Back on Stage: CIS Ontario Dance Fest 2023 Returns with Energy, Talent, and Community Spirit

We were back in the dance studios at York University on February 23rd for a fantastic day! Participants awoke to a hefty snow accumulation, and many of our schools' buses were cancelled. Still, more than half of our dancers made their way to York University for our first in-person Dance Fest post-pandemic. Grade 6–12 students from CIS Ontario member schools participated in three workshops of their choice with professional dance instructors and then had the opportunity to perform for their peers. Workshops included:

• Malcolm Messadol, Beginner Hip Hop
• Shavar "Caution" Blackwood, Intermediate/Advance Hip Hop
• Luke Opdahl, Beginner Contemporary
• Stéphanie Visconti, Intermediate Contemporary
• Marisa Ricci, Samba
• Cecilia Xiong, Classical Chinese Dance
• Indiana Mehta, Bollywood
• Josh Doig, Musical Theatre
• Brandon Bizzy Owusu, Soca (Islander Style)
• Allen Kaeja, Kaeja Elevations

Following the workshops, participants were treated to a showcase of nine dance performances varying in dance genres from CIS Ontario members: Branksome Hall, Greenwood College School, Pickering College, The Bishop Strachan School, UTS, and The York School.

It was a wonderful day of high energy and inter-school engagement. The CIS Ontario team would like to personally thank all the student participants and their faculty advisors for their commitment to this student program, which offers learning in a dedicated arts post-secondary program with top Canadian professional talent.