Here&Now Dance Festival

Here&Now Dance Festival | Mainstage

Ongoing Call to Choreographers
Aeris Körper is proud to present our annual Here&Now Dance Festival in Hamilton, Ontario.

This is an ongoing call for the Mainstage series. We accept proposals year round and program 1-2 years in advance of the festival. We're interested in ongoing and expansive relationships, following choreographers' journeys over time.

We welcome your introduction and interest in Here&Now!

Presentation Series Goals
Here&Now presents a mixed program of choreographic works, from choreographers and movement/performance-based artists at any career level. We offer audiences the chance to experience the work of Canada’s most exciting up-and-coming choreographers in a vibrant and inviting environment.

Here&Now Mainstage features three to four short-length works with a culminating audience talkback after each performance. All choreographers are part of the talkback, and performers are encouraged to join, too. The format of the evening is subject to change based on the presenters' needs.

Format / Location
We typically present Here&Now at McMaster University's L.R. Wilson Hall, in Hamilton, ON. It features professional-level technical specs; marley floor, wings, a house lighting plot, and changerooms.

Eligibility
Proposed choreography should be 10-35 minutes in length. Please email mayumi@aeriskorper.com to inquire about works that fall outside of this range.

Choreographic works must be either proposed new works OR must have not been presented within a 100km radius of Hamilton within 3 years.

If your application is successful:
Choreographers will be provided with a lighting designer to support the lighting states of the choreography. The lighting tools are limited, but the designer will work closely with the choreographer to execute their vision and goals to the best of their ability. Choreographers may opt to bring their own lighting designer at their own cost.

Our Outreach Coordinator will meet with each choreographer to learn about their community connections and hopes of who else they would like to connect with. The Outreach Coordinator works to welcome new audiences and will send personal invitations on the choreographer's behalf.

Presented choreographers will be required to write a Creative Process Blog (see examples via Aeris Körper's blog Curiosities) to provide insight on their presented work, and welcome audiences into their creative process.

Presented choreographers will also need to provide the following promotional materials:
- a headshot
- a biography for each artist involved in their work
- 3 images (minimum) that represent the work
- rehearsal footage of a finished run prior to the show for the technical team
- 30 seconds of video footage representing the work or the applicant's body of work.
All items listed above will have set deadlines that choreographers will be notified of in advance.

Important Dates
The next Here&Now Festival will take place June 5-7, 2026. Previous iterations took place March 20-22, 2024, and April 25-27, 2025.

- Choreographers receive 4 hours of technical load-in at an agreed upon time, in the days leading up to the festival.
- Full-show technical and dress rehearsals will take place during the daytime and evenings of the days leading up to the festival.
- There will be a Choreographer's Meet and Greet scheduled prior to the show - this is a time for all presenting choreographers and the production team to get to know one another. Depending on presenting choreographers, this may occur in-person or online.
- A site-visit to the theatre venue will be scheduled in the lead-up to the festival, to offer choreographers a chance to see the space in advance

Remuneration
Here&Now offers a professional presentation fee. If you have any questions in regards to remuneration, please email mayumi@aeriskorper.com for more information.
*The Lighting Designer is covered outside of the choreographer fee.
**Out of province choreographers may be eligible for travel stipends.

Access
All dance or movement-based artists and performers are encouraged to apply. Aeris Körper supports artists and practitioners at all levels of their career.

If the following written application is not accessible for any reason, you may also apply by:
- completing your application in-person (video call or phone call)
- submitting a video or audio application that addresses the listed questions

If assistance is required to apply, please contact mayumi@aeriskorper.com. All digital file submissions can be WeTransfer-ed to mayumi@aeriskorper.com by the deadline.

Aeris Körper will give priority to artists of colour, Deaf artists, artists living with disabilities, new generation artists (18-30), new Canadian (immigrant) artists and Hamilton based or regional artists living outside of city centres. We aim to present a minimum of 1 choreographer from Hamilton, 1 choreographer from out of province, and a minimum of 51% from above mentioned groups of the global majority.

We are so grateful to all the applicants and are continually amazed at the ideas, concepts and execution across Canada. We aim to have continuous relationships with you and your work. In the event you are not accepted right away, we recommend you keep in contact and continue to re-apply with your new work in the future.

For more information, please contact our Artistic Producer, mayumi@aeriskorper.com or visit https://www.aeriskorper.com/herenow
Basic Information
Preferred Name*

First NameLast Name
Pronouns (Optional)
Organization Name (if applicable)
Email*
example@example.com
Phone Number*
Please enter a valid phone number.
If we need to contact you to discuss your application, please select your preferred method of communication.*

EmailPhoneOther
What city is your legal address in?
Do not provide your address. This is to understand where might be traveling from.

Project Information
Title: Provide the name of the work you are applying with.*
This can be a working title.
Program Description: Provide a 2-5 sentence description you would see in the show program for this work. *
Video Link: Provide video footage of the proposed work.*
For finished works, this should be the full archival footage of the work you are proposing to present. For new works, this could be rehearsal footage of components you are working on in the new work OR footage from a different finished works that showcases your ability to execute your ideas into choreographic works.
Video Description: For finished work, provide context if it is the full archival or rehearsal footage of the work. For new work, provide context if it is rehearsal footage, or from another finished work, and how it relates to your proposed new work. *
What genre(s) of dance/dance practice(s) will you be working in?*
E.g. contemporary dance, concert dance, dance theatre, hip-hop / street styles, jazz dance, etc.
Please select the stage this idea/work is in:*

New: It has not been developed or has been developed minimally with no public showing elements yetIn-Progress: It has been shown in various stages of development, but is yet to have a more fully staged presentationPreviously Presented: It has been presented, but not within a 100km radius of Hamilton, ON and not in the past 3 yearsOther
Artistic Vision: Please provide a fulsome description of the proposed work, and the ideas / questions driving it.*

What is the central idea(s) of the work? What questions are you hoping to answer through the work? How will (have) you utilize(d) the idea(s) to generate choreographic material? What is the arc of the work? What compels you to create choreography around this idea(s)? 0/300
What is the duration / intended duration of your piece?*
The Presentation Series has a 10 minute minimum - 35 minute maximum.
How many performers will be on stage?*
Please detail whether this is certain or an approximation.

Choreographer / Collaborator Information
Choreographer Biography*

Tell us your history of choreographing, artistic values, milestones and anything essential to understand about your practice. 0/200
Choreographer CV/Resume*
Please upload a GoogleDrive link (or equivalent). Please ensure the link is viewable.
What is your relationship to Hamilton, ON or the surrounding area?*
Consider if there is a specific reason or urgency to present your work in Hamilton at this time.
Who do you plan to work with? Are these collaborators confirmed?*

Why/how have you selected / will you select your collaborators? List performers, mentors, designers, or composers you hope to involve or that have been previously involved (if applicable).0/200
Technical Rider: Please provide a link to your technical rider if you have one.
Optional.
Please describe your anticipated technical needs. Provide as much detail as possible including audience orientation (proscenium, in the round, etc.)*
If your work is selected, we will be in touch with you for updated and comprehensive technical and production requirements. Please note that technical requirements outside of our venue's standard set-up are the responsibility of the artist.
If you are from out-of-town, how many performers or collaborators will be travelling for the presentation?
Please note: Aeris Körper's ability to cover travel costs is limited. We encourage out of town applicants to apply for travel funding to support their participation.

Final Details
Why do you want to share your work at Here&Now? Why is this choreography important to share here, and now?*

Please consider our geographical location, as well as the particular time we are in.0/300
Please confirm the following:*

You are open to communication from Aeris Körper as we consider your work. We may reach out to schedule a meeting to discuss your work and presentation requirements.If contracted by Aeris Körper, successful applicants will be required to hire and manage their team of members.Aeris Körper is able to provide letters of support/confirmation for you to apply for other funding to support your presentation in Here&Now.I confirm I have read and agree to the above details.
Is there anything else you would like us to consider in relation to you or your application?
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Here&Now Dance Festival | Mainstage

Basic Information

Project Information

Choreographer / Collaborator Information

Final Details