Collaborative Reflection dance: made in canada / fait au canada Festival 2025 by Amelie Mah, Alaia R. Lopes, Maya Gale-Buncel & Averil Dubois

Collaborative art reflection by Amelie Mah, Alaia R. Lopes, Maya Gale-Buncel, Averil Dubois.

Below are also written reflections from Amelie Mah and Alaia R. Lopes.

The creative process of the 2025 dance stewards inspired this collage. Combining movement, visual art, and the nets, this collaborative artwork captures the essence of our creation process. We used task-based improvisation to create a movement score incorporating handmade nets that connected everyone. This artwork features tiny snippets of drawings we made of each other with the nets, pieced together to create something new. We thought that this was a fun reflection of the friendships developed over the summer.The connection and community we built throughout this process only continues to deepen and grow. We are all so grateful for this opportunity to have been a part of dance: made in/fait au canada. BIG thanks to Yvonne for a warm, welcoming space for us emerging artists to create, learn, and grow as artists. To Helin for all the emails keeping us up to date and on track. And finally, to Bonnie for the unending support and mentorship throughout our creation process!

Love, the stews

Alaia

Being a dance steward for dance: made in/fait au canada was an amazing experience! I learned so much about myself as a dance artist and collaborator. Beyond that, I also had the wonderful surprise of learning how to crochet.

Amelie

Being a dance steward in the 2025 dance: made in/fait au canada festival was such an inspiring, fun-filled opportunity. I was able to witness a diverse range of art, both in process and its final form. Through this process, I’ve met so many incredible artists in the community and built lasting friendships. Looking back, I can see how much I’ve grown as a person and an artist because of this experience. It really challenged me to step out of my comfort zone in so many different ways. I remember that when creating our piece, we explored the idea of using the time before the show started to wander among the audience in the lobby to immerse them in the world of our piece. The thought of doing that was intimidating, to say the least. Engaging with the patrons in the lobby about the show paled in comparison. When I finally did it, I actually ended up really enjoying it! I had a lot of fun weaving through the lobby and seeing how people reacted differently to us.