Dance Committee

Amanda Hancox, Chair is the Executive Director of the Dancer Transition Resource Centre (DTRC). She is a graduate of the Arts Educational School in England and began her dance career as a member of Les Feux Follets, touring Canada, the United States, Europe and the Middle East. Amanda worked extensively for 25 years as a dancer and an actress in theatre, film and television, and is a member of both ACTRA and the Canadian Actors’ Equity Association. Amanda joined the DTRC in 2002 as Director of Administration, a position she held until her appointment as Executive Director in January 2006. She is an executive member of International Organization for the Transition of Professional Dancers (IOTPD), and Chair of the Dance Media Group (The Dance Current). Amanda has served as a juror for Canada Council for the Arts, and for the Toronto Arts Foundation’s Signature Awards in 2015. 

Nicole Inica Hamilton is an award winning choreographer, and the Founder/ Artistic Director of Inica Dance Industries. A certified educator and member of Dance Masters of Canada and Dance Masters of America, Hamilton has served as a guest teacher, mentor and speaker at institutes across Canada including but not limited to; George Brown College, University of Toronto, York University and University of Calgary. She has presented in national and international conventions including; En Avant -RAD World Convention, Toronto Dance Teacher Expo, Creation Dance Championships, the Performing Arts Medicine Association and more. Hamilton is an on -air radio Host at CIUT 89.5 FM, and is the Producer/ Host of Turn Out Radio. She reports on the current news affairs of our time with special focus on arts, health, career, and business news. She is the in -suite moderator for dance Immersion, and has operated as a guest correspondent on media and discussion platforms across Canada including the Career Buzz Show, and Fall for Dance North's Mambo Podcast. Her voice has been featured on national commercials, film, and television networks where she has moderated, and facilitated conversations with leaders across the globe. In her work in health, Hamilton is a counsellor and actively works with organizations to advocate for and promote healthy practices for dance Artists. Her presentations on practices of self-care, injury prevention, holistic teaching practices and psychological stress have been presented on nationwide platforms, festivals and conferences.

Shannon Litzenberger is an award-winning dance artist, embodiment facilitator and experienced cultural leader working at the intersection of art, ideas and transformational change. Her work as a dancer and performance maker explores our relationship to land, the politics of belonging, and the forgotten wisdom of the body. Her imaginative productions have been presented across Canada and the US and she has collaborated with some of Canada’s most celebrated artists including Marie-Josée Chartier, Lorna Crozier, Christopher Dewdney, Renelta Arluk, David Earle, Ravi Jain, Don McKay, charles c. smith and Michael Greyeyes, among others. She has been an invited resident artist at Soulpepper Theatre, Toronto Dance Theatre, Harbourfront Centre, Atlantic Ballet Theatre, Banff Centre, and Saskatoon’s Remai Modern and is a frequent collaborator with the wind in the leaves collective. Shannon is the recipient of the Jack McAllister Award for accomplishment in dance, A 2019 Chalmers Fellow, and a twice-shortlisted finalist for the prestigious KM Hunter Award. Her recent work World After Dark was nominated for a 2019 Dora Mavor Moore Award.

Esie Mensah is someone whose work – every performance, project, and partnership – embodies the multifaceted artist, her creative footprint is everywhere. As a dancer, choreographer, and movement director, Esie brings her mastery in storytelling to audiences as diverse as her experience. From working with megastars like Rihanna, Drake and Arcade Fire, to historied brands of Coca Cola, Luminato, TIFF, Shaw Festival and 98.1 CHFI (to name a few), Esie Mensah’s creations shows no sign of limits or slowing down.

For her own work, Esie has committed to using Afrofusion to explore more personal narratives of her Ghanaian heritage, blackness, and belonging, and has created works ZAYO and the Dora Award-nominated Shades, a piece that uncovers the process of healing from shadeism in the Black community. 

Jera Wolfe. Born in Toronto, Canada, Jera Wolfe is a choreographer and performer of Métis heritage and is an Associate Artist with Red Sky Performance. Mr. Wolfe’s captivating choreography has awarded him the 2019 Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Original Choreography for Trace by Red Sky Performance. He has demonstrated an impressive repertoire of works presented by Canadian Stage, Fall For Dance North, Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity, Festival des arts de Saint-Sauveur, Danse Danse and Jacob's Pillow. His recent works include Bare choreographed at Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Arise for Canada's National Ballet School, Embers for Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre and Reliance for Ryerson University’s School of Performance.The official Canadian choreographer for Canada’s National Ballet School’s Sharing Dance Day 2020, Mr. Wolfe was also the Ontario Ambassador for International Dance Day 2020. Aside from choreography, he performs primarily for Red Sky Performance and has also performed with many other companies including Peggy Baker Dance Projects. Mr. Wolfe graduated from Canada's Royal Winnipeg Ballet School and since 2016 has returned to the company to create new works each year.