Inspired by Caroline’s life story, the 45 minute performance sheds light on stereotypes and difficulties that Deaf Canadians may face. With stunning lighting design by James Proudfoot, the stage is transformed to reveal glimpses of memories that have impacted Caroline’s life. The performance will also include an animation created by a team of five talented artists from the Vancouver Film School. Brandon Lee Alley and Racheal Prince, both former artists with Ballet BC, are the creators and perform along side Caroline Hébert.
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Racheal Prince is a professional dance artist with over 16 years experience. Racheal started her career with the Alberta Ballet and moved on to join Ballet BC to perform in theatres around the globe. After 12 seasons with the company she took on the role of the Assistant Rehearsal Director for the 2019/20 season. In 2019, Racheal and her partner Brandon Lee Alley created Dance//Novella, a dance collective that focuses on creation and collaboration. Dance//Novella has made new works for Arts Umbrella PREP, Lamondance Company, Alberta Ballet School and the Richmond Academy of Dance. She is currently the Associate Director of Lamondance and the Co-Founder and Director of Dance//Novella.
Brandon Lee Alley A North Carolina native, graduated from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2012. Brandon began his professional career with Hubbard Street 2 followed by one year with BODYTRAFFIC in LA. Brandon joined Ballet BC in 2015 where he danced leading roles for 5 seasons. Brandon is the Co-founder and Artistic Director of Dance//Novella based in Vancouver, Canada. In addition to creating dance, Brandon has a passion for sound design. He has made 7 original scores for dance and is excited to be formalizing his training with an audio engineering diploma from the SAE institute in North Vancouver. Brandon is proud and excited to share that he will be joining Kidd Pivot for the remount of Revisor in 2022.
Caroline Hébert is an Actor and collaborative creator. She was born Deaf and grew up in Montreal, Québec. Caroline attended Institution des Sourd-Muets – school for the Deaf. She is bilingual in ASL (American Sign Language), and LSQ (Langue des Signes Québécoise). In addition, Caroline has a base knowledge of Indigenous Sign Language. After moving to Vancouver, she met the Honourable Stephen Lytton – a formidable Indigenous Leader and was inspired to return to theatre after a 10 year hiatus. Caroline’s goals include educating and bringing awareness to what the everyday life of a Deaf Actress looks like. She also wants to educate the hearing community on how to approach Deaf children and adults to develop ways of communicating with them. She hopes to continue breaking down the barriers of communication and the barriers in the Theatre and Film world as well.
James Proudfoot: Lighting Designer From Edinburgh, Scotland, where he received his initial theatre training has been living in Vancouver since 1993. For 12 years he was Technical Director of the Firehall Arts Centre. He eventually lit shows for the Firehall Theatre Company amassing design credits on many diverse projects. He is currently Resident Lighting Designer and Lighting Director for Ballet British Columbia, and has lit more than 20 pieces for the company. Specializing in the realm of dance lighting, James has contributed designs for dance works to many companies, including: Lola Dance, 605 Collective, Co. Erasga, Wen Wei Dance, Joe Ink, EDAM, The Contingency Plan, battery opera, Kinesis Dance, Ballet BC, Restless Productions, Holy Body Tattoo, Dumb Instrument, MACHiNE NOiSY, Anatomica, Tara Cheyenne Performance, Les Productions Figlio, Karen Jamieson, Trial & Eros, Action at a Distance, Out Innerspace, Helen Walkley, Ballet Jazz Montréal, Justine A. Chambers, and plastic orchid factory.
In January 2019, Brandon Lee Alley and Racheal Prince brought Dance//Novella to life with the intention to research and develop new dance works that move dance closer to humanistic nature. We believe that by developing daring societal stories and concepts that challenge the performer and viewer, we can positively engage humanity while sharing our stories in the 21st century. A large part of what inspires Dance//Novella is the idea of collaboration, not only with other dance artists but cross-disciplinary partnerships that challenge and motivate all artists involved.
Learn more about Dance Novella
Featuring Caroline Hébert, Racheal Prince, Brandon Alley and Anna-Belle Hébert
Lighting Design: James Proudfoot