Canadian Heritage Committee on May 25th, 2015

[The Chair (Mr. Gordon Brown (Leeds—Grenville, CPC)), Conservative, Gord Brown]

Good afternoon, everyone.

We'll call to order meeting number 48 of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage. Today we are continuing our study of dance in Canada. For the first hour we have with us three different groups.

First we have Zab Maboungou, artistic director of Zab Maboungou/Compagnie Danse Nyata Nyata.

We also have with us Anik Bissonnette, artistic director, and Alix Laurent, executive director, of the École supérieure de ballet du Québec.

By video conference from Vancouver, we have Emily Molnar from Ballet BC.

We will start with Zab Maboungou.

You have eight minutes. Each of our three groups will have up to eight minutes. You have the floor.

[Zab Maboungou, Artistic Director, Zab Maboungou/Compagnie Danse Nyata Nyata]

Merci. It's pronounced “Maboungou”.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gord Brown]

I stand corrected.

[Zab Maboungou]

Thank you.

I will speak in French and a little in English. I don't have a lot of time, just eight minutes.

I would like to sincerely thank the very honourable members of the committee. I feel privileged to have been invited to appear. I have learned that today is the committee's last meeting, so we will try to mention the things that count.

For me, being here is a bit of a pilgrimage because this is Canadian Heritage. Twelve years ago, in 2003, we created a training program at Nyata Nyata. The main purpose was to feature what I call the company's credo: people, arts and know-how. These three basic aspects are part of an approach that I have used since the company was founded in 1987. It's something that seems absolutely essential, despite all efforts to tell me that I was going to a place that was very, very difficult to defend. This idea of advocating for the training of a person by defending the art has always been fundamental to me.

It's exactly the same thing that we are advocating now. Over these 12 years, we have tested this experience. I didn't really think that 12 years later, I myself would be able to talk about the success and, above all, the results that we have achieved through this program which, fundamentally brings about what I call cultural knowledge transfer, which would not have happened otherwise without the artistic work to compel them, by testifying and testing them.

That's what we did by addressing this from a philosophic and technical perspective, in that we had to put forward a technique for movement that could operate these transfers. Today, there are trained individuals who are working and who choose, while continuing their artistic career, to seek professional development in the arts of health, reflection, and arts management, and other fields.

In this respect, it's a success. That's obviously what I intend to advocate, this approach of art through diversity, and diversity that is truly in action, diversity that mobilizes individuals on site, locally. This program aims to highlight the dynamic aspect of the local area to encourage being open to the world. This program encourages a kind of basic integration of these two aspects.

I provided a document that lists in eight points the importance of dance and its fundamental aspect. I won't go over these points because you can consult the document.

This year, I went to Senegal and England, where I was invited for almost the same reason. It seems that the same concerns are shared internationally. I was asked to talk about the fundamental importance of dance at the heart societies that are changing, transforming. It seems that this committee is on the right path, and I congratulate you. You are trying to renew reflection about dance and encourage more than ever its development and sustainability. It's important to consolidate what already exists, but also to allow the emergence of anyone to intervene and be used.

That is about all I have to say. I don't know if you have any questions.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gord Brown]

Thank you.

We'll now go to École supérieure de ballet du Québec. You have the floor for eight minutes.

[Anik Bissonnette, Artistic Director, École supérieure de ballet du Québec]

Mr. Chair and members of the Standing Committee on Canadian Heritage, we would like to thank you for inviting the École supérieure de ballet du Québec to participate in your study on the importance of dance. I am joined today by Alix Laurent, executive director of our institution.

The École supérieure de ballet du Québec is proud to be here today to talk about dance in Canada, specifically the strategic role of training. In fact, the École supérieure is the only francophone institution in North America to provide world-class ballet training for almost half a century.

In 1952, Canada welcomed Ludmilla Chiriaeff, a Berlin-trained Russian dancer who founded Les Grands Ballets canadiens de Montréal, which became the École supérieure de ballet du Québec. Ms. Chiriaeff's passion, determination and pioneering perseverance helped dance to flourish in Canada in an unprecedented way. The École supérieure receives about 130 students who want to become dancers to its professional program. Because our institution has the exclusive mandate in Quebec for advanced training in classical dance, these 130 young people hail not only from Montreal and the various regions of Quebec, but also from other provinces in Canada, the United States, Europe, Asia and South America. They leave our institution with a strengthened knowledge of Canada's two official languages, and with a very high level of artistic skill.

Our professional program is spread out over 10 years. Our students do three to five hours of dance a day, five to six days a week, while pursuing rigorous general training. In fact, the École supérieure works with renowned academic institutions, including the Pensionnat du Saint-Nom-de-Marie, which is a secondary school. It is mentioned in Cambridge University's students' union's The Guide to Excellence, which lists the best schools in the world.

Our students have the opportunity to grow up in Montreal, which is a true cultural metropolis and one of the dance capitals of the world, which means that they are at the heart of an extremely stimulating and abundant environment. They live in a world of dance, and they are in constant contact with the most noted creators in the world. They are taught by some twenty outstanding teachers who have had great careers in the most prestigious dance companies in the world.

Every year, five to 10 students complete their advanced training in classical dance performance. Our graduates dance for Canadian companies, including Montreal's Grands Ballets canadiens, the National Ballet of Canada, Alberta Ballet, Ballet BC, and the Atlantic Ballet Theatre of Canada. Our graduates are also active abroad, including in Germany, the United States, France and the Netherlands.

Of course, the young people who pass through the École supérieure de ballet du Québec do not all become professional dancers. However, I can tell you that every single one of them, without exception, keep with them precious resources that will serve them throughout their lives. Learning classical dance responds to a flawless logic. It is methodical, structured and based on biomechanical principles structured around a language that has not stopped developing for over 300 years.

Our students learn rigour, respect and discipline, which are priceless assets on the labour market and essential in all job sectors. Furthermore, some of our graduates have become brilliant managers, others have careers in law, medicine and communications. All of them gained a dancer's mentality, which means that they made a habit of taking care of themselves, their bodies, their minds and their hearts, not to mention the natural altruism of all dancers, because this talent is hard-learned, and they know about giving back to the community. At once they are total artists and athletes, responsible citizens, and educated men and women. In fact, the practice of dance is an asset against dropping out of school, and it encourages the development of a structured way of functioning in society. Dance is a basic practice for a healthy society, even when it is a leisure activity, as is the case for the children and adults who register for our recreational program.

This program, which attracts nearly 1,000 individuals, generates nearly 20% of our revenue. The École supérieure has an annual budget of close to $3.5 million, with less than half coming from public funding. Our main funder is the Quebec ministry of culture and communications.

Last year, Canadian Heritage granted us $125,000, about 3% of our budget. This year, the amount was reduced to $115,000. No matter what the reason was for these cuts, this amount is still clearly insufficient to support the mission of an institution of our size, which is the only one in Quebec. It forces us to make disproportionate efforts to carry out our mission, and it is one of the main obstacles to our development, which is needed now more than ever because we have a major renovation project. Our spaces have become too small and no longer meet international standards. For about 30 years, we have been using the Maison de la danse, a building we share with the Grands Ballets canadiens de Montréal, which will be moving to the Quartier des spectacles in 2016. We are going to take this opportunity to get a construction site going so that we can have facilities worthy of the largest schools in the world. It isn't enough to give future professional dancers the best instruction; we must also meet their training needs in adapted fitness and rest areas. We also need to have equipment that is on the cutting edge of technology. To do this, financial support from governments is more than necessary.

For the dance sector to reach its full potential in Canada, it is more than urgent to solidify all the production steps for our discipline, particularly training, to ensure that these steps are in touch with the labour market. We must assure our graduates that they will be able to work here at the end of their studies. This is a crucial issue for an entire generation of young dancers. One solution might be to give dance companies in Canada specific funding so that they can hire strictly apprentices from the major Canadian schools, which are true hotbeds of talent.

I want to specify that this is not a pipe-dream for utopia, on the contrary; I am living proof that this method of transferring knowledge works perfectly because I, myself, benefitted from it. When I was 17, I was not ready for the professional stage. However, I was discovered by a company that took the time to refine my training as an apprentice, so much so that I danced all over the world and became the principal dancer of the Grands Ballets canadiens. In Canada, we are fortunate to have a pool of young future dancers with exceptional potential. Today, I hope with all my heart that Canada will allow them to have the same opportunities as those who allowed me to have such a great career. Lastly, generations of young Canadian dancers need to be able to continue to light up stages in Canada and around the world with their grace. Help us to train the ambassadors of the future.

Thank you for your precious attention.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gord Brown]

Thank you.

We'll now go to Vancouver and hear from Emily Molnar from Ballet BC.

You have the floor for up to eight minutes. I trust you can hear us.

[Emily Molnar, Artistic Director, Ballet BC]

Good afternoon. It is a pleasure to be here. I would like to thank the committee for its interest and for this unique opportunity to talk about the value of dance ln Canada.

I stand before you speaking for two organizations. I am the artistic director of Ballet BC and this year I have also been appointed the artistic director of dance at the Banff Centre for the arts. Today, I would like to talk to you about excellence in dance in Canada and Ballet BC.

First I will tell you a little bit about myself, as I am a proud product of the Canadian training system and have enjoyed a successful international dance career. I have been a dancer, choreographer, and teacher. I am member of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre and Canadian Alliance of Dance Artists, a director of the B.C. Arts Council board, and now artistic director of two of Canada's most significant dance organizations.

I left my home in Saskatchewan at the age of 10 to study at Canada's National Ballet School in Toronto. Upon graduation at 16, I was invited to dance with the National Ballet of Canada. The next step in my career was to accept an invitation to dance as a soloist with the Frankfurt ballet for the world-renowned choreographer William Forsythe. While working in Europe, I was not only exposed to a variety of dance companies, forms, and artistic practices, but I also had the privilege of performing around the world for culturally diverse audiences. During these years I met many Canadian artists on a similar path, evidence that our dance training in Canada is world class.

ln 1998, I felt a strong urge to return to Canada to engage more directly in the Canadian dance community. This brought me to Vancouver where I was a principal dancer for four years with Ballet BC, followed by seven years as an independent dancer, choreographer, and teacher. ln 2009 I became the artistic director of Ballet BC.

Founded in 1986, Ballet BC is an internationally acclaimed contemporary ballet company that is a leader in the creation, production, and education of contemporary dance with a global focus. One of our major priorities is to support Canadian artists. However, including international talent in our season is also a very important part of what creates the diversity and range of contemporary ballet that our audiences and stakeholders are enthusiastically supporting.

Ballet BC performs throughout the year in one of Canada's largest venues, Vancouver's Queen Elizabeth Theatre. Our offices and studios are located in the Scotiabank Dance Centre—the only multi-use building in Canada dedicated to dance. We proudly tour provincially, nationally, and internationally. For example this June, Ballet BC will be the first Canadian company to open the prestigious international Jacob's Pillow dance festival in Massachusetts, now in its 83rd season. Including performances at home and abroad and through a range of outreach and educational programs, more than 25,000 patrons experience Ballet BC each season.

Dance, as a non-verbal means of communication, expresses the complex pluralism of Canadian culture to audiences of all backgrounds. The capacity of dance artists to represent Canadian stories is incredibly valuable. Dance is a global language that crosses all borders and one that helps to define our cultural identity as Canadians. Dance is an art form at its most essential: visceral, thought-provoking, and transformative.

Ballet BC reflects the multiplicity of Canadian society and the Canadian immigrant story in the composition of the company. We presently employ 18 uniquely talented artists, four apprentices and 14 soloists, who are exceptional for their artistry and technical ability. Most Canadian ballet companies hire corps de ballet members who dance as a group before gaining the experience to dance soloist roles. Ballet BC stands out because of the rigorous demands of its contemporary repertoire, which requires a high standard of specialized skills. Therefore, when I audition dancers, I look for a high level of excellence and artistry as well as a very specific skill set.

To ensure that we continue to have home-grown talent that meets our company's rigorous performance criteria, Ballet BC has been proactive in nurturing Canadian dancers through several ongoing initiatives. We have an apprentice company for young Canadian dancers, an official alliance with Vancouver's Arts Umbrella dance program, workshops with guest choreographers, and a summer dance intensive program for pre-professional students, to name a few. I regularly conduct auditions in Montreal, Toronto, and Vancouver and keep in close contact with schools to stay informed about Canadian dancers who might be a good fit for Ballet BC.

Though we are proud that 11 of our 14 full-time dancers are Canadian, it's often difficult to find available Canadian dancers with the right combination of specialized technical skill and artistic range to fill our vacancies. I want to stress that if there are two dancers of comparable standard at an audition, I will always choose the Canadian dancer. But that is not always the case, and so we sometimes hire dancers from outside of Canada.

To do this, we must apply to the temporary foreign worker program to obtain the necessary work permits. The foreign talent who work for Ballet BC not only include company dancers, but also visiting choreographers and collaborators, and our executive director. Notably, several of those employees are now in the process of seeking permanent residency.

We completely understand that last year's revamping of the temporary foreign worker program was done to encourage the hiring of Canadian workers and to ensure that businesses comply with employment regulations. While we respect the logic behind the new regulations and enthusiastically support the notion that Canadians should get the first chance at jobs in Canada, the fact remains that we now spend thousands of dollars a year on application and permit fees and pay foreign dancers more than our Canadian dancers in order to meet the labour market impact assessment regulations that govern salaries.

Fees aside, the temporary foreign worker program makes it challenging to employ dancers who excel in contemporary dance and who are essential to maintaining our high performance standard. The temporary foreign worker program also impedes the hiring of international choreographers and designers who bring a new aesthetic to our productions. International presence and high standards of excellence are what Canadian audiences want to see. International exchange in dance is commonplace, and savvy Canadian audiences know that. As an artistic director, I fear that these regulations could affect artistic decisions and have a major negative impact on the variety and standard of work we bring to our audiences.

It is my hope that through the efforts of the Canadian Dance Assembly, dance companies will gain access to the international mobility program. This program better reflects the type of worker and working agreements we employ in dance, and would ensure that we can maintain our artistic integrity and essential global presence while continuing to nurture Canadian talent.

I will now speak briefly about the economics of dance with regard to Ballet BC. Our company is funded by all three levels of government—the City of Vancouver, the BC Arts Council, and the Canada Council for the Arts. This public sector funding provides 30% of our revenue, while 70% of our funding comes from earned revenue. This includes ticket sales, foundations, corporate sponsorships, and individual donors.

ln 2009 Ballet BC was on the verge of bankruptcy. We had to lay off the dancers and staff and re-imagine the company from the inside out. Throughout those difficult years of restructuring, our government funders, including the Canada Council, stood by Ballet BC, understanding that sometimes contraction can mean growth. Their trust was not only shown in financial support, but in their willingness to assist by acting as consultants, expertly guiding us through the financial and organizational minefields until our position stabilized. Today, Ballet BC is a stronger organization, having posted four consecutive surpluses in the past five years and adding over 30 new works to our repertoire since 2009.

I would like to acknowledge the assistance of the Canada Council whose presence is vital for the continued health of the Canadian art sector. Their reputation is respected worldwide and the Canadian dance community is stronger for its existence. As the Canada Council moves toward a new funding model, I hope that the new vision will continue to support excellence while making the public funder more reflective of the complex art-making process at work in studios and on stages across our nation.

To conclude, I am proud to be a Canadian, leading a Canadian company that includes artists from around the world. There are no borders in dance. It is a universal language that not only greatly contributes to the cultural identity of our country, but also to our physical well-being. The creative exchange of dance artists and choreographic work is at the heart of a healthy global dance ecology. My career and the success of Ballet BC is a clear example of how a global perspective and the presence of international artists benefit Canadian art, artists and audiences.

Thank you very much for your kind attention.

[The Chair, Conservative, Gord Brown]

Thank you very much.

We will now go to questions and we will start with Mr. Young for seven minutes.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you to all of the witnesses here today for taking the time and for travelling a distance to come before us today. Thank you very much.

I want to follow up with Emily Molnar to begin with. When you're preparing young dancers for a career in dance, which sounds like you do very early, what are the key challenges you see for them in the future, and how do you help them prepare for that?

[Emily Molnar]

We have many different programs. Because we are a professional company, all of our dancers have gone through 10 to 12 years of training before they've come into a professional career. As a result, all of our programs are primarily around the graduate level of training, so we work alongside various professional schools such as École supérieure, or the National Ballet School, or Arts Umbrella to find programs that can help ensure that Canadian dancers are getting the proper preparation for a professional career.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

What about after their career? You said you remember the Dancer Transition Resource Centre.

[Emily Molnar]

Yes. I started that when I was very young, when I was at the National Ballet of Canada. The beautiful thing about our art form is that around the age of 35, if you're lucky, or 40, there's a natural transition built into what we do, because our bodies can only dance for so long. Some dancers actually have to stop at 25 because of injuries, so we have to consider what our options are post-dancing. Actually, that's a very important part of the academic programming of a lot of our major institutions. Institutions are very aware of the academic necessity of training dancers.

Being a part of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre, I have basically been able to secure a future so that when I want to retrain, I have access to being retrained, to go back to university or to continue my studies as a dancer. It is wonderfully complementary that when a dancer is still training they can actually work on a transition, which is inevitably going to happen to every dancer by the age of 40, if not sooner. The Dancer Transition Resource Centre is the only organization in the country that is enabling us to do that, and it is an essential component of our dance community's program.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Thank you very much.

Madame Bissonnette, do you take advantage of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre, or do you have another resource?

[Anik Bissonnette]

When I was dancing, yes, I used to be with Dancer Transition.

The centre helps our graduates enter the labour market. It helps dancers at the start of their career and at the end of their career. As Emily said, it's a very large organization that is quite necessary in Canada.

[Alix Laurent, Executive Director, École supérieure de ballet du Québec]

I would add that we have a teacher training program. A number of dancers who finish their career take our program and become teachers. Others become managers, as happens in other areas of activities that develop. Our teacher training program helps a number for former dancers become trainers of future dancers. That's what's interesting.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Thank you very much.

Madam “Maboungou”, is that the correct pronunciation?

[Zab Maboungou]

Yes, it's pretty good.

[Voices]

Oh, oh!

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Okay, thank you very much.

Do you have difficulty attracting male dancers? Do you attract more male dancers and fewer female dancers, and how do you deal with that?

[Zab Maboungou]

Well, usually dance complains. In the western culture they complain about the lack of male dancers. Of course, it's pretty common, it's pretty general.

I probably suffer from that, but maybe less than others. I have a technique that uses the drum, which I've brought into the technique of dance. This, of course, attracts people: it attracts the musicians and also attracts males because of the presence of drums. It's interesting, because if I have to compare myself to those two big institutions, we're dealing here with a company of contemporary dance that is part of, I would say, the alternative, the avant-garde of contemporary art, in the sense that I really have to literally create a living laboratory of people who would be ready to train in the technique that people don't know about here in this country because people here.... They're born here, so they're learning a technique that's also helping them understand a culture that is coming from elsewhere. But it's also here, because it's African-based, and we're living in North America and anything that is African-based, of course, is all over the place in the modern art world, basically.

This is what we have helped reveal, and because of that, I'm able to attract a certain crowd of people and, yes, males. At this moment I have two men in my production. I have a production where I have two men with five women. Two men and five women is pretty good.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Do you attract dancers or students from culturally diverse backgrounds as well?

[Zab Maboungou]

Absolutely. We are probably the most well-known dance company that does that. We do attract these culturally diverse crowds, but also people, dancers, who are trained diversely. Not only are they culturally diverse, but they're trained diversely. Some have been trained in ballet, some in western contemporary dance, some in Afro-Caribbean dance, so we also have that.

[Terence Young, Conservative, Oakville, ON]

Emily Molnar, could you tell us how dance helps young Canadians develop themselves and their talents—physical and musical, and even intellectual, skills?

[Emily Molnar]

That's a very large question.

The beautiful thing about dance is that it incorporates the entire body, mind, and spirit. You are completely engaged in being present.

It's been proven through many studies that art training or musical training and movement actually enhances our understanding of mathematics. And there are many other similar studies.

It's the ability to incorporate the body in an intellectual endeavour, which is dance, and also a very instinctual endeavour. It makes for a very holistic and well-rounded individual. This is why it's very special. Whether or not someone becomes a dancer professionally, the training and disciplined commitment of becoming a dancer actually enhances and betters our society, because that individual has a more thorough, more comprehensive understanding of himself or herself, the body, and our community.

It's expression. It's awareness of the body. It's intellectual endeavour. It's discipline. It's commitment. It's expression into action. It's one of the most complete forms of development, I think, that a child can actually have at the beginning of his or her life.