Tara Luz Danse Returns to Guelph for CSA Nooner

Tara Luz Danse will be performing in Guelph next week as Guelph Dance and the Central Student Association (CSA) partner to present another CSA Nooner at the University of Guelph's University Centre Courtyard. Join us for this free performance-workshop combination at 12pm on Wednesday, March 5th.

Anik Bouvrette, celebrated choreographer, talks here about the excitement of returning to Guelph as part of the company's first-ever tour of Ontario.

Anik: We have performed En studio avec nous in the studio where we rehearse as a public event for our community, and this has been a huge success. We have been the resident dance company at the Shenkman Arts Centre in Orleans, Ottawa since its opening in 2009, and have been working at building an audience for dance in that part of town.

En studio avec nous includes excerpts of our professional work in a more informal context, as well as an element of participation, to get the audience moving. A frequent comment from the audience is now that they've seen us work and moved with us, they will not look at dance the same way. We love that we are able to demystify dance and break down some of the barriers that keep people from participating.

Tara Luz Danse performing Les billes. Photo by Jeremy Mimnagh.

Anik: Our tour includes three other stops - Sudbury, Oshawa, and Kingston - all in partnership with multidisciplinary Francophone presenters. So Guelph will be a bit more familiar territory for us. We are excited to see how the event works in a university setting, where people are passing by. Will they stop and get involved? I hope so!

Tara Luz Danse performing Les billes at the 2011 Guelph Dance Festival. Photo by James MacDonald.

Anik: Guelph has a special place in my heart. I have so much respect for all that Catrina and Janet have done in Guelph, as they built an audience for dance from the ground up. There is so much leadership coming from Guelph, and I am grateful for Catrina and Janet's advice on creating a demand for dance in a region outside of a larger dance centre, as I am trying to do now.

When I was teaching at Guelph Dance's March Break Camp last year, I could tell that the parents were an informed audience. They were attentive and thoughtful. I thought to myself, that is 15 years of work and it has paid off! There is something about Guelph, a vibe, an awareness. I am always happy to come back there.

Anik Bouvrette with Guelph Dance Co-Artistic Director, Janet Johnson, and musician Adam Bowman. On the right, Anik and her assistant Amelia working with the Dance Focus Group at the 2013 March Break Camp.

Join us on March 5th at noon in the University Centre Courtyard, where you'll feast your eyes on excerpts from two pieces by Tara Luz Danse and be inspired to get in on the action with Anik and her dancers!