artistic director
Heidi Strauss’ work explores how people interact with each other, and with their environments. Her work bridges disciplines of dance and theatre, crossing into immersive and installation-based performance as well as being presented on different sized stages. As Artistic Director of adelheid, she develops new performance works and initiates programs for other artists - currently including re:research(for emerging dance creators),and Cohort (for makers integrating digital technologies into creation). She has been a resident artist at the Factory Theatre, The Theatre Centre and Harbourfront Centre. Her film collaborations have been screened at dança em foco (Rio de Janiero), nu2’s IDN festival (Barcelona) and d:mic (Toronto). She has been commissioned by/choreographed for Toronto Dance Theatre, Mocean Dance, The Frankfurt Opera, The Canadian Opera Company, Volcano Theatre, and the Stratford Festival. Heidi is a recipient of the KM Hunter Award for Dance and multiple Dora Awards.
email Heidi
Heidi Strauss’ work explores how people interact with each other, and with their environments. Her work bridges disciplines of dance and theatre, crossing into immersive and installation-based performance as well as being presented on different sized stages. As Artistic Director of adelheid, she develops new performance works and initiates programs for other artists - currently including re:research(for emerging dance creators),and Cohort (for makers integrating digital technologies into creation). She has been a resident artist at the Factory Theatre, The Theatre Centre and Harbourfront Centre. Her film collaborations have been screened at dança em foco (Rio de Janiero), nu2’s IDN festival (Barcelona) and d:mic (Toronto). She has been commissioned by/choreographed for Toronto Dance Theatre, Mocean Dance, The Frankfurt Opera, The Canadian Opera Company, Volcano Theatre, and the Stratford Festival. Heidi is a recipient of the KM Hunter Award for Dance and multiple Dora Awards.
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artistic producer
Rachel Penny is a producer working in dance, theatre and community-engaged arts, with an interest in being a part of a more equitable and just performing art community in Toronto. Rachel has worked with a diverse range of organizations including Harbourfront Centre, The Luminato Festival, Young People’s Theatre, Volcano Theatre, Peggy Baker Dance Projects, and The AMY Project. Rachel has been mentored in producing through Theatre Ontario’s Professional Theatre Training Program (with Aislinn Rose) and the Metcalf Foundation Performing Arts Internship Program (with Meredith Potter). Currently, Rachel also works as a Creative Producer with The Theatre Centre.
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Rachel Penny is a producer working in dance, theatre and community-engaged arts, with an interest in being a part of a more equitable and just performing art community in Toronto. Rachel has worked with a diverse range of organizations including Harbourfront Centre, The Luminato Festival, Young People’s Theatre, Volcano Theatre, Peggy Baker Dance Projects, and The AMY Project. Rachel has been mentored in producing through Theatre Ontario’s Professional Theatre Training Program (with Aislinn Rose) and the Metcalf Foundation Performing Arts Internship Program (with Meredith Potter). Currently, Rachel also works as a Creative Producer with The Theatre Centre.
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artistic associate
Over the last 10 years Jeremy Mimnagh has been involved in still photography, film, AR, projection, and sound works that ask unanswerable questions contending with, and relevant to, living in this world today - with all that is broken. From a film delving into the impossibility of acquiring a culture, to performance works exploring the limits of memory, the inherent generational difference relative to lived experience, and the irreversible human impact on the natural world, these collaborations have sought to have their audiences consider deeply a vast constellation of unknowns. In looking at what we don’t have answers to, perhaps we can ask ourselves more honestly to be where we are. Maybe in seeing what is broken we can see more clearly what can be different, and what can change. www.mimnagh.ca
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Over the last 10 years Jeremy Mimnagh has been involved in still photography, film, AR, projection, and sound works that ask unanswerable questions contending with, and relevant to, living in this world today - with all that is broken. From a film delving into the impossibility of acquiring a culture, to performance works exploring the limits of memory, the inherent generational difference relative to lived experience, and the irreversible human impact on the natural world, these collaborations have sought to have their audiences consider deeply a vast constellation of unknowns. In looking at what we don’t have answers to, perhaps we can ask ourselves more honestly to be where we are. Maybe in seeing what is broken we can see more clearly what can be different, and what can change. www.mimnagh.ca
email Jeremy
re:research producer/social media manager
Originally from New Brunswick, Jane-Alison McKinney is a dancer, choreographer, and producer. A graduate of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, she has performed the works of a variety of contemporary dance artists in Canada and Internationally. In 2016, she was awarded a Metcalf Foundation Internship Grant in Artistic Direction with adelheid under the mentorship of Heidi Strauss, whose close mentorship has played a profound impact on Jane-Alison’s artistic development. She has also worked with adelheid as a dancer, emerging choreographer, and producer. Jane Alison’s choreography has been supported nationally by a variety of festivals and residencies; most recently her solo work ‘There she was’ was presented by Tangente in Montreal. She is also co-director of the performance collective Bare Nerve with Emma Kerson. www.wildrabbitdance.com
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Originally from New Brunswick, Jane-Alison McKinney is a dancer, choreographer, and producer. A graduate of The School of Toronto Dance Theatre, she has performed the works of a variety of contemporary dance artists in Canada and Internationally. In 2016, she was awarded a Metcalf Foundation Internship Grant in Artistic Direction with adelheid under the mentorship of Heidi Strauss, whose close mentorship has played a profound impact on Jane-Alison’s artistic development. She has also worked with adelheid as a dancer, emerging choreographer, and producer. Jane Alison’s choreography has been supported nationally by a variety of festivals and residencies; most recently her solo work ‘There she was’ was presented by Tangente in Montreal. She is also co-director of the performance collective Bare Nerve with Emma Kerson. www.wildrabbitdance.com
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Metcalf Foundation Intern
Dedra McDermott is a new generation artist of colour, working as a professional dancer, emerging choreographer, producer, and movement dramaturg based in Tkaronto (Toronto). The scope of her performance career includes the diverse worlds of theatre, film and television. She has a B.F.A in Choreography and Performance from The School of Arts, Media, Performance and Design at York University and a Master of Arts from The Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies at The University of Toronto. Currently, her artistic practice utilizes autoethnographic methodology to weave both movement and literary choreographies to create live and filmed works. Her work focuses on identity, memory, and exploring what it means to reconstitute the voice and bodily presence as a way of decolonizing the self.
Dedra McDermott is a new generation artist of colour, working as a professional dancer, emerging choreographer, producer, and movement dramaturg based in Tkaronto (Toronto). The scope of her performance career includes the diverse worlds of theatre, film and television. She has a B.F.A in Choreography and Performance from The School of Arts, Media, Performance and Design at York University and a Master of Arts from The Centre for Drama, Theatre and Performance Studies at The University of Toronto. Currently, her artistic practice utilizes autoethnographic methodology to weave both movement and literary choreographies to create live and filmed works. Her work focuses on identity, memory, and exploring what it means to reconstitute the voice and bodily presence as a way of decolonizing the self.
Dedra McDermott is a recipient of the Metcalf Foundation Performing Arts Internship, focussing on Artistic Production (Curation and Dramaturgy) at Canadian Stage and adelheid for 2021-22.
email Dedra
email Dedra
Studio Space Co-ordinator
Jasmine Au (she/her) is a Toronto based movement artist. She is a recent graduate of X University’s Performance Dance program where she graduated with an Honours BFA. As an artist and a person-of-colour, Jasmine’s prime ambition is to present dynamic contemporary movement and embrace her role as a storyteller and messenger. Additionally, Jasmine is passionate in her pursuit of arts management and has completed a minor in marketing. In addition to adelheid dance projects, Jasmine is also gaining experience with The Orillia Centre for Arts + Culture, The AMY Project, and The National Arts Centre, and has recently joined the Board of Directors at Peggy Baker Dance Projects. She is excited to be unifying her academic and administrative background with her dance training.
email Jasmine
Jasmine Au (she/her) is a Toronto based movement artist. She is a recent graduate of X University’s Performance Dance program where she graduated with an Honours BFA. As an artist and a person-of-colour, Jasmine’s prime ambition is to present dynamic contemporary movement and embrace her role as a storyteller and messenger. Additionally, Jasmine is passionate in her pursuit of arts management and has completed a minor in marketing. In addition to adelheid dance projects, Jasmine is also gaining experience with The Orillia Centre for Arts + Culture, The AMY Project, and The National Arts Centre, and has recently joined the Board of Directors at Peggy Baker Dance Projects. She is excited to be unifying her academic and administrative background with her dance training.
email Jasmine
Board of Directors
Claire Holland, Chair
Nicole Hensen, Secretary
Irma Villafuerte, Treasurer
Bradley Powell
John Dalrymple
Claire Holland, Chair
Nicole Hensen, Secretary
Irma Villafuerte, Treasurer
Bradley Powell
John Dalrymple