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Unfinish / Unfurl

Presented by DanceWorks, in collaboration with The Meaningful Movement, Sara Porter Productions and Nina Milanovski, and CanAsian Dance, with co-production support from Dancemakers

Unfinish / Unfurl is a mini-festival focused on creative practice and choreographic process,  presented by DanceWorks. Guided by the notion of ‘low stakes, low tech, deep dives, deep breaths’, we invite dance-makers, dance-enthusiasts, and curious community members to gather, share, question, and learn together. All are welcome regardless of previous experience within and around artistic environments!

Discussions, workshops, and showings will bring together divergent approaches to conceptualizing, making, practicing, and supporting dance; encouraging the intermingling of communities with shared values of reciprocal exchange and supportive challenge. 

FESTIVAL EVENTS:

What Is Choreography? (Workshop)
Wednesday, May 7 — 8pm 

Cripping the Full Out/Marking Binary* (Online Workshop)
Thursday, May 8 — 2pm  *ticketing via Zeffy

@profile (Emerging Artist Improvisations)
Thursday, May 8 — 8pm 

In Good Time (Sharing/Discussion)
Friday, May 9 – 8pm

Insights from Experience (Panel Discussion)
Saturday, May 10 – 3pm

Unpacking Practice: Choreographies of Balikbayan (Talk/Showing/Discussion)
Saturday, May 10 – 5pm

SHOW UR STUFF (Showing/Discussion)
Saturday, May 10 – 8pm

The aim of the program is to support the development of new dances by local artists, cultivate dance-making practices for emerging, mid-career and established artists alike, and nurture cross-cultural choreographic literacy amongst audiences. The festival’s structure follows a journey of dance-making from initial understandings of what choreography is/can be, to bringing emerging artists together for improvisational exploration, to nurturing fresh choreographic proposals, and finally showcasing semi-developed works-in-progress.

Artists, participants, and audience members alike will be encouraged to see everything as practice, and to the extent possible, focus on the rigour and creativity of artistic interests, instead of ruminating on the various sectoral issues that impact the careers of artists and can so often detract or distract from the work itself.

Public events will take place from May 7-10, 2025 at The Theatre Centre in Toronto. Pay-What-You-Can tickets range from $0-24 per event! More information at www.danceworks.ca/unfinish-unfurl.

Image design credit: Francesca Chudnoff.
Photo and UU logo design credit: Kaylee McCullough.
Featured dancers pictured above are Sukriti Sharma and Miggy Esteban. 

From May 7, 2025
to May 10, 2025

Tickets are Pay-What-You-Can $0 - $24

Venue

Franco Boni Theatre

Event Dates

May 7th – 8pm What is Choreography
May 8th – 8pm @profile
May 9th – 8pm In Good Time
May 10th – 3pm Insights From Experience
May 10th – 5pm Unpacking Practice
May 10th – 8pm SHOW UR STUFF

This performance is

Nehal 2 at The Theatre Centre 2025 Residency Showings (1)
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“And so with this understanding that we are under constant surveillance, whether we do it consciously or unconsciously, we start adapting our behavior to it.” Nehal El-Hadi wants you to know that you’re being watched. With her journalistic and academic background, Nehal’s research has focused on data collection and space-making. Through the Residency program with...
Residency_adam
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“The difference between Versus and my other shows is that this one is a celebration of community while the other ones were me trying to punch people in the face to say, “wake up.” Rather, it’s me saying, “we’re all like this guy, it’s tough, so let’s keep walking forward together.” Residency Artist, Adam Lazarus,...
dbi young, in traditional attire, hair tied tall, with face painted in red and black, wearing black and jewel beads reminiscent of an armour, regally stares at the camera.
March 16, 2026
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