Haliburton gets set to produce Dusk Dances
News
Posted By Angelica Blenich
Posted 1 month ago
Beautiful scenery, a natural setting and a love of dance.
For Sylvie Bouchard it was for these reasons and more that Dusk Dances, a summer series of dances performed in parks throughout Ontario, was born.
"The event has been in Haliburton for three years now," said Bouchard. "However this year it will be produced in Haliburton for the first time, so it is new to the community
in that way."
A native of Montreal, Bouchard moved to Toronto in 1983 to study at the school of the Toronto Dance Theatre.
Following her training, Bouchard joined a dance company before eventually heading out into the world to do some travelling.
"I felt the need to create myself," said Bouchard in regards to the transitional period of her life. "My training is very much in theatre, so I started to ask myself what would make me want to see dance? I wanted to find a way to connect more with an audience."
Bouchard stumbled across the answer one day in the most unusual way.
"I was walking through a park and noticed how beautiful my surroundings were," said Bouchard. "I realized this could help connect the bridge between the audience and the dancer."
In 1993, Bouchard founded and choreographed the first ever Dusk Dances using the natural beauty and magic of Trinity-Bellwoods Park's ravine for a site-specific dance event. A part of the Fringe Festival of Independent Dance Artists, Dusk Dances was successful even beyond Bouchard's expectations.
"Right away in the first year it was very successful," said Bouchard, the festival's director. "All the comments and feedback I got were very good."
However, a host of other commitments prevented Bouchard from continuing with the project until a couple of years later.
In the summer of 1996, Bouchard organized a second successful event and from that point there was no looking back.
"I started with one park and then added a second and third and so on," said Bouchard. "It has to be a good fit, the park has to accommodate many different sites and serve the community."
During the first two years, Dusk Dances was entirely self-produced, relying heavily on the support of the local business community and many volunteers. In 1997, the production began to receive public funding from various levels of government as well as financial grants.
Over the years various organizations, such as the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Ontario Arts Council, continued to become involved. The support allowed the production to grow steadily, eventually making its way to Haliburton.
The process of enabling a community to produce its own event, said Bouchard, is centred on the idea of giving them the necessary tools to move forward with a production of this nature.
"Basically we're teaching a community how to produce an event of this nature in the future," said Bouchard. "Whether that includes finding local bands, choreographers, dancers, etc.
"This year it was up to the Dusk Dances organizing committee in Haliburton to find local funding and sponsors for the project. The end goal is for Haliburton to be able to put on a show of this nature on its own. We will continue to teach this model to as many communities as possible," she said.
Bouchard believes the end results will not only benefit a community such as Haliburton, but instead a much wider and greater audience. The journey that has come with creating Dusk Dances, said Bouchard, has ultimately taught her many life lessons.
"I've learned that people really love dance," said Bouchard. "It's great to be able to bring dance to them."
"I want as many people as possible to see dance. There's not always a stage in a community but there's always a park. In Haliburton it really is a beautiful park," said Bouchard, "we couldn't ask for anything better."
This year's production includes five pieces and is being presented by Dusk Dances Haliburton and by the Haliburton County Development Corporation. The event takes place from July 29 to Aug. 1 in Head Lake Park. For more information visit www.duskdances.ca.
