Penny Couchie

Crazy Smooth

Paving the way for street dance to enliven theatrical spaces, Crazy Smooth is now at the helm of two organizations with aligned and yet, disparate goals. Crazy Smooth shares his hopes for finding his way through this unexpectedly quick shift with openness and curiosity, steered by the guiding hand of his late mentor.

Olivia Shaffer + Peter Bingham

Take a peek into a three year transition plan where the evolution of the dance form, contact improvisation, acts as one of the biggest teachers. After Parkinson shifts his physical abilities, witness Peter Bingham’s succession plan in action as he imparts his knowledge and details of his life’s work to incoming director Olivia Shaffer.

Penny Couchie

The consideration of legacy from an intergenerational and deeply cultural lens serves as the foundation for Penny’s creation of Big Medicine Studio. Penny’s practice of storyweaving, learned from her mentor, brings together diverse individuals across age, gender, race and ability to see their shared experiences and connectedness.

Victor Vân Tran + Deanna Peters

Leadership models are constantly in flux – witness a shift from one leadership team to another in Vancouver International Dance Festival’s 2025 season. Learn how Deanna Peters and Victor Tran are placing their grassroots ideas and values at the centre of what could be seen as a local institution.

Thrust Season 5 Trailer

The dance made in canada podcast is back with a brand new name and a lineup of leaders in Canadian dance going through extraordinary transitions. Our season 5 theme of legacy and succession looks at sole proprietors, co-leadership, quick flips and longer term mentorships as ways of passing the artistic flame from generation to generation.…