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Mary Jo Mullins - Artistic Director

Born in Calgary, Alberta Mary Jo Mullins began her early dance training shortly after moving to St. Catharines ON. Ms. Mullins holds an Honours Bachelor of Arts in Dance from the University of Waterloo and a Bachelor of Education from Brock University. She has trained at The School of the Toronto Dance Theatre, Dancetheatre David Earle and extensively in a mentorship capacity with Canadian modern dance pioneer Patricia Beatty. Ms. Mullins has performed the works of such internationally renowned and accomplished artists as Patricia Beatty, Elizabeth Chitty, Bill Coleman, David Earle, Danny Grossman, Graham McKelvie, and Terrill Maguire among others and has originated many of these roles. She has made several of her own creations and is highly engaged in teaching the art form, having inspired thousands of students throughout Ontario. Her choreography has been performed in Toronto and Niagara and has recently been commissioned by the St. Catharines Chamber Music Society.

Patricia Beatty is one of Canada's foremost modern dance artists. Her dancing and teaching have inspired generations of dancers across this country. She founded the Toronto Dance Theatre in 1968 with Peter Randazzo and David Earle. Trish is also a co-founder of the School of Toronto Dance Theatre, where she taught both technique and composition for many years. She was a co-resident choreographer for Toronto Dance Theatre for 24 years and she has continued to choreograph intermittently since leaving the company in 1992. Trish has choreographed and produced a number of special productions in Toronto theatres since that time. In 1999, she co-founded Aurora Dance Community. While working closely with this collective, she mentored Kathleen Hughes and Mary Jo Mullins through the teaching and practice of technique and composition. This unique and rewarding relationship spanned 5 years. First Music (1969) continues to be performed by many dance artists.

Valerie Calam is a Toronto based choreographer, dancer, teacher, and sound designer. Her recent choreographic commissions include works for Toronto Dance Theatre, Ryerson University, and Alias Dance Projects. Her choreographic work "Parliament" was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for outstanding new choreography in 2007. Originally from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Valerie studied dance with Sherry Walsh Academy and the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. She worked with the Danny Grossman Dance Company in 1998-1999, and again in 2006 and 2008. Under the artistic direction of Christopher House, Valerie worked with Toronto Dance Theatre from1999-2009, as well as many independent choreographers. In 2007, she attended the New York Film Academy to study digital filmmaking, and in 2006 and 2008 she traveled to Vienna, Austria to attend the Impulstanz Dance Festival where she trained in hip hop, house, funk, breaking, b-boying, popping and locking. Working under the name VICE VERSA, she has designed sound for dance works by Matjash Mrozewski, Allison Cummings, Tina Fushell, Tanya Crowder, Hit and Run Productions and many of her own choreographies. She is creating a new dance work "Children of the Triangle" in collaboration with Luke Garwood and drummer Paul Shepherd, as well as performing in pieces by James Kudelka with Coleman Lemieux & Compagnie She is the drummer in the band "The Tight Ship".

Elizabeth Chitty is an interdisciplinary artist born in St. Catharines. She was amongst the earliest graduates of Canada's first dance major program at York University. Her work has been seen across Canada and internationally. Her most recent performance, Song For A Blue Moon, premiered at Tangente danse contemporain in Montréal in 2004 following a workshop at Niagara Artists Centre and her most recent published writing is in Caught in the Act: an anthology of performance art by Canadian Women (YYZ Books, Toronto, 2004). Most recently her video work was exhibited at The National Gallery of Canada (2007) and choreographed for acclaimed dancer Louis Laberge-Côté in Twelve Solos presented by the Toronto Dance Theatre in May 2007. She taught Creative Process at The School of the Toronto Dance Theatre from 1991-2007.rtists.

David Earle was inspired by childhood experiences with Dorothy Goodling's Toronto Children's Players, by the humanist ideals of José Limón, with whom he studied and danced, and by the concentrated poetics of Graham dance, Earle created almost a hundred dances for Toronto Dance Theatre. Dances including Baroque Suite, (1972), Ray Charles Suite, Fauré Requiem (1977), Sacra Conversazione (1985) set to the Mozart Requiem, and Court of Miracles were much-loved standards in the company's repertoire. Sunrise, for which Earle received the 1987 Dora Award in New Choreography, marked a departure from the romanticism of earlier work; later works have introduced haunting images of despair, anonymity and loss. David Earle was TDT's sole Artistic Director from 1987-1994, and gave his last TDT performances in December 1996. In 1997 he launched Dancetheatre David Earle, a vehicle to nurture new dance creation, his own and that of choreographers who share his ardent humanism. He has since started a whole new dance scenario, creating more than thirty new works by commission, in collaboration with symphonies and other musical ensembles, and animating new venues for dance performance. He established Temple Studios, a centre for dance creation and teaching, in Guelph, Ontario in 2001. David Earle continues to be sought after as an inspirational teacher and in 1996 he was awarded the Order of Canada.

Kathleen Hughes is originally from Edmonton, Alberta and began with extensive ballet training at a very early age. Kathleen was later introduced to the Modern form while attending the dance program at Grant McEwan College. After one year, she moved to Toronto to complete her studies at The School of the Toronto Dance Theatre. Since 1995, Ms. Hughes has had the honour of working with such internationally renowned and established Canadian dance artists as Patricia Beatty, Bill Coleman, Terill McGuire, Graham McKelvie, and Naoko Murakoshi. In 1999, Ms. Hughes co-founded Aurora Dance Community with Patricia Beatty (Co-founder Toronto Dance Theatre, Member of the Order of Canada), Serena Camacho, Kim Fiocca, Mary Jo Mullins, and Carly Wong. Kathleen extensively produced, choreographed, and performed for this collective for five years. One of her many stunning performances over the years includes that of Gaia (1990) by Patricia Beatty for Aurora Dance Community in 2000. Since 1999, Kathleen has built a repertoire of original choreography including Cycles (2001) to critical acclaim, The Unmasking (2002), A Beautiful Woman Has Come (2003) and Familiar Stranger (2004). Kathleen co-founded Niagara Dance company is 2006 and is very pleased to include these works in the repertoire of the Niagara Dance Company.

Graham McKelvie Artistic Associate is a native of Saskatchewan. He started his training in movement as a competitive figure skater. At age sixteen he pursued his dance training at the National Ballet of Canada, the School of London Contemporary Dance Theatre in England, and at the School of Toronto Dance Theatre. Mr. McKelvie is a former company member of Toronto Dance Theatre and has performed with Dancetheatre David Earle since its formation in 1997. Gaining a reputation for his expansive lyricism and exotic masculinity, he has inspired major roles in works by David Earle, James Kudelka and Patricia Beatty, among others. He continues to teach as a guest teacher nationally and internationally.

Suzette Sherman has studied and worked with David Earle for over 30 years. Her career before Dancetheatre David Earle has included two years apprenticing with Winnipeg Contemporary Dancers, one year with Saskatchewan Dance Theatre, and nineteen years with the Toronto Dance Theatre, where she danced the majority of the company's repertoire and originated many roles in the new works of founders David Earle, Peter Randazzo, and Patricia Beatty, as well as numerous guest choreographers. As Associate Director of DtDE, Suzette is now one of the key figures in the teaching of David's technique and repertoire. She was previously vice principal and a senior faculty member at the School of the Toronto Dance Theatre for many years, and has guest taught extensively in Tokyo and Santa Barbara, as well as most Canadian centres. Suzette has worked as David's Assistant Choreographer and Rehearsal Director on projects with the National Ballet of Canada, Goh Ballet, Ontario Ballet Theatre, Canadian Children's Dance Theatre, and Ballet British Columbia.