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A Brief History of Dance in Banff
In 1947, Senator Donald Cameron invited Gweneth Lloyd and later, Betty Farrally, founders of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet, to create a dance program at The Banff Centre. Lloyd and Farrally’s infectious pioneer spirit and enthusiasm, and their expertise and solid teaching methods, launched the fledgling program which attracted large numbers of talented young dancers to Banff.
Gweneth and Betty ran the program until the 1970s, and with the inclusion of world-renowned master class teachers and an impressive list of international and Canadian choreographers coming to help them mount Festival Dance, the reputation of the Dance Program in Banff grew.
Although Ms Lloyd and Ms Farrally continued to keep their very knowledgeable fingers in the pie, Arnold Spohr (director emeritus of the Royal Winnipeg Ballet) took the helm in the 70s, and in 1982 dance icon Brian Macdonald became program director. He founded Banff’s Professional Dance Program that same year. In 2002, Annette av Paul, after a remarkable career as a principal dancer, teacher, and advisor (including 18 consecutive summers as a pedagogue and coach in Banff), became the director.
Banff Summer Arts Festival 2007 marked the 60th anniversary of dance in Banff. Two weeks of celebratory performances took place culminating in a grand finale with guest appearances by distinguished alumni, historical footage of rehearsal and performance during 60 glorious years, and more than 85 gifted young dancers from our summer programs.
In 2008, Lindsay Fischer took the reigns as program director. A former principal dancer with Het Nationale Ballet in the Netherlands and the New York City Ballet, Fischer spent more than 10 years helping young dancers transition into professional artists, most recently as the head of the National Ballet of Canada’s apprenticeship program.
Fischer created a new Professional Dance program in partnership with The National Ballet, Les Grands Ballets Canadiens de Montréal, Canada’s Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Alberta Ballet, Ballet B.C., Ballet Jörgen, and Boston Ballet. These companies hand pick dancers, in the early stage of their career, to send to Banff for a five week intensive training program. The program incorporates the Clifford E. Lee Award in Choreography, which provides an opportunity for a Canadian choreographer to come to The Banff Centre to create and premiere a new dance piece working with the participants.
Every dance company in Canada has had Banff alumni on their rosters and many of Banff’s dancers have enjoyed careers overseas. Others have become celebrated choreographers, directors, and master class teachers, both in Canada and abroad.
