Review: Fall 2025 Season (ProArteDanza)

ProArteDanza has long been one of my favourite contemporary dance companies in Toronto, but it has been a few years since I have had the chance to see them perform. Walking into the theatre after that long break felt like meeting up with an old friend, some new faces but the same unmistakable energy. With ProArteDanza, you know you are going to get a physical and technically strong show and the Fall 2025 Season showcase did not disappoint. This fall program features three new pieces by choreographers Kevin O'Day, Dominique Dumais and Artistic Director Roberto Campanella.

Opening the program was An Unwinding, choreographed by Kevin O’Day. This trio is set to the music of Neil Young, an unexpectedly perfect match for contemporary dance. There is so much emotion and texture in Young’s sound, and O’Day’s choreography draws out that same clarity and depth with movement. Moments of stillness punctuate the work: the music stops, the dancers freeze in contorted shapes, and a hush fills the room before they count themselves back in, sometimes in English, sometimes in French. It’s a short, measured piece, easy to take in but layered with subtle charming details. The costumes by Valerie Calam, with earthy blues, oranges, blacks, browns, and tans, ground the piece beautifully. All three dancers (Demetri Apostolopoulos, Sarah Di Iorio, and Sasha Ludavicius) were strong, with Apostolopoulos standing out for his own clarity, strength, and stretch through the movement.

Next up was Memento Vitae, choreographed by Dominique Dumais, which examines the notion of time, both as something shaped by external pressures and as a measure of our own fleeting existence. Text from Jeanette Winterson’s Gut Symmetries is projected throughout, beginning with a whisper overlaid on white noise. One dancer stands centre stage, visibly alone and suffering, as others rush toward and away from them before getting too close. The first half of the work carries this tone of isolation before shifting into a fiery, kinetic section filled with fast footwork, overlapping gestures, and even an onstage kiss.

There are so many beautiful moments from the cast of six dancers to hold onto: a full-bodied gasp for air with heads arcing toward the ceiling in unison, and Dumais’s use of repetition with one movement echoed across the group at different speeds and dynamics, giving each dancer a distinct voice within the ensemble.

Midway through, the piece dives more explicitly into its central theme of time as the dancers line up across the back of the stage and walk forward one by one, each offering their own quip about the theme: “Killing time,” “Maybe this time,” “Lunch time,” “Out of time,” “You need a time out,” “Did I do it good this time?” Each phrase lands with its own tone of humour, anxiety, or tenderness, delivered with crisp clarity and charm. This was my favourite section of the work, and likely the audience’s too based on their audible reactions.

The lighting design by Noah Feaver also adds great atmosphere and shape throughout, from subtle shadow play to a moment where the dancers walk into a bright wash of light at one side of the stage, surrounded by darkness, creating an ominous tone. Memento Vitae is a strong work—maybe a little long, with a few moments that could have been tightened—but full of great movement and energy that keeps you locked in the whole time.

Following intermission is Un’Altra Vita: Inspired by True Events, a new ensemble work by Artistic Director Roberto Campanella, created with the company’s dancers. The piece is described as an “almost” autobiographical exploration which blurs memory, dream, and reality. Campanella examines the self through four men, supported by an ensemble who each carry a fragment of his story.

The piece opens with breath and guttural sounds from a female cast member under a single flickering bulb—a haunting image (especially in being a very pregnant audience member—joking!) that leads to a moment of birth: a “baby” emerging from behind a curtain, floppy yet strong, flipping onto its stomach as life begins. From there, the four central men appear as distinct yet connected figures, each representing a different thread of experience. Some moments elicit laughter or warmth, others turn toward romance, pain, or travel.

Un’Altra Vita feels deeply personal yet surprisingly accessible. Even without knowing Campanella’s full story, the movement reads clearly and the emotions land. That balance between intimacy and openness is rare, and it allows the work to resonate beyond autobiography.

The score, too, is powerful and perfectly matched to the choreography’s shifts in tone. And, the piece has a great ending. It shows how just when you think you’ve figured life out, it throws another curveball (quite literally). I loved this piece as well and it really stuck with me after the show, though it could be also tightened slightly in length.

ProArteDanza’s Fall 2025 Season showcases what the company does best: dance that’s intelligent, technical, and deeply felt. Even with a few moments that could have been trimmed, the evening proved why this ensemble remains one of Toronto’s most consistently strong and rewarding to watch. I also love the company’s long-time support of emerging dancers through its summer intensive program, where one participant is selected each year to perform with the company in an upcoming work. In the final piece, Aerin Cho was presented as the apprentice, a well-deserved opportunity and a strong performance worth congratulating.

Fall 2025 Season, presented by ProArteDanza at the Betty Oliphant Theatre (404 Jarvis St., Toronto), is playing until November 2nd, 2025. Tickets are between $35-$55 and can be purchased here.

www.proartedanza.com | Socials: @ProArteDanza

Photo by Jeremy Mimnagh.

Written by Deanne Kearney | DeanneKearney.com @deannekearney