dance Immersion Presents Dance Conference and Festival 1/26-29

dance Immersion brings top dancers and dance companies of the African diaspora from around the world to Toronto in four dance showcases running as part of the prestigious 24th Annual International Association of Blacks in Dance (IABD) Conference & Festival in Toronto, January 26 - 29, 2012.

The IABD Conference & Festival has become the convergence of ideas and interaction for the dance community, with a focus on those who serve the black diaspora and features over 30 dance companies and artists from countries such as Australia, Canada, Cuba, Germany, Ghana, Jamaica, UK and USA, among others. Included are special guest dance instructors Sean Cheesman of SO YOU THINK YOU CAN DANCE (Canada & USA) and Garth Fagan, choreographer of THE LION KING.

This four-day event brings people from around the world together around issues that are relevant to dance within the global dance ecology. The IABD Conference & Festival provides opportunities for audiences and participants to network and share in an international arena with dance professionals through dance classes, panel discussions and auditions for international companies. At the heart of the conference and festival are four showcase presentations that take place at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, Exhibition Place featuring artists and companies ranging from renowned to up-and-coming:

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (New York City), a company that has performed for an estimated 23 million people in 48 states and 71 countries on six continents, as well as millions more through television broadcasts, and, in 2008, was designated a "vital American cultural ambassador to the world" by U.S. Congress.

Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble (Denver, Colorado), an international, cross-cultural dance arts and educational institution rooted in African American traditions that has toured around the world, and provides training and education aspiring dancers as well as outreach to at-risk youth.

Dallas Black Dance Theatre (Dallas, Texas), a diverse, multiethnic troupe of dancers and the oldest continuously operating dance company in Dallas. The company has performed modern, jazz, ethnic and spiritual works for 2.5 million arts patrons and 1.5 million children worldwide.

Lula Washington Dance Theatre (Los Angeles), a world-class contemporary dance company that travels worldwide with contemporary modern dance works that reflect African American history and culture, with many of its dancers coming from Lula Washington's own inner city dance studio.

Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco) (Philadelphia, Pennsylvania) a celebrated company with a legacy of breaking barriers and building bridges across cultural divides, while consistently putting on electrifying performances with superbly trained dancers.

Compagnie Danse Nyata Nyata (Montreal), an enterprise of contemporary artistic expression that explores and develops the aesthetic of African dance as it relates to music, poetry and related art forms.

Ballet Creole (Toronto), a company of dancers and drummers active in the Canadian dance scene since 1990, fusing traditional and contemporary Caribbean and African dance to create, preserve and present dance works that testify to the rich heritage of those cultures.

Nafro Dance Productions (Winnipeg), Winnipeg's only African contemporary dance company, which has been performing exciting and thought-provoking pieces across Canada since 2002.

National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica (NDTC), founded in 1962 at the time of Jamaica's independence. The company blends traditional Caribbean dance drama and ritual with contemporary modern dance and ballet, examining social issues, religious themes and folklore as well as abstract dance.

Salia ni Seydou (France/Burkina Faso) was founded in1994 and has won several prizes in festivals and competitions such as the Concours de Danse Contemporaine Africaine d'Afrique en Créations (AFAA) (1994), and the Choreographic Encounters of Africa and Indian Ocean (1998).

The showcase presentations include:

Thursday, January 26 at 6PM - Emerging Artists Showcase Presentation
A springboard for tomorrow's leaders and visionaries: Saidah Baba Talibah (Toronto) sings Canadian and Black National Anthems; dance performances by Art of Motion Dance Theatre (Detroit), Baltimore Dance Tech (Baltimore), Beyond Sound (Toronto), Children & Youth Dance Theatre (Toronto), Dance Institute of Philadelphia (Philadelphia), Duke Ellington School of the Arts (Washington, D.C.), Spyceland Dancers (Grenada).

Thursday, January 26 at 9PM - Canadian Showcase Presentation
A platform for dance from the Canadian milieu
Evolution of Jazz Ensemble & Duke Ellington School of the Arts (Canada/U.S.) perform; dance performances by Ballet Creole (Toronto), Bboyizm (Toronto), Shawn Byfield (Toronto), Company Virtuo Danse (Montreal), IL NANA/Diversity City Dance Company (Toronto), Roshanak Jaberi (Toronto), Jasmyn Fyffe Dance (Toronto), KasheDance (Toronto), Michelle Moss (Calgary), Nafro Dance Productions (Winnipeg).

Friday, January 27 at 9PM - IABD Members Showcase Presentation
A platform for IABD member companies to perform dance performances by Atlanta Dance Connection (Atlanta), Azaguno by Zelma Badu-Younge & Dr. Paschal Younge (Ohio), Baltimore Dance Tech (Baltimore), Chester Whitmore (Mixed Blood Productions) (Los Angeles), Germaul Barnes (New York), Howard University Dance Ensemble (Washington, D.C.), Robert Solomon (Germany/Canada), UNLV (Las Vegas), xodus dance collective (New York).

Saturday, January 28 at 8PM - International Showcase Presentation
Linking the artistic lineage of dance worldwide on one stage: dance performances by Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater (New York City), bwsene !nmotion Australia (Australia), Cleo Parker Robinson Dance Ensemble (Denver, Colorado), Compagnie Danse NYATA NYATA (Montreal), Dallas Black Dance Theatre (Texas), Danza Corpus (Cuba), Lula Washington Dance Theatre (Los Angeles), Muntu Dance Theatre (Chicago), National Dance Theatre Company of Jamaica (NDTC) (Jamaica), Philadelphia Dance Company (Philadanco) (Philadelphia), Salia ni Seydou (France/Burkina Faso), State of Emergency Productions (U.K.).

The Queen Elizabeth Theatre also plays host to "Motion", an exhibit of dance posters curated and remounted by renowned photographer Michael Chambers that celebrates the artistry of movement and reflects on the influence of blacks in dance and the impact their motion has made on Canadian art.

Showcase Presentation tickets: $50 ($35 Student/Senior/CADA/IABD). Call Arts Box Office 416-504-7529 or visit www.danceimmersion.ca online where information and schedules for the IABD Conference & Festival can be found.