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Artistic Staff
PATRICIA FRASER, Artistic Director
Patricia Fraser is a senior independent dance artist, teacher, and arts advisor. She graduated from York University with a bachelor’s degree in dance under founding chair Grant Strate and went on to study at the schools of London Contemporary Dance Theatre, the Martha Graham Company, the José Limón Company, and Toronto Dance Theatre. Even before her graduation, Fraser performed with Dancemakers during their 1975 season, and then she moved to Scotland to become Director of Dance at the Glasgow Art Centre. She returned to Canada to rejoin Dancemakers in 1977, becoming Co-Artistic Director (with Carol Anderson) from 1980 through 1985. During her time at Dancemakers, Fraser went on to develop as one of the company’s finest dancers, performing in works by Conrad Alexandrowicz, Robert Cohan, Karen Jamieson, James Kudelka, Norman Morrice, Paul Taylor, and many others.
Fraser was Assistant Professor at York University in the dance department from 1985 through 1988, and then she left to pursue an independent career as a much sought-after performer and teacher. She has taught and performed extensively across Canada, as well as in Europe and the United States, at such places as Simon Fraser University, York University, Montréal Danse, LADMMI, Contemporary Dancers, and The Banff Centre. She was a founding director of the Teachers’ Collective with Patricia Miner and Sylvain Brochu. A recipient of many grants and awards, Fraser has also been a juror for the Canada Council for the Arts, the Ontario Arts Council, the Toronto Arts Council, the Governor General’s Performing Arts Awards, the Chalmers Training Awards, and the Dora Mavor Moore Awards. A recent grant from The Canada Council for the Arts enabled Fraser to undertake extensive international research on professional dance training. She became Artistic Director of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre in 1993. She is currently pursuing her Master’s degree in dance at York University and still continues her performance career.
SUSAN MACPHERSON, Artistic Associate
Susan Macpherson was a founding member of Toronto Dance Theatre, dancing with the company for 11 years. She has also performed with the Danny Grossman Dance Company, the Charles Weidman Company (New York), and the London Contemporary Dance Theatre (England); as a solo artist, her repertoire included work by Anna Blewchamp, Robert Cohan, Murray Darroch, Margaret Dragu, David Earle, Paul-André Fortier, Danny Grossman/Judy Jarvis, Doris Humphrey, James Kudelka, and Linda Rabin. Her solo dance program, A Personal Collection, was presented in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Quebec, Paris, Munich, Berlin, Berne, and London. Since leaving full-time performing in 1986, Macpherson has continued to perform periodically, appearing in the work of Peggy Baker, Rachel Browne, Elizabeth Chitty, Bill James, Jan Komárek, and Laura Taler. In 2003, she appeared in the revival of David Earle’s Court of Miracles.
PATRICIA MINER, Artistic Associate
Patricia Miner is one of Toronto’s key modern dance teachers. Her ideas and methods are reflected in her work with Toronto Dance Theatre, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, the Teachers’ Training Program of the National Ballet School, and a myriad of independent dancers and small companies. Miner has spent a lifetime in dance, training with master teachers in ballet, Graham, and Limón in Toronto, London, and New York. Her performance career includes an apprenticeship with Toronto Dance Theatre, the early years of Dancemakers (which she co-directed with Peggy Baker from 1977 through 1979), an appearance with the José Limón Company, and innovative work with several New York choreographers. Miner is the recipient of the 2004 Dance Ontario Award.
ANDREA ROBERTS, Professional Programs Co-ordinator
Andrea Roberts is an active member of the dance community in both an artistic and an administrative capacity. She graduated from The School of Toronto Dance Theatre in 1997, where she currently works as both Professional Programs Co-ordinator and rehearsal director. She was a member of the dance collective CONDUIT and has danced in works by Sonya Biernath, Murray Darroch, Terrill Maguire, Sharon Moore, and Julia Sasso. As a rehearsal director/assistant, Roberts has worked at Cawthra Park Secondary School and York University, as well as with CORPUS and Mariko Tanabe. Over the past few years, she has become increasingly interested in discovering her artistic voice through improvisation and theatre training, and has taken workshops with Hume Baugh, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Katherine Duncanson, EDAM, Fortier Danse-Création, Fiona Griffiths, Miguel Gutierrez, Claudia Moore, Linda Putnam, Lin Snelling, and others. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in dance at York University.
CHRISTOPHER HOUSE, Artistic Advisor to Professional Training Program, Artistic Director of Toronto Dance Theatre
Artistic director of Toronto Dance Theatre (TDT) since 1994, Christopher House is one of Canada’s most exciting choreographers. He has transformed TDT into a company known internationally for its fresh, intelligent, and provocative dance.
House’s work is motivated by a profound curiosity about art and life. Born and raised in St. John’s, Newfoundland, he studied Political Science and Philosophy before switching to Theatre and Dance. His keen interests in travel, science, the visual arts, cinema, and literature continue to inform the development of his work.
Early choreographies such as Glass Houses and Vena Cava were praised for their “kinetic brilliance” (The New York Times) and “formidable craft and vision“ (The Globe and Mail, Toronto). Since 2000, when TDT premiered Nest to critical acclaim, House has specialized in creating full-length multi-disciplinary works full of exhilarating ideas as well as stunningly beautiful movement. Recent productions, such as Severe Clear and Persephone’s Lunch, examine such themes as the creative process, the ambiguity of signs, and the manufacture of memory. He draws inspiration from the individual gifts of his remarkable dancers and from collaboration with such artists as Scott Eunson, Jeremy Laing, James Robertson, Kim Soo-ja, and Phil Strong.
In addition to TDT, Christopher House has created choreographies for many companies including Ballet British Columbia, Ballet Gulbenkian of Portugal, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, and the National Ballet of Canada, and for soloists such as Peggy Baker, Guillaume Côté, and Laurence Lemieux.
Administrative Staff
ANDREA VAGIANOS, General Manager
Andrea Vagianos has held a variety of positions in the cultural sector over the past seventeen years. She was Education Coordinator at the Shaw Festival in the 1991-1992 season; Assistant Producer of First Night Toronto '94; Education Coordinator at the Canadian Opera Company 1994-97; and Arts Programme Coordinator at the Laidlaw Foundation 1997-2000.
Vagianos was Managing Director of Dancemakers from August 2000 until August 2005, during which time she helped the organization eliminate its accumulated deficit and increase its earned and raised income. In addition to producing the company's annual Toronto productions and coordinating its touring engagements, she negotiated and managed the company's move to and leasehold improvements of Dancemakers Centre for Creation in the Distillery Historic District. Most recently, she held the position of Acting Arts Education Officer at the Ontario Arts Council from August 2006 through May 2007.
ALISON HUGHES, Student Services Co-ordinator
Alison Hughes is a graduate of York University; she has a BFA in dance and an MA in Applied Linguistics. She has a background in both educational administration and the non-profit sector, with work at York University in various departments as well as the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Canada. Hughes has a passion for travel; she spent a year teaching English in South Korea and also studied dance for a semester in the United Kingdom. She is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Canada-Mathare Education Trust, an organization working to advance education in Kenya.
CAROLYNE TOPDJIAN, Marketing and Outreach Co-ordinator
Carolyne Topdjian is a graduate of the University of Warwick (MA) and York University (BFA), with a specialization in visual art theory and practice. She has a diverse background in promoting the non-profit arts, including experience in audience and donor services at the National Ballet of Canada and in public programming at the Ottawa Art Gallery. In addition to working at the School, Topdjian is a figurative painter (www.carolynetopdjian.com) and researcher of the body in visual culture. She is currently completing her doctorate at York University.
Faculty
WENDY CHILES
Wendy Chiles began her dance training in Edmonton, studying tap, ballet, jazz, and flamenco, which became the foundations for her modern dance career. Her first modern teachers were Charlene Tarver and Jacqueline Ogg. After moving to Toronto, she received a BFA in dance from York University in 1975. She continued to study at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, throughout Canada, in New York, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and London, England.
Following her graduation from York University, she was asked to join Toronto Dance Theatre. She later worked as an independent and guest artist with Danny Grossman, TIDE (Toronto Independent Dance Enterprise), Regina Modern Dance Works, The Clichettes, Katherine Brown, Gabby Kamino, Judith Miller, and Holly Small. She has choreographed for DanceWorks and for Sheridan College, and she acted as choreographer and rehearsal director for the Nylons in 1994-95. She also expanded her professional horizons, studying and working in the film and theatre industries.
Chiles has taught dance since her graduation from university. She is a gifted teacher and has worked with beginners, children, and young adults. For a number of years, she taught at Hart House, University of Toronto, and she developed and directed the Summer Dance Camp at the U of T. She has taught at Sheridan College, Pavlychenko Studios, the McGill Club, and the Grossman Studios. She has been a guest teacher and choreographer for the University of Waterloo, York University, Canadian Children’s Dance Theatre, Cardinal Carter Academy for the Arts, Etobicoke School of the Arts, and the Claude Watson Arts Program. In 2002, she was invited to South Korea to teach at three universities and for the Kim Bock Hee Dance Company. She has taught for The School of Toronto Dance Theatre throughout her career.
Currently, Chiles teaches modern dance history and Graham technique at The School of TDT, and grades 11 and 12 and the dance company course at Unionville School for the Arts.
SUSANNA HOOD
Artistic Director of her interdisciplinary performance company, hum dansoundart, Susanna Hood is a compelling and virtuosic performer. She danced as a member of Toronto Dance Theatre from 1991 through 1995. Independently, she has performed the works of various Toronto choreographers. Her own choreography has been presented throughout Toronto, on stage, and in film since 1991. In the fall of 1998, she was one of two recipients of the K.M. Hunter Emerging Artists’ Award in dance. In creation, Hood draws on her studies and performing relationships with such artists as choreographer Holly Small, improviser Stephanie Skura, the women of the Urge Collective (most notably singer Fides Krucker and performance artist Katherine Duncanson), and internationally acclaimed voice teacher Richard Armstrong.
SASHA IVANOCHKO
Toronto born dancer, teacher, and choreographer, Sasha Ivanochko began her exploration of movement with gymnastics at the age of seven. Over the next ten years she represented Canada competitively in Asia, Europe, the U.S.A., and at the 1985 World Championships in Montreal. Since completing her dance training at The School of the Toronto Dance Theatre in 1991, she has performed with the Judith Marcuse Dance Company and many independents including Bill Coleman, David Earle, Mitch Kirsch, Laurence Lemieux, Tedd Robinson, Julia Sasso, and Michael Trent. In August of 1999, Ivanochko traveled to Tokyo, Japan, and starred in Toru Shimazaki’s full-evening piece Willful Wind at the Globe Theatre. On many occasions throughout her career, she has danced with multi-media artist Peter Chin, and in 1997 she was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for her outstanding performance in Chin’s Pierce.
Ivanochko joined Toronto Dance Theatre in 1994, creating and performing many major roles with the company over the following eight years. In a recent Globe and Mail article celebrating the "Top 133 Young Canadians" of the new millennium, she is described as "one of the powerhouses of the Toronto Dance Theatre,… and she is regarded as a stellar choreographer in her own right." In addition to her active performing schedule, she finds time to teach both Toronto Dance Theatre and The School of Toronto Dance Theatre.
As a choreographer, Ivanochko has had her work presented by the Canada Dance Festival, Dancing on the Edge, Downtown Dance IV, Dusk Dances, fFIDA, Ryerson University, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, Spring Rites, and Toronto Dance Theatre in their annual series "Four at the Winch".
ROSEMARY JAMES
Rosemary James was born in New York State and raised in Toronto. Following a successful career as a performer with Toronto Dance Theatre, she assumed the position of Rehearsal Director for the company in 1992. James is a senior faculty member of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre and has taught and choreographed extensively for community-based arts education programs. In addition to being a sought-after teacher, James was recently awarded a Masters degree in dance at York University.
HELEN JONES
Helen Jones was born in Wales and is a graduate of the Royal Ballet School. Her training in classical and contemporary dance continued with teachers in London, Toronto, and New York. Her performing career included work with companies and choreographers in London, Brussels, and Toronto, where she was a featured artist with Toronto Dance Theatre and the Robert Desrosiers Dance Company. In New York she was a member of the Martha Graham Dance Company and taught at the Martha Graham School of Contemporary Dance.
Jones has taught internationally and currently is on the faculty of the Department of Dance at York University, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, and Ballet Creole, where she is also the company ballet mistress. Since 2000 she has run a dance arts programme for children and adults in the rural municipality of Grey Highlands, Ontario.
Her academic and professional development credits include a BSc. in Psychology (University of Toronto), and a Diploma in Adult Training and Development (Ontario Institute for Studies in Education).
ROBERT McCOLLUM
Robert McCollum trained in New York City from 1974-78, on scholarship at the American Ballet Center (school of the Joffrey Ballet), with a faculty which included Meredith Baylis, Richard Gibson, and Ann Parsons. He also studied independently with Maggie Black and Marjorie Mussman, and, at the Boston Conservatory, he took joint ballet/Limón classes, by invitation, with Emiko and Yasiko Tokanaga. He counts among his modern dance influences his workshop experiences with Ruth Currier, Louis Falco, Jennifer Muller, Kathryn Posen, Jennifer Scanlon, and Twyla Tharp. McCollum went on to dance professionally in both the United States and Canada. In 1980, McCollum sustained a serious injury, and, though he couldn’t continue to perform in a company context, he nevertheless danced independently with many choreographers, including Gail Benn, Murray Darroch, Gabby Kamino, Jennifer Mascal, Holly Small, and Debbie Wilson.
From 1987 through 1989, McCollum attended the National Ballet School auditing the teacher training program as a professional dancer, and he received his Associate Cecchetti Certificate with Distinction from NBS in 1989. Since 1996, McCollum has taught at the National Ballet School, where he is the co-ordinator for the adult evening program, and he is on the faculty of the Teacher Training Program. For the past five years, he has been on the staff of the annual summer Teachers’ Seminar, working with Peggy Baker, Irene Dowd, and Patricia Miner. From 1990 to the present, he has been a faculty member and resident choreographer at the George Brown College Theatre School, where he teaches dance to actors and choreographs their performances. Since Children’s Dance Theatre. McCollum has also taught in the summers, since 1992, for Dans Nova Scotia, under Artistic Director Diane Milligan. Acclaimed for his expertise in teaching adults, McCollum has a teaching style clearly remains very connected to the modern dance community in Toronto. His teaching bridges dance techniques in a unique manner, and his respect for the integrity of the whole dancer is always evident in his approach.
JULIA SASSO
Julia Sasso is a choreographer, performer, master teacher, and the Artistic Director of Julia Sasso dances (www.juliasasso.com). She performed internationally with Toronto’s Dancemakers (1984-2000) and was the company’s Assistant Artistic Director and principal teacher for a dozen years. Her choreography has been commissioned and presented throughout Canada, in the United States, and in Europe by, among others, the Canada Dance Festival, Dancemakers, Harbourfront Centre, the Stratford Festival of Canada, Toronto Dance Theatre, and Winnipeg’s Contemporary Dancers. Sasso teaches at York University and will be a Guest Artist in Residence at the State University of New York College at Brockport (NY) in December 2007. She premieres two commissioned dances in the Music Garden, Harbourfront Centre, August 2nd and 9th, 2007.
DARRYL TRACY
Darryl C. Tracy is a local independent dance artist, choreographer, and teacher of contemporary dance. He has studied with many teachers across Canada and in the United States, most notably Heidi Bunting, Patricia Miner, Edie Shaw, and Brian Webb. He has appeared in works by many choreographers including Darcey Callison, Marie-Josée Chartier and Linda C. Smith, Michael DuMaresq, Jenn Goodwin, Patti Powell, Michelle Silagy, Holly Small, Heidi Strauss, Michael Trent, and Gerry Trentham, among many others. Along with Strauss, he is co-Artistic Director of Four Chambers dance projects, and they have commissioned work by Conrad Alexandrowicz, Guillaume Bernardi, Marie-Josée Chartier, Sarah Chase, Yvonne Coutts, Lesandra Dodson, Déjà Donné, Sylvain Émard, and Julia Sasso. In 2005 they received a Dora Mavor Moore nomination for their performance in the Italian-based company Déjà Donné’s piece Rustling Shadows.
Tracy has choreographed over 25 works for performing arts high schools, and for companies in Toronto, Montreal, New Brunswick, and the United States.
He is on the faculty of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, and is a regular teacher at the 509 Collective, Canadian Children's Dance Theatre, and Dance-Teq. He has also taught master classes across Canada, the United States, and Europe.
Tracy sits on the Board of Directors of CCDT and on the Artists’ Committee of the Artists’ Health Centre. He is also a part-time private physiotherapist for Physio-Logic Neurological Rehabilitation Clinic, and a dancer with Montreal-based Sylvain Émard danse.
Massimo Agostinelli
Johanna Bergfeldt
Pam Johnson
Kaeja d’Dance
Sean Ling
Graham McKelvie
Sharon Moore
Jeff Morris
Julia Sasso
Michelle Silagy
Heidi Strauss
Michael Trent
Jeannie Wyse
Robin Buckley
Romano Di Nillo
Tita Evidente
James Langevin
Debashis Sinha
Stich Wynston
Conrad Alexandrowicz
Elizabeth Auclair
Peggy Baker
Patricia Beatty
Marc Boivin
Rachel Browne
Peter Chin
Bill Coleman
Irene Dowd
Paul-André Fortier
Margie Gillis
Fiona Griffiths
Danny Grossman Dance Company
Kate Hays
D.A. Hoskins
Karen Jamieson
Susie Langley
Coralee McLaren
Tedd Robinson
Risa Steinberg
Erika-Leigh Stirton
Toronto Dance Theatre
Debbie Wilson
Christine Wright
Kathryn Ash, President
Manissa Patel, Treasurer
Charles Hain, Secretary
Jody Bruner, Vice President
Carol Bishop-Gwyn
Louise Smith