Neah Kalcounis is a cutting edge dance maker. Underlining her rigor and intelligence, Calgary’s Avenue Magazine chose her as one of the Top Ten Calgarians to Watch in the millennium. Over eight years, she's pursued dance from her base in Calgary, Alberta.Where Canada Magazine chose her as one of Calgary's top "Nine Artists Rising",

Neah knows she's intense...Her own physical language is gestural and gnarled, with a hint of something ancient as the Earth... Kalcounis is passionate about dance, not in an airy-fairy way, but driven by a much larger impulse...-Melanie Jones, March 2005.

Neah entered the ‘90s with Advanced Royal Academy of Dancing and ISTD ballet certification. She went on to university studies in philosophy (Regina, SK); spent two years at Grant MacEwan Community College (Edmonton, AB), graduating in Dance Performance on the Dean’s Honour Roll (modern technique, composition and teaching studies). She then ventured forth to Ottawa's Le Groupe Dance Lab , Canada's premiere choreographic laboratory, for her professional debut and immersion in Eastern Canadian dance. In 1998, she returned to Calgary to found Footprints, to study philosophy, and to mount professional choreography with a corps of modern dancers.

A Canada Council and Alberta Foundation for the Arts supported choreographer, her work "MEMVRANI" was recently presented at Calgary's Dancers' Studio West where she has completed her third Artist in Residency.

Andrea Pass :: Associate Artistic Director Special Projects.
Andrea Pass is a graduate of Calgary's Young Canadians and the UofC Dance Program. Working as a choreographer and professional arts programmer, she has been at Neah's side from the earliest conception of Footprints, helping to guide our programs and to steer our growth. CURRENTLY ON SABBATICAL. Watch Andrea's award winning dance film "CEA" .

Yholima Vargas :: Youth Latin Movement.

A life-long student of Colombian dance, Yholima performed publicly in Colombian local, regional and national events before immigrating to Canada in 1998. In 2000, she co-founded As ies Colombia. She's performed at Expo Latino, Immigrants of Distinction, ROCK Against Racism, the Calgary Stampede, Heritage Day, Canada Day, Multicultural Nights, Mosaic Festival, Lilac Festival, Carifest, Globalfest and the Footprints Kidz Summer Blast Festival. When not dancing, she's raising her son and working on her diploma in social work.

Helping Calgary Kidz Discover The Joys The Arts Bring.
Copyright 2006. All rights reserved. Photo Credits: Tony Field 2005.

NAVIGATION ::

Neah Kalcounis
Yholima Vargas
Naomi Brand