Eyes On Beginnings
A Works-In-Progress Series

Eshan Rafi (b. 1986, Lahore) is an artist working across time-based, lens-based and choreographic practices.  Their works deal with the intersection of political events and personal archives, often staging the impossibility of representation. Rafi is an alumni of the Home Workspace Program at Ashkal Alwan in Beirut, Lebanon, and has participated in residencies at Fondazioni Antonio Ratti in Como (IT), Saas-Fee Summer Institute of Art in Berlin (DE), and the Banff Centre for the Arts (CA), among others. Their work has been exhibited, performed and screened internationally including at Links Hall, Chicago (US); SummerWorks Lab, Toronto (CA); Sharjah Film Platform (AE); M:ST 9 Performance Art Biennale, Calgary (CA) and neue Gesellschaft für bildende Kunst, Berlin (DE). Rafi’s artistic practice rests on a history of community building in queer of colour communities, including working in collectives to develop decolonial and anti-capitalist pedagogies. They hold an MFA in Art, Theory and Practice from Northwestern University.

Born in Montreal, Quebec Cassandra Toutou is a dance artist and choreographer based in Brampton. Her love for Afro-dance was cultivated at home during her childhood via her Cameroonian upbringing. From then on she has continued to develop her training by including elements of her cultural background and personal style. She fuses aspects of Ndombolo, Azonto, Konto, Coupé Décalé and Ambass Bey into her movement. Growing up in an African household, her ear for music was developed early on by the grandiosity of music videos and live performances, listening to various genres such as Makossa from Cameroon, Soukous from Congo, Highlife from Ghana and Nigeria. These experiences have helped shape her training and her love for African culture. She aspires to bridge the two realms that have marked her artistry the most into one, to oust the concept of polarity and to allow her movement to waver between continental and diasporic worlds. 

Kala Dance Collective is rooted in Bharatanatyam, with a vision to honor classical technique while pushing the boundaries of tradition. Our work centers around exploration and experimentation, discovering new pathways of expression within the form. We aim to tell stories that reflect our Canadian diasporic experiences, celebrate our heritage, and showcase the richness of South Asian culture through dance.

At Kala, we question how Bharatanatyam shapes our Indo-Canadian identities and how these identities fit within an evolving contemporary arts landscape. We are passionate about creating a vibrant, inclusive space for South Asian diasporic bodies to explore and perform diasporic dance. This vision led to the creation of the Prep + Practice program, offering free classes for intermediate and advanced Bharatanatyam dancers from all banis. These sessions focus on building a strong foundation through warm-ups, form-focused exercises, and exploratory adavu practice, fostering growth in a community-driven environment.

Brianna Maltais is a tap dancer and improviser with a focus on tap dance history, musical collaboration, and the exploration of textural soundscapes.

Her performance credits include appearances with The Skyliners Big Band at the Barrie Jazz and Blues Festival, Get Out and Dance produced by Simcoe Contemporary Dancers, the Toronto International Dance Festival, and Dance Against the Wind, produced by Vintage Taps Company and starring Brenda Buffalino.

Brianna contributed to the 2024 Toronto International Tap Dance Festival as part of the production team for Toffan Rhythm Projects. She also co-produced an event for Barrie Culture Days celebrating Canadian tap dancer Joey Hollingsworth.

Brianna is excited to present her work-in-progress, developed in collaboration with Leah Reinardy, at Eyes on Beginnings. This piece emerged during Heather Cornell’s Legacy Project, where she has studied with tap masters Heather Cornell, Dianne Walker, and Max Pollak.

Emily Duckett (she/they) is a Black, queer, dance artist residing in Tkaronto. They’re artistic expression is profoundly influenced by they’re intersecting identities. Emily’s practice is based on the belief that creating and manipulating art is a communal endeavor. Focusing on the idea that dance is a vehicle for de-socialization, leaving deeply embedded societal constraints behind and instead existing whole heartily in the body. Since graduating from York University with a BFA in Dance and a Specialized Honor in performance and choreography in 2022, Emily has collaborated with esteemed companies such as Mocean Dance, The Garage, Wind in the Leaves Collective, Kinetic Studio and ProArteDanza. At present, their artistic exploration centers on themes of unity, chaos, visceral instincts, pleasure, paradoxes, and risk taking.

Ben is a dance artist based in Tkaronto/Toronto. They are a recent graduate of Dance Arts Institute (formerly The School of Toronto Dance Theatre), where they had the opportunity to collaborate with established artists such as Alyssa Martin, Riley Sims, B Solomon, Michael Caldwell, and Heidi Strauss. They are interested in the navigation of contemporary life and the human psyche refracted through impulsive, hedonistic movement that pokes fun at classical modern dance and embraces uncanny theatricality. Through the DaCo choreographic residency in 2023, Ben presented their work, The Sims: On Ice!, with the support of Peggy Baker, David Norsworthy, and Angela Blumberg. Ben strongly believes that dance should be a pleasurable experience for the performer, the choreographer, and the audience alike, and strives to use their skills as a choreographer and music composer to create vibrant, engaging pieces of dance theatre that are both touching and thought-provoking.

Rumi Jeraj is an Ismailli muslim hailing from Sherwood Park Alberta (the world’s largest hamlet). A Graduate of Toronto Metropolitan University Rumi has worked for dance artists including Daryl Tracy, Heidi Strauss, Hannah Kiel and Eilish Shin-Culhane. Recently Rumi has presented works at Dusk Dances and with Fermented Dance at Hamilton Fringe. His collaborators include drummer Aidan McConnell on a project called Space and Spectra which aims to create collaboration between contemporary dancers and musicians. Rumi is also using his Tap Dance knowledge to create a work with Purawai Vyas (a Bharatanatyam dancer) which brings their forms together. He aspires to create and be a part of work which mixes forms in order to better tell stories. He believes there is a perfect balance between words, music, and movement which can communicate intellectually, emotionally and viscerally all at once. He aspires to find this state on stage.

I am Ranganathan Rajan, born in India and currently based in Toronto. I am an emerging contemporary dance artist, with training in Kalaripayattu, Bharatanatyam and Contemporary dance techniques. I graduated with a Diploma in Movement Arts and Mixed Media from Attakkalari Centre for Movement Arts Bangalore, India in 2021. Currently, I am a second year student of the Professional Training Program at Dance Arts Institute Toronto, Canada. Additionally, I also completed two performance intensives at Play Practice Artist Residency Bangalore, and a Documentary theatre course from Serendipity Arts Foundation Delhi, India. I have worked as a dancer with Attakkalari Dance company in two of their productions- Sthavara Jangama and Transitions. I have also been a part of the first production of We All Have an Expiry Date by Asha Ponikiewska. In Canada, I was part of the project WOODS by Clarice Lima, presented at the Beyond concrete at Bentaway. I volunteered for the festivals, Attakkalari India Biennale 2022 and Prakriti Excellence in Contemporary Dance Awards. I was also a member of the production crew for a film project East of Eden by Joshua Sailo and Anishaa Tavag. I am always engaged in independent creation and recently presented my solo choreography I Will Judge Myself as part of the Parahumans show, The Unveiling, mentored by Dave Wilson, Phase colloide: a solo durational multimedia performance performed at the Rhubarb Festival at the Buddies in Badtime Theatre. And I am in the process of creating a performance piece titled The Running Project.

Juliette Coleman (She/Her) is an interdisciplinary artist / master of none based Tkaronto. While training at The School of Toronto Dance Theatre (now Dance Arts Institute) she began curating and producing multidisciplinary art events and concerts under the name Not a Collective and now continues this work as the Studio Manager of Tibet Street Records. In 2020, she stepped away from dance and began studying film and has since studied at TMU, UCLA Extension, The Sundance Institute, LIFT and The Berlin Art Institute. After believing she had quit dance for the third and final time, she began to move again. Driven by curiosity, she is investigating how all of her creative practices, endeavors and interests can inform one another and is very excited by this ongoing exploration.

Arin Aron (she/they/he) From Edmonton, AB a bountiful city created in favour of the unfavourable I jumped at chances and went crazy at dances and got tied up in so many fictions that I had to run from the hills. Trying to make amends with polarising forces. A Gemini caught between two sides – finding comfort in the in-betweens and nowhere nears. Making the most of the leftovers, generating material, gathering forgotten thoughts.

A dynamic and engaging performer, Angela Déiseach (choreographer/dancer) is a prominent figure in the Toronto flamenco community. Trained in Toronto, Madrid and Seville, Angela began her performance career as a featured member of the acclaimed Esmeralda Enrique Spanish Dance Company, with whom she danced for many seasons. In 2016 she co-founded Illumina Flamenco, a collective dedicated to performing traditional and contemporary flamenco. Highlights from her time with Illumina Flamenco include the full-length production Amor Flamenco and the site-specific Resonance for the Frost Bites Winter Festival. As an independent artist, Angela’s work has been featured in Toronto dance festivals Dance Matters, The New Blue Festival, and Night/Shift and with musical projects Clic-Clac Flamenco and JDT and the Vamps (Flamenco/world music). Angela is a regular guest artist with leading Toronto flamenco presenters Tablao Flamenco Toronto and FabCollab – La Cueva.

Barbara Simms (they/she) is a freelance dancer and choreographer currently based out of Tkaronto. As a dancer, she desires  to absorb as much knowledge as possible, and deeply understand a variance of teachings. Choreographically, they are interested in finding moments of striking visual imagery in which bodies and natural landscapes are given equal weight and exist in relation to one another. Barbara is a graduate of the Performance Dance program at Toronto Metropolitan University.

Mackenzie Mccallum-Mallory is a transgender artist, playwright, puppeteer, and image maker. He’s currently working on a trans-adaptation of Giselle, and continuing to develop his solo show, BODY PLAN. He has recently worked with Clay and Paper Theatre as a puppeteer in their annual Night of Dread and as a Summer Company Apprentice. Selected credits include: Bird Troupe Puppeteer (Walk with Amal 2023), DINO (Rock Bottom Movement, Guelph Dance Festival 2023), Queer Youth Cabaret: Queer Icons (Soulpepper, 2022), QUEERCAB: PLAYING WITH ABUNDANCE (Buddies in Bad Times Theatre, 2022), This Is Beyond – A Time Capsule of Queer Experience (Monologue included in Anthology).  

Shivani Joshi trained as a Bharatnatyam dancer for over 20 years. She completed her Arangetram at Shivanjali Dance and graduated with a MA in performance studies from NYU Tisch in 2021. Most recently, she created Shiva/Shakti – Eternal Lovers, a film for Guelph Dance SDS, performed Tangled Threads at the AGH, and presented Sisterhood in Circularity at Dusk Dances. Currently, she works as an artist/writer/producer, combining media and narrative to explore stories to tell modern stories, and playing with metaphor in physical form.