About Dances for a Small Stage:
In 2002 MovEnt premiered the inaugural Dances for a Small Stage in Vancouver, BC.
The Small Stage series originated in Toronto with Laura Taler in the ‘90s. With Taler's permission, MovEnt borrowed the title and concept and brought Dances for a Small Stage to the West Coast where it has enjoyed many years of success and increasing popularity.
Dances for a Small Stage showcases new and established contemporary dance in a completely unconventional venue, with an intimate cocktail lounge/cabaret atmosphere, and a ridiculously small stage. Small Stage series opens the doors to original, inventive approach to live dance theatre. With drinks in hand our audiences sit back, relax and are wildly entertained by contemporary dance performed in an exhilarating, hip environment.
Over 200 choreographers and performers have had their work on our 10 X 13 foot stage, including works by such varied artists as: Margie Gillis, Crystal Pite, Gioconda Barbuto, Cherice Barton, The Holy Body Tattoo, Decidedly Jazz Danceworks, Denise Clarke, Peter Chin, Emily Molnar, Peggy Baker, Tedd Robinson, Bill Coleman, Naomi Stikeman,The Chimera Project, Peter Chu, Deborah Dunn, Wen Wei Wang, Science Friction/ Farley Johansson, Lola Dance, Joe Ink, Mascall Dance, Tara Cheyenne Friedenberg, Cori Caulfield, Lauri Stallings and the Dancers of Ballet BC, Mark Berube... plus many many more.
Dances for a Small Stage is presented at The Legion on the Drive, a rough-and-tumble Legion in East Vancouver's bustling Commercial Drive neighbourhood.
MovEnt has presented Dances for a Small Stage at The National Arts Centre for both the Canada Dance Festival (2006) and BC Scene (2009) and The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts (2011).
What they say about Dances for a Small Stage:
VOTED GEORGIA STRAIGHT, September 2011
Best place to crack a cold one and cop some culture at the same time
“If you think watching dance is about dressing up and going out to the theat-uh, you obviously haven’t dropped by the Grandview Legion for MovEnt’s twice-yearly (or so) program of shorts. The creaky upstairs hall has seen better days, and that’s exactly its charm. What better way to enjoy dance than lining up at the bar for a brewski, settling in with your friends at a candlelit table, and watching the local likes of James Gnam, Josh Beamish, Edmond Kilpatrick, David Raymond, and Alison Denham. Dancers here know how to take risks: over the years, we’ve seen everything from people dancing in Styrofoam peanuts to break dancers wearing balaclavas to warped Nutcracker satires. There’s also the chance to see new choreographers make their debut. Big names like to pop up on the small stage, too: Margie Gillis has even been known to make an appearance.”
Dances for a Small Stage 24... “Dances for a Small Stage packs some big variety onto its pint-sized platform for its 24th edition. The mix this time out is a vaudevillian-feeling range of live music, old-school tap, off-the-hook hip-hop, and contemporary innovation.” “Small Stages has grown to embrace styles far outside of contemporary dance, and they are represented in force here.”
Janet Smith, The Georgia Straight, August 2011
Dances for a Small Stage 22... “In all, the strange parade of characters was more memorable than the choreography or virtuosity on this night. But do audiences even care? The receptive crowd was clearly enjoying itself. And maybe the larger message here is that the very definitions of dance itself are changing.
Janet Smith, The Georgia Straight, January 2011
About Ballet BC at Dances for a Small Stage 22... “It’s in these outrageous sketches that the troupe perhaps takes its biggest risks—goofing off, acting horny, gyrating like mad fools, and bringing the house down. But then again, maybe Ballet B.C.’s finest subscribe to the notion that what happens on the East Side stays on the East Side.”
Janet Smith, The Georgia Straight, June 2010
“Dances for a Small Stage also broke down theatre conventions by violating the fourth wall that traditionally separates audience members from performers.... For opening night Wednesday, Dances for a Small Stage was packed. More than 220 people were jammed into the hall with about 40 turned away. If you want a seat, you should arrive there early.”
Kevin Griffin, The Vancouver Sun, June 2010
“I've always enjoyed the mixed bag of styles and performers that it showcases. Like an anthology of short stories, or a collection of short films, it gives a little sample of a wide range of different artists to become familiar with. If you don't like something, that's okay because they're all short pieces and something else will come along. Also, it's a great way to support the local dance scene, as well as up-and-coming talent.”
Craig Takeuchi, The Georgia Straight, May 2007
“The concept is contemporary dance in a bar setting, featuring both established dance artists and newcomers on a stage of miniature proportions. It is a win-win-win formula that packs a downtown lounge on a weeknight (with drinking customers), gives dance artists occasion to try something new and possibly ridiculous, and the target audience of young urban professionals with a glimpse of dance up close and without most of the usual constraints or conventions.”
Deborah Meyers, The Vancouver Sun, October 2005
