One Hundred and One from the Encyclopedia of Theatre Dance in Canada

Susan Free teaches movement in the drama program at the University of
Toronto.

Despite the unprepossessing title and cover, this is a great little book
for dance lovers, as well as for journalists and others who require
accurate information on Canadian dance artists. As the title suggests,
the book consists of 101 ( a mere 1.7 percent) entries culled from the
comprehensive Encyclopedia of Theatre Dance in Canada, available as a
database since 1989.

This volume features “core information” on some of the big names in
Canadian theatrical dance, from founding figures Nesta Toumine and
Gweneth Lloyd to more current mainstays Ginette Laurin and Edouard Lock.
But in addition to the cross-section of dancers, it also includes
information on choreographers, teachers, and administrators.
(Fortunately, there is less of a Toronto bias than one might expect.)

Many of the book’s entries are written by Canada’s best-known, most
knowledgeable, and most interesting dance writers—Max Wyman, Paula
Citron, Leland Windreich, Graham Jackson, and Michael Crabb—whose
writing is succinct but rarely dry. Thumbing through the entries whets
one’s appetite not only for the full encyclopedia but also for
Canadian dance in general.