Menaka Thakkar Dance Company
Toronto 43° 39' 12.53" N, 79° 23' 2.16" W Dance Group
For over 30 years, the Menaka Thakkar Dance Company has been a unique treasure in Canada’s dance world. Canada’s oldest Indian dance company exposes audiences to the stunning beauty of traditional Indian dance, while remaining open to other dance cultures in the creation of new works. The company uses the language of many dance styles to re-interpret ancient themes and introduce contemporary concepts. The Menaka Thakkar Dance Company and its Artistic Director, Menaka Thakkar, have earned a reputation for artistic excellence, presenting works that are visually spectacular and infused with drama.
The Menaka Thakkar Dance Company’s repertoire includes traditional and contemporary works in Bharatanatyam and Odissi, two of seven styles of classical dance in India. As an innovator in the presentation of Indian dance, Menaka Thakkar has also choreographed a number of exciting new works often fusing Indian dance styles with contemporary dance styles from other cultures.
In addition to presenting new works in its Toronto home season, the Company frequently tours across Canada and internationally. In fact, this is the first professional Canadian company of Indian Dance to tour extensively in India, where it has been met enthusiastically in Madras, Calcutta, Ahmedabad, New Delhi, Hyderabad, and Bombay. It maintains a program of school residencies through the year and often invites guest dancers and choreographers from other companies from Canada, India, England, and the U.K.
The Menaka Thakkar Dance Company is the first professional Indian dance company in Canada to be recognized as part of Canada’s mainstream professional dance companies by the Canada Council which provides annual operating support.