Toronto, September 7, 2021 – Peter Chin is the recipient of the inaugural $20,000 Eldred Family Dance Award. This biennial award recognizes exceptional achievement and creative ability in dance by an established Ontario choreographer.
About Peter Chin
Peter Chin is a multidisciplinary artist born in Jamaica, and based in Toronto and Cambodia. He has been part of the cultural life of Toronto for almost 50 years, starting with singing in Massey Hall in 1972. Peter Chin is the founder and artistic director of dance-driven trans-disciplinary company Tribal Crackling Wind, and co-founder and director of the NKK International Dance Centre in Siem Reap Cambodia. Chin has been described as a renaissance man of the dance world, and is recognized as a composer / musician, choreographer / dancer, designer, writer and filmmaker. His works have received 5 Dora Mavor Moore awards, and many nominations. Chin has also received a Gemini award for his performance in the film ‘Streetcar’ by Nick DePencier. He was also an inaugural winner of the K.M. Hunter Artist Awards – Interdisciplinary Arts category, and has been recognized with the Muriel Sherrin Award, among others.
Chin’s works have been presented across Canada, United States, Mexico, Jamaica, Columbia, Amsterdam, UK, Cambodia, India, Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore, Indonesia, Japan, and Taiwan.
In Ontario, Peter Chin has been proud to have worked with many foundational arts organizations including Toronto Dance Theatre, the National Ballet of Canada, Dancemakers, the Toronto Symphony Orchestra, Array Music, the Evergreen Contemporary Gamelan Club, Esprit Orchestra, Canadian Children’s Dance Theatre, DanceWorks, CanAsian, as well as many distinguished individual artists and independent companies. He has been honoured with commissions and presentations in Peterborough, Mississauga, Ottawa, Kitchener-Waterloo, Guelph and Toronto.
Jury Comments
The jury was unanimous in their choice of Peter Chin as laureate for the inaugural Eldred Family Dance Award. They said, “Peter’s brilliant choreography shines equally in his work for solo and ensemble. His dances are thoughtful and precise. A multidisciplinary artist, his craftsmanship is demonstrated through his inherent sense of musicality and enriched by his own compositions. Peter’s achievements as an independent artist throughout his artistic journey are prodigious.”
Peter Chin was selected by the following assessment panel: Rosemary James (Toronto, ON), choreographer, dance instructor and Rehearsal Director at the Toronto Dance Theatre; and Shara Weaver (Gatineau, QC), choreographer, dance instructor and Co-Director at Propeller Dance.
Travel with Tribal Promo Video, Tribal Crackling Wind, 2021.
About the Award
The Eldred Family Dance Award was established at the Ontario Arts Foundation by the late Gerald (Gerry) Eldred, distinguished Canadian arts executive, and the late Marjorie Eldred, former National Ballet School academic teacher. The award recognizes exceptional achievement and creative ability in dance by an established Ontario choreographer. The winner is chosen through a nominating and adjudication process managed by the Ontario Arts Council.
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For more information, please contact:
Bruce Bennett, Executive Director, Ontario Arts Foundation
416-969-7413 | bbennett@oafdn.ca
Established in 1991, the Ontario Arts Foundation (OAF) is passionately committed to building long-term support for the arts in Ontario. In 2020-2021, the OAF paid out over $5.1 million in endowment income and $220,000 in awards and scholarships.
For more than 55 years, the Ontario Arts Council has played a vital role in promoting and assisting the development of the arts and artists for the enjoyment and benefit of Ontarians. In 2020-2021, the Ontario Arts Council invested $78.6 million in 206 communities across Ontario through 2,176 grants to individual artists and 1,312 grants to organizations.
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