Our Mandate


The ESDF builds connections between local professional artists and young dancers. We aim to increase equitable access to fine arts programming through the provision of dance workshops, lectures, community-based dance programs, and mentorship opportunities. It is essential that young dancers relate to their instructors, feel represented within the content they are studying, and are exposed to a wide variety of cultural dance forms, their history, and evolution within socio-political and racial justice contexts.
We provide leadership opportunities for young artists and grow their capacity to make a positive impact in their local communities. We provide training and performance opportunities, fostering artistic, interpersonal, social-emotional, and multimedia skills in dance. The result is the emergence of a new generation of holistically healthy, resilient citizens, lifelong learners, patrons, and participants in the arts.
Our Mission

The Eastside Dance Festival is committed to promoting personal and cultural identity, facilitating community building, and creating career pathways for young artists through dance.
- Dance is an expression of cultural identity, a way for young people to explore, create and convey who they are in the world. ESDF Society removes barriers preventing young people from training and performing in Dance.
- Dance facilitates the capacity for community building and empowers young people to make meaningful contributions to the greater society.
- Dance is a bridge to post-secondary education and career development. Our alumni continue to be a part of the inclusive arts community in Calgary as artists and patrons after they leave our program.

Our Advisory Board


Lisa La Touche
Dance Specialist & Freelance Artist

Edgar Reyes
illFX

Sakshi Kaur
Former Participant | illFX

Masani St. Rose
Dance Specialist & Freelance Artist

Dwight Farahat
Tribe Artists Society

Joanne Baker
Dance Specialist & Freelance Artist

Jomari Samiley
illFX

Anita Miotti
Founding Member

Anne Flynn
U of C
Our History

In 2013, founding member Karyn Leavitt recognized an enormous amount of talent in and passion for dance in school programs in the East end of Calgary. She suggested four schools come together to showcase the work created in their dance programs and the Eastside Dance Festival was born. Since then, we have incorporated as a non-profit society separate from the school boards and expanded our programming to include year-round free community dance programs in underserved areas, teacher training conferences, and mentorship partnerships with Pulse Studios and the University of Calgary. This year, our community partners donated over $100,000 in bursaries and scholarships to the young artists in our organization who expressed an interest in continuing their training in dance after high school. This year, we were honored to receive the City of Calgary’s Community Achievement in the Arts Award (2023).
Our News


YYC Award Recipient
We are so proud to announce that the East Side Dance Festival Society was the recipient of the the City of Calgary Arts Organization Award for 2023.

Alumni Speak
Our alumni continue to be a part of the inclusive arts community in Calgary as artists, support and participate in our advisory board and are patrons after they leave our program.