Since 2016, Ballet Edmonton has partnered with local agencies and organizations to offer outreach dance programs to underserved community members. Part of building healthy, inclusive communities is removing barriers to participation – including cost. We work with our partners to identify needs and develop accessible programs that will generate the highest level of engagement. From our Hip Hop for Newcomers classes to our adapted programs for children and youth with disabilities, these programs are created in response to the needs expressed by the community. Ensuring all Edmontonians can access dance and movement-based programming is how Art Connects connects us to ourselves and each other.
As part of Ballet Edmonton’s Art Connects programs, our movement classes for adults and seniors focus on ballet-based activities designed to improve balance, increase range of movement, prevent injury and manage symptoms associated with age-related illnesses including Alzheimer’s and dementia.
Dance is not just for the young, it can and should be enjoyed throughout one’s life!
In collaboration with National Ballet School of Canada, Ballet Edmonton offers a safe and accessible ballet-based movement program for active seniors to support them in their health and wellness goals.
Program Details:
A Ballet Edmonton dancer will come to your facility and teach a 1-hour class tailored specifically to the needs of your group.
Seniors can be seated during class for stability, so even those will mobility or balance issues can participate.
Why Dance for Seniors? Physical benefits of dancing in older adulthood may include:
Did You Know?
Dancing integrates several brain functions at once — kinesthetic, rational, musical, and emotional — further increasing the neural connectivity. Frequent dancing provides a 76% reduced risk of dementia; the greatest risk reduction of any activity studied, cognitive or physical. Read more here.
Movement classes also have many emotional and social benefits for older adults by bringing people out of isolation to engage in a shared positive activity. Helping our community feel empowered through movement is how Art Connects.
Ballet Edmonton believes that dance education should be available and accessible to every child or youth in Edmonton. We help realize this in the community through our Art Connects education and outreach initiative. We develop our programs to be responsive to the needs of the community and we rely on our partners to help us connect to kids who want to be included.
Dance for Newcomers Series
In partnership with Action for Healthy Communities, local schools, and other partner agencies, we program a variety of dance classes in different dance styles.
We offer classes for newcomer kids and youth who face barriers to accessing paid programmes. We partner with local agencies that help us identify young people who have expressed an interest in dance and create free programming that is responsive to their interests. Building belonging and supporting a positive settlement journey through dance is one way we support young people in our community. For inquiries or to register, click here.
Adapted Dance
We partner with Cerebral Palsy Alberta to offer adapted classes for children and youth who face a variety of disability challenges.
Dance is about more than the ability to memorize a series of moves. Our adapted dance classes allow kids to engage in dance and music within the context of their ability. They come to class with the same excitement about moving to music that any child does, and through the use of musical games, we help them navigate new ways to follow directions, improve balance, distinguish movement patterns, and develop concepts of music and rhythm. The benefits to each participant are not only physical but also social, emotional and cognitive.
These outreach programs are generously supported by our community partners.