Advertising With The Dance Current When you advertise with The Dance Current, you are reaching an engaged audience of art lovers who support small businesses and our efforts to foster community, equity and sustainability within the cultural sector. With four beautiful issues of the print magazine published each year, regular content shared on our website, a monthly newsletter sent to 2,600+ subscribers and daily content posted for our nearly 13,000 followers on social media, there are myriad ways to reach The Dance Current’s community. Each month, we are growing and adapting to better serve our audience and the dance sector. Your advertising dollars allow us, the only genre-inclusive dance magazine printed in Canada, to continue to evolve and support artists across the country in the ways they deserve. Our advertising clients include Ballet BC, National Arts Centre, Arts Umbrella, Tangente Danse, Dancer Transition Resource Centre, Workman Arts, Prairie Theatre Exchange, University of Calgary, The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, FODAR (Festival of Dance Annapolis Royal), New World School of the Arts and Point Park University, among others. The Dance Current is published by Dance Media Group/Groupe Danse Média, a registered charitable organization: 85356 1538 RR0001. Email emily@thedancecurrent.com with any questions or to set up a meeting; we’d love to be part of telling your story.
Toronto Dance Theatre / Photo by Ōmer Yükseker
Audience As we are a national magazine, our audience spans the entire country. Most of our readers live in metropolitan centres; most are university-educated women between 25 and 44. They regularly purchase tickets to cultural events, exhibitions and attractions and spend, on average, one to three hours per week accessing information about dance. As we publish both print and digital content, our focus is on providing regular, ongoing and timely coverage for our readers across the country. Our Regional Reporter Program increases coverage of hyper-local stories in all regions of the country. This program will allow us to connect with readers outside metropolitan areas and expand this audience.
Nichole Leveck / Photo by Jonathan Elliott
Print The Dance Current prints 600+ copies per issue. You can find The Dance Current across the SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2020
country in most Indigo Books locations as well as independent bookstores. The magazine is also retailed internationally through thedancecurrent.com. Niche-interest magazines present a significant market advantage over
MASKS AND RIBBONS
Fancy shawl dancing on Toronto’s waterfront
their general interest counterparts.
“I DON’T SEE COLOUR”
According to a report on Canadian
Artists respond to this harmful statement
reader habits produced by Magazines
WHERE DO WE GO FROM HERE?
Canada in 2020, specificity is the top-
Disability arts post-pandemic
rated motivator across subscribers and retail purchasers. Magazines like The Dance Current directly address consumers’ desires to summer 2021
read content that is directly relatable to them, as it reports on their topic, where they are curious, have expertise or is meaningful to them. Millenials are
Digital Options thedancecurrent.com: 16,000+ monthly unique visitors with 50,000+ monthly page views e-Current monthly newsletter: 2,600+ subscribers with a 36% open rate
especially motivated by specificity. I AM PRIDE
Five dance artists from Canada’s Queer communities
The Dance Current is published
THE ROAD OUT
four times per year with the following
Do artists need to live in major cities?
DANCE CRITICISM
schedule:
Perceptions, challenges and the future
Winter - January / February / March Spring - April / May / June
Social media:
Summer - July / August / September
Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn: 13,000+ combined followers
Fall - October / November / December
2021-22 Rates i am pride
Print: Two-page Spread: $1,650
Ross Wirtanen He has danced for big names, but that’s not what he wants to talk about
Back cover: $1,050 Full page: $870 1/2 page horizontal: $575, 7.125” W x 4.8333” H 1/3 page horizontal: $435, 7.125” W x 3.1667” H 1/3 page vertical: $435, 2.2674” W x 9.8346” H Required Format: CMYK Mode, 300 DPI, .PDF format Digital: Wirtanen / Photo by Ben Owens
Social media with @thedancecurrent: Instagram feed: $300, 1080 x 1080 pixels Instagram story share: $125, 1080 x 1920 pixels
by max gao
R
Inside front cover: $950
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the dance current
oss Wirtanen distinctly remembers being onstage at the Air Canada Centre in Toronto blocking the Rhythm Nation choreography for Janet Jackson’s 2015 Unbreakable World Tour. During the rehearsal, he saw a big mane of hair walk into the audience, flanked by two bodyguards. “It was Janet,” he says. “She sat in the middle of the whole stadium and politely watched us rehearse. No pressure, right?” In rehearsals, Wirtanen says Jackson’s team made it clear that anyone who wasn’t “up to snuff” would not be going onstage. “But this is what we love about Janet Jackson. Her perfection and care for her dance legacy is unmatched,” Wirtanen says. Wirtanen describes dancing for Jackson as a full-circle moment. He grew up in Victoria, learning the music video choreography of some of his favourite R&B, hip-hop and pop artists from the ’90s, including the likes of Tina Turner, Michael Jackson and Janet Jackson. So, in his teenage years, he immersed himself in tap and street dance classes. He dreamed of one day being part of the productions that he had revered and continually watched. Now, he is the founder of RiaToss Productions, a Toronto-based theatrical performance art company. He has also appeared on The CW’s Riverdale, NBC’s Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist and Netflix’s Chilling Adventures of Sabrina as a principal dancer. His stage credits include performing as a background dancer for Ariana Grande, Bebe Rexha and, of course, Janet Jackson. But these gigs are not what Wirtanen wants to talk about. “Pop culture and Queer culture are the pillars of my dancing, creative work and my overall identity,” he says. Now that he has more industry experience, he recognizes the importance of understanding where all these elements come from, what they mean and how they are relevant to him. Wirtanen firmly believes that, for any dancer, teacher or choreographer, it’s imperative to research and understand a dance style before attempting
SUMMER 2021
feature profile
Wirtanen / Photos by Enzo Romero
to create one’s own interpretation, especially when those styles originate from marginalized QTBIPOC communities. As an example, Wirtanen highlights the ballroom scene, created by Black and Latinx folks, for birthing the pop culture moments seen on popular TV shows like Drag Race, Legendary and Pose. “With the internet, it is so easy for us to see something, regurgitate it and/or steal it. But there is a story behind every dance move, and we need to care about that story,” he says.
Wirtanen also says that as Queer culture increasingly enters mainstream media, which tends to favour straight, white and cisgender people, we rarely see the general population giving credit to the cultural pioneers. “The more we acknowledge and respect this, the more we can properly uphold these communities and their dance forms, without discrediting or erasing their creators.” Max Gao is a freelance journalist based in Toronto.
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Terms
Travis Knights Wants His Own Table In the midst of a social reckoning in Canada, tap dancer Travis Knights challenges audiences to ask themselves, “Who are we to each other?”
Booking All details must be confirmed at time of booking. Once an invoice has been sent, an ad is considered booked. Estimates will only be provided for orders larger than three advertisements or upon request.
Improper Format If artwork is not submitted in the required formats, The Dance Current is not responsible for damages arising out of errors in regards to graphics, composition or non-insertion.
Cancellation If a contracted booking is cancelled prior to printing or posting, there will be a service charge of 15%. This charge is subject to applicable taxes. If a booking is cancelled during the print proofing stage, client must still pay the full bill.
Standards The Dance Current maintains policies separating editorial from advertising. The Dance Current reserves the right to refuse any advertisement that might be considered offensive or misleading or compromise the editorial integrity of our platforms.
Payment Cheque, credit card, e-transfer and EFT payments accepted.
Copyright It is the sole responsibility of the client to acquire all required permissions before using copyrighted material. If The Dance Current is involved in any way in production and/or the composition of the advertisement for the client, then the client agrees that it will not publish the advertisement in any other publication without consent from The Dance Current.
Tax All advertising prices are exclusive of taxes. Your booking will be subject to taxes if you are based within Canada. International advertisers will not be charged tax. Sponsorships are not subject to taxes.
by catherine abes photography by marlowe porter
20
the dance current
FALL 2021
Advertorials Print and Digital Available: Looking for a more personalized option that leverages audience in a genuine way? Reach out for a quote and a
Neighbourhood Dance Works Turns 40
proposal that highlights your story.
The company has become Newfoundland and Labrador’s primary source of professional contemporary dance
Starting at $650 for digital and $975 for print.
Book $1,000+ in advertising and receive 15% off Organizations who are specifically mandated to serve equity-seeking groups receive 15% off New advertisers receive 10% off
Candice Pike in Lois Brown's Alice Falling / Photo by Tom Cochrane; Roger Sinha's Burning Skin / Photo by David Hou
and Neighbourhood Dance Works in the Summer 2021 issue.
Book three or more ads and receive 10% off
first annual Festival of New Dance, which turns 30 this year. Denise Fujiwara’s work has been presented at the festival many times. “Newfoundland artists have been doing interdisciplinary work since forever. The rest of the world is just catching up,” Fujiwara says. “The Festival of New Dance and Neighbourhood Dance Works are crucial to the development of an important and diverse part of the Canadian dance landscape.” This year, the hope is that an in-person festival will be possible, complete with a birthday cake raffle in a nod to their annual pie auction. For audiences new and returning, Lachance hopes their presentations help make sense of things that are “hard to process,” an especially poignant sentiment given the challenges of the last year. “We have an amazing foundation to do what we’re doing and to continue. … [But] we want to be part of the care work as well,” says Lachance. With this in mind, the direction of the company and the festival will be informed by questions she has always asked: “What do people need to see right now? What are the works that really speak to this moment? We want to bring meaning to the community and expand the view of dance as a discipline.”
This fall, Neighbourhood Dance Works
View recent examples of our work for Dance Collection Danse
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The Dance Current’s writing expertise and speaks to our
turns 40, a major milestone the company is proud to be celebrating. As Newfoundland and Labrador’s primary source of professional contemporary dance, Neighbourhood Dance Works and the Festival of New Dance (an annual festival produced by the company) have been key facilitators in the exchange of skills and knowledge between local, national and international communities. The company fosters the advancement of both emerging and mature choreographers and showcases, as Calla Lachance, the artistic director, says, “the power of the human body to express really amazing things.” Despite their expansion over the past four decades, their ethos remains the same: supporting artists, first and foremost. “We only exist because artists exist,” says Lachance. This focus on the dance community has been the foundation of the company since its inception. “Neighbourhood Dance Works grew out of a powerful place, a lot of free-minded people who were so willing to dive in and work together … [with] an immense drive for making space for dance to happen,” says Cathy Ferri, one of the company’s founders. As it turns out, Newfoundland was hungry for what Neighbourhood Dance Works had to offer. Ferri says the reception from the community has been great, so great that the company quickly became a leader in the cultural sector of the region and their many initiatives have placed Newfoundland on the national stage. While they are players at the national level, Lachance notes, “It’s not our job to follow everyone else’s lead. … We need to be uniquely
ourselves.” She feels that because they have dealt with deficits in infrastructure due to their location, they have had to be creative in how they build community, which has led to “a unique unfolding.” This uniqueness is something that is felt by artists that have been supported by the company. Ten years after its inception, Neighbourhood Dance Works presented their
As a national magazine focused on the dance sector, dance communities look to The Dance Current as a trusted source for the latest information on educational offerings in Canada and North America. Each year, we publish an audition directory and a summer dance directory on our website. There are several levels of engagement possible within these directories. Summer Dance Directory: Published online in February 2021 Audition Directory: Published online in September 2022 Listing Only: $100 75 words + photo Listing + Instagram Feature: $375 All of the above + a carousel post on Instagram feed
Sponsorship: sponsored content
Looking to make a big impact? We can customize a sponsorship to suit your needs. Whether you are looking to support a photo essay, our Regional Reporter Program, educational content or another aspect of the magazine, we are happy to help you find the right fit and create a package that works for your interests and marketing needs. Sponsors in 2021 have included York University, Pivot Dancer, Concordia University, Made to Move, Adam Malcolm of IG Wealth Management, DanceWorks, Hacienda and Neighbourhood Dance Works.
Listing + Social Media Feature + Link via Linkin.bio: $425
Dance Collection Danse’s Hall of Fame
All of the above + link in Instagram bio
The third annual induction ceremony will be available online On Sept. 19, Dance Collection Danse will present its third annual
Hall of Fame induction ceremony, honouring a diverse group of dance artists from across Canada. Usually held at The Globe and Mail Centre, the event will have a more intimate feeling this year with a smaller group gathered at the gorgeous Toronto Botanical Garden. While the affair will be petite compared to its usual scale, the number of people celebrating this important moment in dance history will be much larger than ever before; it will be filmed and made available online on Sept. 26. Some of the best ideas take time to fully bloom and the same is true with the Hall of Fame. While the inaugural event was held in 1986 following the Encore! Encore! reconstruction project, the Hall of Fame wasn’t reignited until 2018, in an event that Vickie Fagan, the event producer and Dance Collection Danse’s director of development, describes as “quite electric.” “I felt like I died and went to dance heaven,” says Fagan. “The energy in the room was incredible.” Fagan attributes some of this electricity to the importance of the event; it honours incredible members of Canadian dance communities in a way that has not happened in the past. She says attendees often comment on having “a real awakening about how deep our history is.” As a unique organization that straddles the performing arts, museum and archival communities, Dance Collection Danse is particularly suited to hosting this event, which doubles as their yearly fundraiser. It’s the perfect way, as Fagan says, to “put a face on what DCD does.”
Dance icon Margie Gillis, one of this year’s inductees, feels honoured to receive this award and sees the Hall of Fame as an important way to “help us be seen and help us see each other too,” she says. “The awards highlight who we are.” She says she often looks or relooks at the work of inductees as it’s an opportunity to “see what has been accomplished, what can be accomplished and hope for us generationally to move this art form forward.” The Sandra Faire Next Generation Award, sponsored by Ivan Fecan, is new this year and will go to Ilter Ibrahimof, artistic director of Fall for Dance North. Created because Dance Collection Danse “wanted a way to recognize people who are working today and have made a significant impact already,” it’s a meaningful way to connect past generations to the next while remembering the late Sandra Faire, who was an avid supporter of dance. Another way the organization is making this connection is by showcasing artists in short performances, something that will happen again at this year’s event. With so much to celebrate and look forward to, the 2021 Hall of Fame ceremony promises to be a night to remember for dance lovers across the country, an exciting opportunity to gather during a challenging year while learning something new about Canadian dance history. For tickets, head to dcd.ca, and follow @dancecollectiondanse on Instagram for the latest from this seminal Canadian organization.
This year’s Danse Hall of Fame inductees are: James Kudelka, OC
Margie Gillis, OC, CQ
Mavis Staines, CM (William J.S. Boyle Dance Luminary Award)
Ethel Bruneau
Rosario Ancer
Gretchen Ross and Donald Ross, OC (Community Builders)
Ilter Ibrahimof (Sandra Faire Next Generation Award)
Alice Murdoch Adams (Trailblazer)
Maud Allan (Trailblazer)
Marial Mosher (Trailblazer)
about how you can support the magazine. Michael Greyeyes
You can see the Summer 2021 issue here and our Fall 2021 issue here.
All of the above + placement at top of the directory + mention of sponsorship in all promotions of the directory including presence in the e-Current newsletter For advertising and sponsorship opportunities, please contact marketing and development manager Emily Pettet at emily@thedancecurrent.com or 782-234-4601.
Dance Collection
Take a peek at some of our recent issues to learn more
Directory Sponsor: $600