signature elegant choreography. It is a wonderful way to mull over the wonder and historical biblical story of Christmas in an honest and poignant way.

Julia Garlisi, plays Mary in The Shepherd’s Tale: Being involved in the creation and performance of The Shepherd's Tale with DtDE has been a rich and inspiring experience. David Earle has yet again created a work that transforms space and time and offers a chance for the audience to really see and feel something. In this modest tale, David has opened up the opportunity for people to engage with each other and be touched by generosity.

The generosity of David, the cast of amazing dancers, and the behind-the-scenes crew has been completely beautiful to witness and be part of. I feel particularly lucky to be involved with this production at this time of year. David's work has reminded me about what is truly important during the holiday season.

Suzette Sherman, dancer in The Shepherd’s Tale: Being with David while he creates is always a tremendous inspiration. Watching him pull together the countless details of The Shepherd's Tale until they make a cohesive whole seems miraculous! I never cease to marvel at how he instinctively knows what is essential and what is not.

As for dancing in The Shepherd's Tale, it is a great gift of joy for which I am grateful. I hope all will come and celebrate with us!

David Earle, Artistic Director of DtDE, and director of The Shepherd’s Tale:  Having many people around me with whom I've worked for some twenty years, and with people who've devoted themselves to dance with a humanist concern for 10 years here in Guelph, makes my time onstage at 73 as meaningful as it could ever be. I feel like the old shepherd, indeed.  Having Michael English as an angel onstage and off creating a magic theatre in our space, and Suzette Sherman filling in the gaps in creation and bringing ancient powers to the role of the gypsy ...... all I can say is that miracles abound!

The Shepherd's Tale
December 14, 15, 16, 2012
Fridays, 8:00pm - Saturdays & Sundays, 4:00pm
42 Quebec Street, Guelph, ON
$20 Adult, $12 Senior / Youth

Advance purchase or reservation recommended.

Tickets available at DtDE - 42 Quebec Street, Guelph, ON - 519-837-2746 - www.dtde.ca, and also at the Bookshelf Bookshop - 41 Quebec Street, Guelph, ON

Happy holidays, everyone! Hope to see you at our Guelph Dance New Year’s Eve party!

Show us some love this holiday season!

All of us at Guelph Dance wish you and your loved ones a safe, happy, and dance-filled holiday season. What do we ask for in return? That you celebrate with us, of course! We cordially invite you to our New Year’s Eve Fundraiser and Party where you can ‘dance through the ages’ to music from Guelph’s-own The Royal Family featuring Joni NehRita and Rufus John, with Attila Toth and Adam Bowman.

There will be a little something for everyone at this family-friendly event, which will transform the three floors of 10 Carden into a magical getaway space! Click here for more details and to purchase tickets.

Design by Gareth Lind of LindDesign

Can't come to the New Year's Eve Party but you still want to celebrate with us over the holidays? Donate to Guelph Dance today and give the gift of dance!


This is an important year for us, as it marks the 15th anniversary of the Festival, and the launch of our new name. This change emphasizes that we provide the community with so much more than just a four-day Festival. This change comes at a cost, and we need your support now more than ever. Please support this growth by making a tax-deductible donation.

Donations to Guelph Dance can fit everyone on your Christmas list! You can help send a child to one of our Arts Explosion Camps through the Monica Davis Camp Scholarship Fund or help bring contemporary dance to our community by donating to the Festival. Click here for all the ways you can support dance.

Photo by Anuta Skrypnychenko

We cannot stress enough the importance of continuous funding from individual supporters. Please visit our canadahelps.org page to set up a monthly donation to our cause. Not only does this provide us with steady income, the system is also convenient and efficient for donors. This Christmas gift keeps on giving throughout the year!

You can also make a one-time donation to Guelph Dance in honour of the holidays via our canadahelps.org page. This makes a great stocking stuffer or mail-able gift!

Please consider supporting Guelph Dance this holiday season.