Digidance ushers performing arts into the home
For decades, Canada’s dance companies have been bringing artists and audiences together for shared experiences. So when the pandemic arrived last spring and people were being told to stay away from one another, it created a conundrum.
How could this cherished art form continue? One response has been various livestreamed solo performances in Vancouver. Then there was the livestreamed Idan Cohen–choreographed duet between real-life partners Brandon Lee Alley and Racheal Prince at the Chutzpah! Festival.
The really big shows, however, have been forbidden due to physical-distancing requirements to prevent the spread of COVID-19. But recently, four of Canada’s most important dance presenters—DanceHouse (Vancouver), Harbourfront Centre (Toronto), the National Arts Centre (Ottawa), and Danse Danse (Montreal)—unveiled a new initiative, Digidance, to bring large-scale productions to a computer screen near you.
“There’s been a lot of discussion about the arts moving into more of a digital form of distribution,” DanceHouse artistic and executive producer Jim Smith told the Straight by phone. “And with Canada
Council investments in digital funding, this moment became a catalyst to sort of advance that conversation.”
Digidance’s first show, an 85-minute filmed version of Vancouver choreographer Crystal Pite’s Body and Soul with 36 dancers from Paris Opera Ballet, will be livestreamed from Wednesday (February 17) to next Tuesday (February 23). Smith pointed out that a live show like this—created on the 350th anniversary of the Paris Opera Ballet company in 2019—would never be presented in Vancouver, but the film can be seen in small and large centres across the country.
“I don’t want to sort of speak out of turn in terms of our upcoming programming ideas,” Smith said. “But…there are iconic Canadian choreographers whose work or whose influence has completely informed the current generation of dancemakers.”
Smith acknowledged that this raises questions about whether there’s any chance to present some of these older shows in future presentations. He added that the documentation would have to be of a sufficiently high calibre so the artists themselves would feel that it properly reflected their work.
In addition, Smith noted, there’s a growing Indigenous creative voice in dance as the country comes to terms with historical truth and reconciliation.
“Hopefully, this is a way to broaden out the conversation of bringing some potential iconic historic works in the past,” he said.
After theatres across the country shut down due to the pandemic, Smith said that there was a desire for a “startling innovation” to respond quickly to this situation.
“That all sounds really great, and yet you realize innovation is actually very complicated,” he stated. “It takes time and it takes experimentation and it takes patience.”
He also emphasized that Digidance shows will never replace the experience of going to see a live dance performance and all that this entails. However, he thinks Digidance will introduce a new level of convenience and affordability for dance lovers.
“Showing up to the theatre is a big commitment in itself, because there’s a big ticket price,” Smith said. “But choosing when you can watch something at your leisure in front of your computer—it comes with a lot more flexibility.”
Hopefully, this is a way to broaden out the conversation…
– DanceHouse’s Jim Smith