Marie-Josée Chartier moves easily between her roles as choreographer, performer, director, vocalist and teacher in the fields of dance, music, opera and multi-media. Her pieces have been presented at festivals and by dance companies in Canada, Europe, Latin America and were the subject of documentary films. Since 2003, Marie-Josée directs/stages contemporary opera and multi-media productions that have toured internationally. Awards include: Jacqueline Lemieux Prize (2015); K.M. Hunter Artist Award (2001), 9 Dora Mavor Moore Award nominations; Dora recipient for fifty-one pieces of silver (2002) and two Doras shared with the collective URGE for And by the way Miss (2005). In 2003, she formed Chartier Danse as a cornerstone for large scale productions and partnerships in Canada and abroad.

Meredith Kalaman is a two time Chrystal Dance Prize recipient, dance artist and teacher who enjoys performing in and creating new works. She has created pieces about; giraffes, girl guiding, exploring constellations, superheroes, skeletons and female identity. She is originally from Vancouver. Past presentation highlights include sharing the stage with the Good Women Dance Collective, Island Fringe with Nostos Collective performing in Jessica Lowe’s work Enchantress, Dance in Vancouver 2017 and Dancing on the Edge. Her first full length work, Femme Fatales was presented at Uferstudios in Berlin in 2017. She is a graduate of the Ballet BC Mentor Program. Meredith is interested in shifting the context of how ballet relates to our 21st century bodies and inviting bodies to be in dynamic movement through education, sharing of knowledge and community engaged practices.

Of mixed Chinese and Scottish descent, Jalianne is a dancer based in Moncton, NB, the traditional unceded territory of the Wolastoqiyik and Mi’kmaq Peoples. After obtaining her BSc, she studied dance at Trinity Laban, apprenticed with Springs Dance Company and founded Danse surFace Dance in 2012.

Jalianne specializes in site-specific work, screendances, and integrating facial movement with the body. Born of close interdisciplinary collaborations, Jalianne’s works push the boundaries of what it means to be human in the present age, depersonalizing the physical form to investigate experiences of the heart, mind and soul, and proposing emotive and expressive avant-garde dances.

Holly Timpener (they/them) is a queer, non-binary performance artist working with themes of resistance and transformation. Timpener’s works investigate issues related to gender, intimacy, trauma, and the body, while “The Personal Is Political” is embodied in a modern sociopolitical context. They have presented work for Month of Performance Art Berlin, The Art Gallery of Ontario, SummerWorks, The Bronx Museum, Leonard & Bina Ellen Art Gallery, La Centrale, Venice International Performance Art Week, among others. Timpener is honoured to have worked several times with La Pocha Nosta at Montreal Arts Interculturels, the Taos Paseo Festival, and Encuentro in Mexico City. Most recently, they performed for the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria and have been the recipient of two Canadian Council Grants.

Harriet has had a significant impact on her community through the establishment of DancEast in 1977, the first dance studio in Moncton. Multiple award-winner (most recently the Molly Kool Award in 2017), Harriet brought professional quality dance training to Southeastern NB, regularly choreographed for Pistroli on Radio-Canada, created the Grossman Technique Teaching Syllabus, produced the yearly The Nutcracker at the Capitol Theatre in Moncton (1993-2005), and founded the first youth dance company in Canada, which she brought to Les Jeux de la Francophonie in Paris (1994) and in Ottawa (2001–finalists). She remained owner and artistic director of DancEast until retiring in 2009.

Amanda is a passionate dancer specializing in Hip-hop, and Urban Heels. She also brings a background of teaching Zumba, and GROOV3. A true highlight of her dance journey has been teaching kids Hiphop- so full of energy and heart!

A little late to the dance world, she discovered a creative outlet through Akrew, where her journey took her to a new purpose— igniting a fire that’s never stopped burning. A space that made her stage dreams to come true. Amanda trains and competes with Akrew’s competitive teams in Hip-hop and Heels. Grateful for mentorships from artists Angelina Cyr, and breakdancing with Terry Du.

Driven by a desire to keep the dance culture growing, and uplifting others —especially the next generation of dancers. Whether on stage, in the studio, or cheering from the sidelines, she’s committed to building community, confidence, and creativity through dance.

Melissa has been tapping for over 4 decades. Her initial training was with Eileen McGrath School of Dance where she completed the Al Gilbert tap technique exams up to and including grade 6. Melissa taught the Sussex branch of this school for 2 years. Throughout university she continued to take tap lessons and was involved in choreographing high school and university musicals and various dance related events. She also has experience in Jazz, Irish hard and soft shoe, Highland and ballroom dancing. Melissa continues her tap training through workshops and classes from Shawn Byfield in Toronto and Steps on Broadway in New York as well as working through the intermediate advanced Tap syllabus offered by unitedtaps.com. She is currently looking into pursuing a CDTA certification in tap education. Melissa also teaches tap to the competitive groups at D.A.T.A.

Chris Van Green (he/him) is a multidisciplinary dance artist and educator based in Mi’kma’ki/Nova Scotia. A graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University’s Theatre and Dance Performance program, Chris brings over a decade of professional experience spanning contemporary, ballet, jazz, heels, burlesque, and acrobatics.

He has worked with celebrated choreographers and companies including David Earle, James Kudelka, Fernando Melo, Ballet Jörgen, Hanna Kiel, Robert Glumbek, Connection Dance Works, Rooted Dance Projects, and Symphony Nova Scotia—to name a few. Known for his dynamic presence and commitment to the craft, Chris’s work reflects both technical strength and a deep dedication to storytelling through movement.

As the founder of Sculpt Academy, Chris supports dancers in building strong, sustainable practices that prioritize longevity and adaptability in their careers. He continues to be an active presence in both performance and pedagogy, sharing his passion for movement across stages and studios.

Marcia Dysart is a dancer, choreographer, and educator based in Saint John, New Brunswick. Known for her collaborative, interdisciplinary work, she has partnered with musicians, visual artists, filmmakers, and dancers to create innovative projects.

Her work has been presented across Atlantic Canada, with highlights including the New Brunswick Museum, Contact East, Saint John Contemporary Dance Festival, and her film We Walk Invisible, featured at the Atlantic Dance Film Festival and spotlighted by Canada Dance Assembly.

Marcia is currently performing in Still Buffering, a new work produced by Connection Dance Works, and developing The Shadow Self—her own interdisciplinary project in collaboration with artist and healing arts practitioner Deanna Musgrave, filmmaker Michael Mohan, and Juno Award–winning Inuk soprano Deantha Edmunds, with support from artsnb.

She is the owner/director of First City School of Dance and a founding director of Youth Dance Fest East. A passionate advocate for dance education, Marcia holds multiple certifications and supports curriculum development and mentorship throughout the region.

First City Young Company is a pre-professional dance company committed to developing emerging artists through a rigorous creation and performance-based experience. Designed for dancers aged 18 and older with substantial technical training, the company serves as a vital bridge between studio training and a professional career in dance.

What sets First City Young Company apart is its deep investment in the choreographic process. Dancers work closely with professional choreographers, guest artists, and company peers in a collaborative environment, generating new works that reflect both personal and collective voices. Through this process, dancers gain valuable insight into creative development, rehearsal etiquette, and the demands of producing work for the stage.

Performance is a cornerstone of the company experience. The company presents work in formal concert settings, site-specific performances, and community events, offering a variety of professional-level opportunities to refine their stage presence and build a performance portfolio.

First City Young Company is a launchpad for dancers seeking to transition from advanced training to professional performance, offering them the tools, exposure, and mentorship necessary to step confidently into the wider dance world.

Description goes hereAndrew Reed Miller is a bass player, composer and improviser living in Saint John Canada. Andrew is principal bass of Symphony New Brunswick and is artistic director of Resonance New Music Inc., which has organized new and experimental music in and around NB since 1998.

Originally from New York, Andrew studied in Ottawa and Toronto and toured with The Canadian Opera Company, the National Arts Centre Orchestra and the Royal Winnipeg Ballet.

Andrew has performed at many venues, including Open Ears Festival (Kitchener), New Music Calgary, Sound Symposium (Newfoundland), the Scotia Festival of Music, Ensemble Kore (Montreal) The Music Gallery (Toronto), Western Front (Vancouver),  and Tonic (New  York). 

Miller has written music for orchestra, dance, chamber music, film, television, and theatre. 

“Miller is a superb player, a master and a creative inventor......” 

-Stephen Pedersen The Chronicle Herald (Halifax) Jan 10, 2011

Julia Barkhouse is a dance artist from Dartmouth Nova Scotia. She is a graduate of Canada’s National Ballet School (2021) and the Arts Umbrella Post-Secondary Program (2023). Julia has attended summer intensives at Canada’s National Ballet School, Royal Winnipeg Ballet, École supérieure de ballet du Québec, and Henny Jurriëns Studio in Amsterdam. While working with Arts Umbrella Dance Company Julia performed works by world-renowned choreographers such as Crystal Pite, Ethan Colangelo, Marko Geoke, and William Forsythe. Passionate about exploring the relationship between dance and mental health, Julia is a recipient of the McCall MacBain Cultural Leadership Award (2022-2023) for her research. Currently back home in Nova Scotia, Julia is teaching at Coastal Dance and Halifax Dance while completing a BSc in Psychology at Dalhousie University.

Jessica Lowe hails from Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. She started dance at the age of five at Dartmouth Dance Academy and Leica Hardy School of Dance. She is a graduate of York University’s (Toronto) BFA Dance Program. Jessica is an active member of the Nova Scotia dance community and has performed with Votive Dance, Connection Dance Works and Mocean Dance. Some of Jessica’s most recent choreographic works include: Im-perfect-ion (supported by Diane

Moore Scholarship Fund & Canada Council for the Arts) and Enchantress (supported by Arts Nova Scotia). She is co-founder and Co-Artistic Director of Nostos Collectives Dance Association, a registered non-for-profit based in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia and Toronto, Ontario. She is also the co-owner and operator of local dance studio Illusion Dance Arts.

Finding sanctuary in movement from a young age, Arwen Holder, dances to express herself beyond words. Primarily influenced by modern and contemporary techniques, Arwen holds reverence for improvisational practices, embracing the fluid nature of instinctual movement. Nurturing her creativity under the guidance of Marcia Dysart, First City School of Dance has become a place where she can express herself through movement in concert with her peers, in a shared artistic dialogue.

Chantal Baudouin is an award-winning Acadian artist from Moncton. Alumni of the Dance Arts Institute of Canada (Toronto), she has danced for renowned companies such as Toronto Dance Theatre, ProjectLIMB (New York) and PPS Danse (Montreal), performing on national and international stages. A loyal performer with Compagnie DansEncorps (Moncton), Chantal is also developing her own artistic practice and signature.  She has been creating and producing works since 2018, including Les Nœuds de Gustav, which toured Atlantic Canada in 2024. Chantal was selected to represent Canada-New Brunswick at the IX Jeux de la Francophonie in Kinshasa; she is the winner of two Éloizes awards as Dance artist of the year (2018 and 2024).

Photo: Annie France Noël