It’s not easy starting up a new dance company but after scouring the Toronto scene to find a fit for their diverse stylistic interests, dancers Janet Castillo and Natasha Powell, left, threw caution to the wind and formed Catalyst in 2009. “We want the company to be a catalyst,” says Powell. “The city needs it. We always felt like something was missing . . . we’re trying to fill a gap.”
Hip hop, house, ballet, contact improvisation and jazz – Castillo and Powell have no desire to choose between styles, they want to blend and merge forms and see what happens. Last year, they recruited three like-minded women – Tiffany Mak, Anna Bilotta and Sarah Cruickshank – and dove into creating The Fifth Element, debuting at the Six Degrees event centre (2335 Yonge Street) May 5. In fact, the ladies will be premiering “Fire” in Dundas Square on Sunday (May 2, approximately 1:30 pm) as part of the Dance Umbrella of Ontario’s celebration of International Dance Day.
Squeezing under the DUO canopy has been a smart move for Catalyst; DUO provides a knowledge base and access to free rehearsal space at the National Ballet School, which is where I caught up with the company for a sneak peak at the show, above.
Another facility the dancers have accessed in their quest for “world domination” is the Dancer Transition Resource Centre. “We’ve been going to workshops and discovering that the resources are available, why not take advantage of them?” says Powell. “We’re networking with people who have done it before and gotten grants, we’re definitely at that stage now.”
“We’ve both danced for so long but always according to someone else’s vision,” notes Castillo. “We wanted to take what we’ve learned and put it into our own vision. We keep going to shows looking for our thing and we don’t find it. We’re looking to see where we fit in and find out what we can bring to the table.”
“We’re very passionate about what we do and we have the skills,” adds Powell, “so we thought, why not? We’ve put together a good group of girls who we think can put on a really good show and that’s why we’re here.”
Although dance is an exhausting practice, each member of Catalyst has a day job and somehow manages to fit her passion for movement into off hours. “You gotta do what you gotta do,” acknowledges Powell. “But luckily we have evenings and weekends, and this definitely helps get us through our 9 – 5 jobs, the creativity inspires us.”
“Catalyst is about sparking change and accelerating to the next level,” concludes Castillo, “it’s about creating our own formula. It’s not just about the moves, it’s about the motivational side of dance, it’s deeper.”
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GREAT ARTICLE!!! Thank you so much Chris!