Obituary

David Zurak / Photo courtesy of Oliver Tobin

Remembering David Zurak

Dancer, choreographer, teacher and member of the Martha Graham Dance Company David Zurak died in New York on March 9, 2017, after a two-year battle with brain cancer.

Posted April 12, 2017

Penelope Reed Doob / Photo courtesy of Dance Collection Danse

Remembering Penelope Reed Doob

Penelope Reed Doob, an influential dance scholar, historian and critic, died March 11, 2017, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease.

Posted April 5, 2017

Sudha Khandwani / Photo courtesy of Menaka Thakkar Dance Company

Remembering Sudha Khandwani

Sudha Khandwani, artistic director of Kalanidhi Fine Arts of Canada, pioneered the contemporary face of South Asian classical dance while also paying homage to its rich tradition.

Posted December 16, 2016

Remembering Tap Dancing William “Bill” Orlowski

William “Bill” Orlowski, one of the greatest Canadian tap dancers and choreographers, died October 22, 2016.

Posted November 14, 2016

Remembering Dorothy Rossetti

Dorothy Rossetti was a significant figure in Montréal’s dance community with her dance store Rossetti de Montréal and generous nature.

Posted October 11, 2016

Remembering Phillip H. Cole Jr.

Born in 1945, Phillip H. Cole Jr. led a life full of performance and adventure, set on sharing his talents with the world.

Posted October 11, 2016

Remembering Sonia Fabian

Sonia Fabian was the first person to establish a dance school in the northern city of Prince George, BC, offering classes in styles ranging from ballet to jazz to tap.

Posted October 11, 2016

Ruth Priddle’s Legacy Beyond Dance at the University of Waterloo

Dr. Ruth Priddle, founder of the former dance program at the University of Waterloo, ON, died on June 8. Her academic work had an impact on motor learning research and influenced the way the people who worked with her regard dance, science and creativity, and how they can intersect.

Posted August 3, 2016

Remembering Jacque Foesier

After a lifelong commitment to the growth and well-being of dance in Canada, Toronto-based Jacque Foesier died on July 12 at the age of eighty-two.

Posted August 2, 2016

Writers & Readers

There’s Someone Else in the Room

My mother, Phyllis Margolick, dance accompanist extraordinaire, recently passed away at the age of ninety-six. Her deep musicianship and understanding of dance inspired generations of professional and aspiring dancers in Canada and the United States.

Posted July 29, 2016

Remembering Geneviève Salbaing

Geneviève Salbaing was a champion of classical and jazz dance in Canada as co-founder of Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal. She passed away on May 8 at the age of ninety-four.

Posted June 14, 2016

Remembering Calgary’s Shirley C. Murray

Murray devoted her life to teaching and sharing a love of dance and was one of the founders of the Dance Education program at the University of Calgary.

Posted March 30, 2016

In Memoriam: Grant Strate (1927 - 2015)

Grant Strate, often dubbed the elder statesman of Canadian dance, passed away in his home in Vancouver on Monday evening. Strate’s achievements are incalculable because his contributions share one quality: they endure and continue to create impacts on dance in Canada that are beyond measure.

Posted February 11, 2015