Editor's Note

Tribute to Tedd Robinson (1952–2022)

Summer has arrived in Vancouver, and with it, the city’s performance spaces are alive with renewed purpose. This issue of Dance Central marks Part 2 of our two-part reflection on Dance In Vancouver 2024, a celebration of the artists whose practices continue to reshape the landscape of contemporary dance on these unceded and ancestral Traditional Coast Salish Lands.

We are honoured to share new reflections by Ziyian Kwan, Ralph Escamillan and Justine A. Chambers. Ziyian’s Tendrils, first premiered at Dance In Vancouver 2024, emerged from a posthumous gift sent by Tedd Robinson’s collaborators. The moment of unveiling sparked an intimate encounter that led Ziyian to create this newest work, which will return in new iterations this summer at Dancing on the Edge and the Festival of New Dance

In Croquis, Ralph explores deconstruction as a mode of creation. A garment made entirely from paper becomes an embodied archive of memory. Inspired by his earlier work PIÑA and traditional weaving practices from Aklan, Philippines, Croquis meditates on femininity, ceremony, and transience. Like Tendrils, it is a living tribute to Tedd’s enduring influence. That both artists have created works in conversation with Tedd’s legacy is no coincidence.Together, their pieces reflect a lineage of mentorship and experimentation that exemplifies the vibrancy of Vancouver’s dance community. Justine’s lecture excerpts on The Brutal Joy invites us to consider the relationships between devotion, archival practice, and embodiment. Her words honor Black living and how performance becomes a form of living memory and resistance. Justine will be sharing The Brutal Joy as part of The National Arts Centre, The Dance Centre and Mile Zero Dance Society's 2025-2026 season.

As we move into a summer of dance — Dancing on the Edge Festival, Indian Summer Festival, 12 Minutes Max, SummerSpace, and TVTlink at The Dance Centre, and many more—we look ahead with expansiveness, acknowledging that we are always standing on the shoulders of those who have come before us. This issue concludes our Dance In Vancouver 2024 coverage, but the conversation lingers.

We thank all the artists who have contributed, and we welcome new writing and project ideas at any time — keeping Dance Central a vital link to the community.Please send materials by email to editor@thedancecentre.ca.

Shanny Rann

Editor

Title image credit: Ralph Escamillan in Paper Dress © David Cooper