Conceived and choreographed by Nova Bhattacharya, Svāhā!is a rallying cry for unity, and a celebration of life itself. A high-energy spectacle, this rich work fuses nearly 30 distinct dance traditions – from Bharatnatyam to Butoh, Jazz to Salsa – into a singular, joyful experience. A cast of 17 vibrant performers lend their individuality to an intricate and expansive choreography, creating a communal experience that answers the isolation and societal fractures of our times with jubilant defiance. Svāhā! is an event teeming with life, bursting with color, and centering the compassion of shared humanity. Its original score by tabla virtuoso Ed Hanley and dynamic lighting design by Simon Rossiter heighten the experience, making Svāhā! a compelling call for community, diversity, and collective wonder.
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Credits:
Choreographer: Nova Bhattacharya Original composition and musical direction: Ed Hanley Sound design: John Gzowski Lighting and set design: Simon Rossiter Costume design: Sage Paul & Nova Bhattacharya Additional Styling and construction: Val Calam Rehearsal Director: Anisa Tejpar Rehearsal assistant: Rachana Joshi Stage Manager: Marianna Rosato Assistant Stage Manager: Sofia Polti Creation support: Bonnie Kim, Louis Laberge-Côté, Tedd Robinson, Angie Cheng Producer: Carolina Rojas
Music Credits:
Instrumentation:Parmela Attariwala, Nova Bhattacharya, Larry Graves, Justin Gray, Ben Grossman, Ed Hanley, Mel Hart (cultural consultant, cypher), Gurtej Hunjan, Shri Madurai R. Muralidharan (Nattuvanga Jatis in Adi Tala), Santosh Naidu, Ben Riley, Purawai Vyas Vocals: Mushtari Afroz, Nova Bhattacharya, Ed Hanley, Neena Jayarajan, Rachana Joshi, Shanthini Kangesan, Bonnie Kim, Judy Luo, Supriya Nayak, Atri Nundy, Suba Sankaran, Malavika Santhosh, Sukruti Tirupattur, Yui Ugai
Dancers:Nova Bhattacharya, Rajvi Dedhia, Christina de la Cruz, Sofi Gudiño, Mel Hart, Neena Jayarajan, Ern in Motion, Rachana Joshi, Candace Kumar, Nyda Kwasowsky, Victoria Mata, Nivedha Ramalingam, Swadhi Ranganee, Kiru Ratnasingam, Eilish 미정 Shin-Culhane, Irma Villafuerte, Purawai Vyas
Nova Dance Staff:
Artistic Director, Nova Bhattacharya Artistic Producer: Mel Hart Financial and Administrative Coordinator: Rajvi Dedhia Mission Control Coordinator: Kalaishiga Kalaichelvan Administrative Coordinators: Rachana Joshi and Purawai Vyas
Produced by Nova Dance in partnership with Citadel + Compagnie, with support from the National Arts Centre National Creation Fund, TO Live, Dancehouse, Indian Summer Festival, SFU Woodward’s Cultural Programs, Canada Council for the Arts, Toronto Arts Council, Ontario Arts Council, Government of Canada’s Canada Summer Jobs, Metcalf Foundation, The National Ballet of Canada’s Open Space Program, Theatre Direct’s Balancing Act, The Theatre Centre, MAC Cosmetics and the essential support of individual donors. 2026 Rehearsal Partners: TO Live’s Making Space Program and Canada's National Ballet School.
Director’s Note
Svāhā! began with memories of gathering: of women celebrating, mourning, making community and creating home. It grew from a lifetime of dancing and from my fascination with the ways our bodies carry culture, memory, knowledge and joy.
Since its premiere in 2022, Svāhā!has continued to live and evolve through the artists who inhabit it. Each dancer brings a distinct movement history and way of knowing into the work. Together, they create something that belongs to all of us while remaining gloriously themselves. This continues to be one of the things I cherish most about Svāhā!: individuality amplifies collectivity.
I am profoundly grateful to the artists who have given themselves to this work over the years, to the collaborators and champions who helped bring it into being, and to the communities that have welcomed it.
At its heart, Svāhā!remains a love letter to dance and to dance as one of humanity’s most profound rituals of gathering.
We invite you to feel the rhythms and emotions with us, to delight in these extraordinary dancing bodies, and to consider the question that continues to live at the heart of Svāhā!: How can we be better together?
— Nova Bhattacharya, Artistic Director of Nova Dance
Nova Dance is a defining presence in Canadian contemporary performance, creating ambitious, genre-defying works that celebrate the power of dance to arouse the imagination. Founded in 2008 by Nova Bhattacharya, the Toronto-inspired company brings together artists, movement traditions and lived experience from the diaspora. From intimate solos and interdisciplinary collaborations to large-scale ensemble productions and land-based activations, Nova Dance crafts experiences that invite audiences into worlds of wonder, beauty, and possibility.
Renowned for technical virtuosity, vivid storytelling, and emotional resonance, the company's critically acclaimed works have been presented across Canada and internationally. Nova Dance’s repertoire celebrates the complexity of contemporary Canada while expanding the artistic canon, bringing diverse dance forms into dynamic conversation, fostering connection across communities, cultures, and generations, and affirming the capacity of art to cultivate empathy, deepen connections, and manifest more compassionate futures.
Nova Bhattacharya is an award-winning choreographer, performer, and cultural leader whose work has helped redefine the possibilities of contemporary dance in Canada. Known for her distinctive movement language and rigorous physicality her work emerges from diasporic experience, intercultural exchange, and a belief that dance can function simultaneously as ritual, rebellion, gathering, and care. Since founding Nova Dance in 2008, she has created more than 30 original works and collaborated with artists across disciplines and generations with Bharatanatyam serving as a vital thread throughout her work. Through her artistry and leadership, Bhattacharya has become an influential figure in shaping a more expansive vision of Canadian performance. Bhattacharya’s impact lies beyond the work itself in the ecosystems she has built around it. Through mentorship and curatorial practice, she has helped cultivate new generations of artists and audiences who see hybridity, cultural specificity, and multiplicity as central to the future of Canadian performance.
Director of Design: Simon Rossiter Director of Production: Barney Bayliss Production Manager: Kathy Le
Betty Oliphant Theatre: Technical Director: Paolo Collantes Head Electrician: Sharlanne McStay
Special thanks to our partners at TO Live: Clyde Wagner, President & CEO Ariana Shaw, Senior Programming Manager & Producer Jeff Rohrer, Vice President of Marketing & Communications Tom Kerr, Director of Ticketing Services Kristopher Dell, Vice President of Operations and the entire TO Live Staff and Board
Fall for Dance North Team
Year-round Team
Lily Sutherland - Festival Director & Co-CEO
Robert Binet - Artistic Director & Co-CEO
Aviva Fleising General Manager
Melissa Forstner - Director of Advancement and Communications
Felicia Myronyk Manager of Advancement
Melina Osorio - Finance and Administrative Officer
Simon Rossiter - Director of Design
Barney Bayliss - Director of Production
Markéta Tokova - Senior Producer
Jon Reid - Marketing Coordinator
Charlotte Cain - Content Creator
Seasonal Team
Maria Al Sa'di - IPP Producer
Julia Mak - Festival & Administrative
Liz Bragg - Box Office Manager
Zita Nyarady - Company Manager
Angela Xu - Company Manager
Lucy Rupert - Education & Engagement Coordinator
Jeff Clement - Advancement Coordinator
Kylor Ma - Volunteer Coordinator
Year-Round Collaborators
Creative Branding - One23West Marketing
Consultation - Sarah Robertson
Financial Services - Robert Gore and Associates
Communications and Media Relations - Red Eye Media
Advertising - Twenty6Two
Accessibility Coordination - The Disability Collective
Graphic Design - Designs Of Collor
To read more about our team and their bios, please visit the Our Team page on the FFDN website.
Fall for Dance North Board of Directors
Chair Karen Sparks
Treasurer Jim Hwang
Aleksandar Antonijevic
Peggy Baker, C.M., O.Ont, L.L.D, D.Litt
Marah Braye
Julia Dmitrijeva
Erin Eizenman
Christopher Gillis
Gerry Hannochko
Tanya Howard
Amanda Song
Noreen Taylor
Zdenko Teply
Chair Emeritus Joan Lozinski, O.C.
Chair Emeritus Valerie Wilder
Fall For Dance North's Mission
Fall for Dance North Festival moves more people to see more dance more often.
Fall for Dance North Festival brings major companies and dancers from around the world and spotlights Toronto artists on the global stage. None of this would be possible without the support of our donors. If you are as excited as we are to invest in Toronto’s potential as the next great dance city, please consider making a donation to the festival today.
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