Walk into the Studley Gym during certain afternoons and evenings and you can hear music blasting from the basement. Follow the beat downstairs and you鈥檒l find energetic dancers working hard and smiling harder to get ready for their end-of-the-year performance. Welcome to DalDance, one of the largest student societies at Dal.
Started in 1996 by a few students wanting to continue their love for dance at university, Daldance currently has 300 members and offers an astonishing number of classes for anyone wanting to try some moves.
鈥淚f you have a Dalplex membership then you鈥檙e eligible to become a DalDance member,鈥� says psychology student Chantal Dub茅, the current president of Daldance. 鈥淚t doesn鈥檛 matter if you鈥檙e a first year or doing your PhD鈥攊f you鈥檙e a member of Dalplex, you鈥檙e welcome here.鈥� This applies to Kings students and staff members as well, creating a diverse environment within the society.
鈥淒alDance is it鈥檚 own small community within Dalhousie,鈥� says Chantal. 鈥淚t鈥檚 full of enthusiastic people who just love to dance. It鈥檚 nice to have a place to de-stress from school and be with people who share similar interests as you.鈥�
After almost 20 years as a society, DalDance has certainly made an impact on campus. 鈥淚 know quite a few people for whom the society was a deciding factor for them to come to Dal,鈥� says Chantal. 鈥淲e have one of the largest programs around.鈥�
Classes are separated into three levels: beginning, intermediate, and advanced, with a wide variety of dance styles. Membership fees are per semester and depend on what level the classes are.
鈥淲e had some difficulty getting space this year so we weren鈥檛 able to offer every class we wanted to,鈥� says Chantal. 鈥淓ven so, we still were able to offer every level of jazz, hip-hop, modern, contemporary, ballet, and tap.鈥� The society also has an open level to offer other styles such as belly dance and musical theatre.
DalDance prides itself in providing a warm and welcoming environment for dancers at every level. For Roxanne Wood, the current marketing and website coordinator, who is in the last year of her biology degree, it provided her with an opportunity to become more engaged on campus.
鈥淚 didn鈥檛 join DalDance until my second year, but I think it would have helped my transition,鈥� she says. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an easy way to get involved. The classes are a great place to meet new people.鈥�
First-year marine biology student Kenadee Maxwell is experiencing firsthand the impact the society has had with her transition from home. 鈥淭hrough DalDance I've made a lot of really great friends, and I was able to find somewhere I felt comfortable continuing my dancing,鈥� she says. 鈥淏eing so far from home, it's nice to have a feeling of familiarity that dance will always offer. Daldance has also helped me get involved in the Dal community, which I think is really important to do.鈥�
While the social aspect of the society can be appealing to some, for others like second-year microbiology and immunology student Olivia Paxton-Beesley, DalDance has helped her keep dancing a part of her life鈥攁nd also inspired her to expand her interests.
鈥淚 knew I had to continue dancing when I started university,鈥� she says. 鈥淚鈥檝e been training in ballet and modern my whole life and never felt very comfortable straying from the two. DalDance changed my mind, and encouraged me to try different kinds of dance. So this year I鈥檓 doing jazz, ballet, modern, and contemporary, and I鈥檓 improving every class.鈥�
Members can take classes at DalDance for both the fall and winter terms, with different focuses in each term. Fall classes are more technique based and focus on across-the-floor exercises and learning short combinations of choreography. 鈥淒uring the second semester we work up to learning full-length pieces that are prepared for the show,鈥� says Roxanne. 鈥淚t鈥檚 great to show people how much effort we鈥檝e put in all year doing what we love.鈥�
Anyone interested in becoming a member can get in touch with DalDance on or through its .