{"id":45809,"date":"2023-07-12T15:42:55","date_gmt":"2023-07-12T15:42:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/?post_type=cu_story&p=45809"},"modified":"2025-02-12T15:22:50","modified_gmt":"2025-02-12T20:22:50","slug":"more-ways-to-move-together","status":"publish","type":"cu_story","link":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/story\/more-ways-to-move-together\/","title":{"rendered":"More Ways to Move Together"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n More Ways to Move Together\n <\/h1>\n \n <\/header>\n <\/div>\n\n <\/div>\n\n \n\n <\/div>\n<\/section>\n\n\n\n

By Alyssa Tremblay<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

New dance floor at Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre is a toe-tapping hit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre (CDCC)<\/a> has taken steps to expand its reach as a community hub for arts, performance and learning with the installation of a new sprung floor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The updated hardwood oak sprung floor is specifically designed to absorb shock, making it a healthier flooring surface to tap, leap and stomp across.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Stacey Can-Tamakloe is a recently graduated Carleton alumna who completed a practicum at the CDCC in addition to working as a front-of-house representative. She says the new floor ensures the space is more comfortable for dancers of all styles and bodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Carleton alumna Stacey Can-Tamakloe (MA ’23 Music and Culture) in the newly renovated Room 15\/16 at the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre. Photo by Ainslie Coghill. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n


\u201cI grew up dancing on hard wooden floors, and my feet were always red and aching after class,\u201d says Can-Tamakloe. \u201cAfter dancing for an hour on this new floor, my body was hurting, but my feet were fine.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Located in Room 15\/16 on the CDCC\u2019s second level, the dance floor is fully accessible via elevator and a ramp that was added at the entrance of the room as part of the overall facelift.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The renovations \u2014 which began in August 2022 and were completed in September \u2014 were made possible through support from a donor-advised fund through the Ottawa Community Foundation (OCF).<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cIn years prior, the CDCC had received a multitude of inquiries from groups about spaces that could work for movement arts practice. We had previously been required to confirm only having concrete floors throughout the building, up until the OCF and donor announced their extremely generous funding for this uniquely impactful healthy flooring project.\u201d<\/p>\nMara Brown, Director of the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Since officially opening its doors during the Fall 2022 semester, the newly refurbished Room 15\/16 is getting plenty of use by Carleton and community groups alike.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For instance, the Ottawa Rhythm Initiative (ORI) regularly books the room for its intro to advanced tap dance lessons.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A tap dancer practices on the new sprung floor in Room 15\/16 at the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre. Photo by Ainslie Coghill. <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n


According to ORI founder and artistic producer Carole Anne Piccinin, their dancers love the renovated space to the point where teachers \u201csometimes have a hard time getting them out the door when classes are over!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a great space for them to hear their tap sounds clearly, and dance and move freely and safely,\u201d Piccinin explains, noting that the large windows provide lots of natural light which makes the room feel inviting and spacious.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cThe floor is hardwood oak \u2014 as tap dancers, that\u2019s our instrument \u2014 and it sounds crisp, which is fantastic.\u201d <\/p>\nCarole Anne Piccinin, Ottawa Rhythm Initiative<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Fellow Ottawa-based dance organization Propeller Dance taught inclusive contemporary dance classes all year out of Room 15\/16 at the CDCC.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis room is a beautiful space to dance in,\u201d says Kira Zanyk Davey, a teacher and dance partner specialist at Propeller. \u201cIt is a bright and friendly place to be.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The CDCC\u2019s Centretown location, coupled with its accessible washrooms and elevator, make it an ideal venue for their program participants, which includes those with physical and intellectual disabilities in addition to non-disabled dancers.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cThe CDCC is a wonderful venue. It’s centrally located downtown. Students love the space, as it is accessible with a ramp into the classroom, an elevator and accessible washrooms.\u201d<\/p>\nKira Zanyk Davey, Propellor Dance<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

In Winter 2023, the room also played host to Carleton Instructor Mary Ellis\u2019s Intermediate Drama Workshop (ENGL 3904A).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The first year that Ellis taught drama at Carleton, it was challenging to find a movement-ready space on campus. The start of each class would often involve her and her students shuffling desks and chairs around to make room for their scenes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A look at the updated hardwood oak sprung floor in Room 15\/16 at the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre. Photo by Ainslie Coghill.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n


\u201cMoving to the CDCC made such a huge difference,\u201d Ellis says. \u201cOur student actors can now easily work in groups and move around freely.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She found that having a studio space, instead of a standard classroom, made the students more energetic during those blustery Monday morning winter classes, eager to get up and tread the boards while practicing their lines.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\u201cIt\u2019s really nice to teach and learn in a space where the rooms are designed to accommodate you. It gives the students an extra level of excitement.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\nMary Ellis, Drama Studies Instructor at Carleton University<\/cite><\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

To learn more about the Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre or to book a space for your upcoming class or event, visit carleton.ca\/cdcc\/bookings<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Alyssa Tremblay New dance floor at Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre is a toe-tapping hit The Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre (CDCC) has taken steps to expand its reach as a community hub for arts, performance and learning with the installation of a new sprung floor. The updated hardwood oak sprung floor is specifically designed to absorb shock, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":132,"featured_media":45834,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"cu_story_type":[816],"cu_story_tag":[],"class_list":["post-45809","cu_story","type-cu_story","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","cu_story_type-general"],"acf":{"cu_post_thumbnail":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/45809","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/cu_story"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/132"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/45809\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":51583,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story\/45809\/revisions\/51583"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45834"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45809"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"cu_story_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_type?post=45809"},{"taxonomy":"cu_story_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/carleton.ca\/fass\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/cu_story_tag?post=45809"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}