April 26, 2007 -

One dances on birthdays, at weddings, on the streets, in living rooms, on the stage, behind the scenes. To communicate joy, sorrow, as ritual and borderline experience.

Dance is a universal language: emissary for a peaceful world, for equality, tolerance and compassion. Dance teaches us sensibility, consciousness and to pay attention to the moment.

Dance is the manifestation of our being alive. Dance is transformation. Dance locates the soul, dance affords the body a spiritual dimension. Dance enables us to feel our body, to rise above, to go beyond, to be another body.

To dance is to participate actively in the vibration of the universe.

Sasha Waltz, dancer, choreographer and artistic director
http://iti.unesco.org

INTERNATIONAL DANCE DAY was established in 1982 to draw attention to the art of dance. Since then, every year on April 29, to mark this special day, dancers and dance enthusiasts, schools, dance companies, organizations and individuals all over the world plan an activity to initiate a new public to dance.

As this year's INTERNATIONAL DANCE DAY is dedicated to children, the NAC Dance department invited schools in the Ottawa/Gatineau region to plan a Dance Steps, Life Steps!* event that involves students and reaches a far larger number of new individuals not familiar with dance. For details on the project click on the NAC Dance Education and Outreach link http://www.nac-cna.ca/en/dance/20062007season/education.html. Numerous schools have accepted the challenge and are offering their students and school communities an encounter with dance in celebration of International Dance Day 2007.

DANCE STEPS, LIFE STEPS! - For employees and members of the general public, NAC Dance painted with the help of the Canada Dance Festival and the NAC Youth Focus Group for Dance, a series of choreographic dance steps produced by Édouard Lock, creator of Amjad, our latest dance co-production that received its world premiere at the NAC on opening night of Quebec Scene. You will find them in front of our Wall of Artists (follow the walkway off the Southam Hall foyer towards the Elgin Street entrance). Weather permitting, a second set of steps created by renowned Montreal choreographer Sylvain Émard will be painted on Elgin Street by the Fourth Stage. Try out this game ofchoreographic hopscotch between now and Sunday!

And don't forget to sample some of the remaining Dance season and Quebec Scene dance shows:

• Hinda Essadiqi: The End of Infinity / Gaétan Gingras: Mon père m'a raconté – April 25, 8:00 p.m. – Arts Court, Theatre, 2 Daly Avenue
• Compagnie Marie Chouinard: bODY_rEMIX / gOLDBERG_vARIATIONS – April 27, 7:30 p.m. – NAC Theatre (SOLD OUT)
• Dance K par K : Cibler – May 2, 8:00 p.m. – Arts Court, Theatre, 2 Daly Avenue
• Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal: TooT, Noces – May 4, 8:00 p.m. – NAC Southam Hall

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Cathy Levy and the NAC Dance team