About the teachers
Janet Johnson
After graduating from York University's Dance Program, Janet Johnson spent six years in Toronto. While there she co-founded the eclectic company, Pedestrian Waltz Dance Project, whose work was performed on rooftops, art galleries, sidewalks as well as at the Canada Dance Festival, "Dancing on the Edge" Festival and in DanceWorks' Mainstage series. Since 1994 Janet has been choreographing independently of PWDP through various commissions and with the financial assistance from the Laidlaw Foundation.
Janet has had the pleasure of presenting her choreography at such forums as the Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival, Peterborough New Dance Series and DanceWorks Dance Series. Janet has danced for a number of diverse choreographers such as Denise Duric, Darcy Callison, Conrad Alexandrowicz, Julia Sasso, Kim Frank and more recently DanceTheatre David Earle. Since 1995 Janet has been living in the Guelph area where she actively pursues outreach dance efforts through teaching. Janet has been a resident modern dance teacher in Guelph, McMaster University's Centre for Dance, University of Waterloo and is a frequent recipient of the Ontario Arts Council's Arts in Education Grant, an artist for the Edward Johnson Music Foundation as well as a guest teacher throughout the region. Since 1998 Janet has been co-founder and co-artistic director of the successful Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival and co-founded the GYDTP in 2006. Janet Johnson and partner Catrina von Radecki have been nominated for the Women of Distinction Award in Arts in Culture, 2007. Janet is also the proud mother of four children.
Catrina von Radecki
Catrina has studied and taught at the innovative European Dance Development Centre in Arnhem Holland and Düsseldorf, Germany as well as independently in Montreal, Kitchener, Waterloo and Guelph. She has danced for the international renowned Compagnie Marie Chouinard (Montreal), Dance Alliance (Germany) and various independent choreographers (Montreal, Guelph). Catrina has been creating her own work since 1992 when she graduated from Concordia University's dance department (Montreal) and in 1996 formed Foreign Feet Dance Theatre Company with actress, writer Wendy Agnew. Catrina is the Co-Founder/Artistic Director and General Manager of the Guelph Contemporary Dance Festival, which has brought dance to thousands of young people in the past ten years. Catrina is the co-founder of the GYDTP.
Kelly Steadman
Kelly Steadman is a graduate of Ryerson University's BFA Dance Program under the direction of Nadia Potts, and a former student of Royal City School of Ballet. Throughout her four years at Ryerson, Kelly had the opportunity to study with many of Toronto's most influential dance artists. Shortly after graduation she worked as an ESL teacher in Taiwan and Argentina,where she was exposed to new dance styles and teaching methods. Kelly has a sincere enthusiasm for seeing her students succeed by discovering their unique potential through expressive movement. She is honoured to be welcomed as a teacher for the Guelph Youth Dance Training Programme.
