Copyright 2000 by Edward Willett

You may have noticed groups of children around town for the past few days, chattering eagerly to each other. Sometimes they're all dressed alike. Sometime they speak English with an accent. Sometimes they don't speak English at all.

You're probably seeing some of the hundreds of young dancers from about 30 countries who have descended on Regina for the Dance and the Child International Conference 2000, which began July 30 and wraps up August 5.

Dance and the Child International--abbreviated daCi--is a branch of the Conseil International de la Danse, UNESCO. It's a worldwide non-profit venture to promote the development of dance with young people, formed after an international conference entitled "Dance and the Child" held in 1978 at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton.

The daCi conference is held only once every three years. Last time it was held in Finland. Next time it will be in Brazil. This time--it's in Regina. And, says Dr. Ann Kipling Brown of the University of Regina, chair of the conference, it's been very successful.

"Our participants are really involved. They're making new friends and meeting new colleagues, enjoying each others' dance, and supporting each other," says Dr. Kipling Brown.

The theme of this year's conference is Extensions and Extremities: Points of Departure. "It is relevant to Saskatchewan," says Dr. Kipling Brown. "It is based on the idea that the vastness of the province and the extreme conditions of the land and climate help tap the human potential to both physically and mentally reach new capacities. We look for points of departure through our children, who lead the way with creative ideas."

The conference is a mixture of workshops, panel discussion, speeches--and public performances. The latter have been fascinating, Dr. Brown says. For instance, there have been interesting dances performed in alternative venues: on a staircase, for example, or out on the grass.

It has also been interesting to see how the different dance traditions of the various countries represented--which include the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Finland, Slovakia, Croatia, Japan, Jamaica, Sweden and Switzerland, to name just some of them--are reflected in the dances performed by the children from those countries.

"We've seen some really interesting things where we've seen a blend of the national dance form with more contemporary work; the national forms come out in their expression, but it's very much of today," says Dr. Kipling Brown. "We've seen wonderfully expressive things about the children's ideas of life which blend those more traditional forms and more contemporary forms."

The blending of ideas is at the core of the whole conference, Dr. Kipling Brown says. "I think it brings people together and it enables an interchange of ideas," she says. Many Saskatchewan dancers are attending the conference, she added. "They get to see what other kids are doing and just find out what it's like to live in another country and to hear about their experiences."

As well, she said, they get to share Saskatchewan with these visitors from far away, an opportunity enjoyed by both the locals and the visitors. "We've had nothing but praise about the local people who have been so friendly and so helpful," says Dr. Kipling Brown. Local people have also volunteered enormous amounts of time and effort to make the conference a success, she notes, adding that here in Regina, "We tend to underestimate themselves!"

There have been regular evening performances by the various dance troupes who have made the journey to Regina, and those continue Thursday and Friday night, August 3 and 4, at 7:30 p.m. in the Centre of the Arts. The public is welcome to attend; tickets are $15 and are available at the door.

The conference wraps up with closing ceremonies at 2:30 on Saturday that are also open to the public, and will feature something very special. Throughout the conference, daily sessions have been devoted to creating a unique dance that will feature all of the kids. Led by Regina dancer Tracy Hauser, they'll present the result at the closing ceremonies: a dance that explores Saskatchewan from a visitors' point of view.

Dance, says Dr. Kipling Brown, gives children "self-confidence, an awareness of who they are and what their heritage is. It helps them to explore what's happening in contemporary society." And most importantly, she says, "I think it gives one a sense of joy and fulfillment."

"It's just so beautiful to see the joy of these children as they dance and talk about their dance," she says. "I think that is something people need to see, that they love what they're doing."

Come out this weekend and see for yourself.

Posted March 9, 2004