about

Small Stage is a charitable, non-profit organization that brings artists and audiences together through dance that everyone can enjoy and appreciate. 

Since its inception in 2001, Small Stage has been dedicated to presenting and producing innovative works to create powerful and accessible experiences that are designed to reach audiences, reduce barriers and are accessible to a wide demographic.  

Small Stage showcases a wide variety of dance styles, genres and cultures that reflect the depth of unique and talented artists who are part of Vancouver’s artistic community. We blend live and digital strategies while creating a space where dance artists and audiences can connect.

Our strategic partnerships with new and established dance artists strengthen our productions and increase the capacity of the performance sector.

Small Stage is incorporated under the Society Act of British Columbia and is a Registered Charitable Organization in Canada.

We have supported partners in Quebec City ~ La Petite Scene and Adelaide, Australia ~ Dances for a Small Stage Australia.

Projects include Dances for a Small Stage, The Love Bubble Project, The Winter Series, The Summer Series,  Community Stages, point 5 and creative residencies.

Since 2002, Small Stage has reached over 218,000+ live audience members + 6 million digital viewers.

Small Stage is a hothouse for emergent artists looking for a fertile environment rich with opportunity and ground-breaking possibility. Nurturing and building artists from the ground up by creating a safe space for them to experiment and explore risk-taking artistic choices is our primary purpose. 

Small Stage is dedicated to producing accessible works in non-traditional spaces that support the next generation of artists. We blend live and digital strategies to create powerful experiences designed to reach diverse audiences, reduce barriers, and be representative of intersectional identities. We encourage risk-taking, collaboration, and experimentation while creating safe spaces where artists and audiences can connect. 

Small Stage has a long history of supporting indie, self-employed and under-represented workers from equity-deserving communities for two decades. We have persistently produced works that explore a wide mosaic of Canadian identity by bringing together artists from different cultural traditions and identities, who combine established styles as well as contemporary influences.

Small Stage has supported the ecology of the dance community in Vancouver in small but mighty ways. We presented numerous artists at critical times in their careers, including internationally renowned Crystal Pite and Emily Molnar. 

Small Stage’s programming is designed to push traditional presentation boundaries and expectations by making dance exciting and accessible to all ages, income groups and abilities. Our goal is to contribute to the tapestry of our community and create a future that connects dance to the general public in new and interesting ways. Artists that have developed and performed work at Small Stage have gone on to the local, provincial and national stages.  Our artists’ work is often taken into Dancing on the Edge, Vancouver International Dance Festival as well as, Jacob’s Pillow in the US.