Dance Movement Therapy Association in Canada-DMTAC

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Dance Movement Therapy Association in Canada-DMTAC

Dance Movement Therapy Association in Canada (DMTAC)/Association de Thérapie par la Danse et le Mouvement au Canada (ATDMC)

The Dance Movement Therapy Association in Canada promotes Dance/Movement Therapy (DMT) across Canada, aims to establish and work on developing a cohesive community of DMT professionals, students and supporters from all provinces. A large focus is on establishing a professional DMT training in Canada. L'Association de Thérapie par la Danse et le Mouvement (TDM) au Canada vise à établir et travaille

r sur l'élaboration d'une communauté cohérente formée de professionnels en TDM, d'étudiants et de partisans de toutes les provinces. Une importante part de notre mission est d'établir un programme de formation professionnelle en TDM au Canada.

03/13/2026

Outfit yourself for the drastically changing daily weather while also supporting DMATC! shop our merch (link in bio) for your cozy layers to get through the start of spring.
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Préparez-vous à affronter les caprices de la météo tout en soutenant le DMATC ! Découvrez notre boutique (lien en bio) pour trouver des vêtements confortables qui vous aideront à passer le cap du début du printemps.

03/08/2026

This International Women’s Day, we celebrate the strength, creativity, and resilience of all women; including cis, trans, Two-Spirit, and gender-diverse people who experience womanhood.

As therapists, we witness the wisdom and stories held in the body every day. Honouring this year’s theme of Give to Gain, we recognize that when we offer care, support, and space for one another, we create the conditions for collective healing and growth. Through movement and connection, we continue to hold space for expression, resilience, and empowerment. 💜

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À l'occasion de la Journée internationale des femmes, nous célébrons la force, la créativité et la résilience de toutes les femmes, y compris les personnes cisgenres, transgenres, bispirituelles et de genre divers qui vivent leur féminité.

En tant que thérapeutes, nous sommes chaque jour témoins de la sagesse et des histoires que recèle le corps. En honorant le thème de cette année, « Donner pour recevoir », nous reconnaissons que lorsque nous offrons des soins, du soutien et un espace les uns aux autres, nous créons les conditions propices à la guérison et à la croissance collectives. Grâce au mouvement et à la connexion, nous continuons à offrir un espace d'expression, de résilience et d'autonomisation. 💜

02/23/2026

We know trauma lives not just in headlines, but in our nervous systems and our communities. The school shooting in Tumbler Ridge has left so many of us holding grief in our bodies. We see it in tight chests, shallow breaths, and restless sleep. This is a time to return to our bodies. Feel your feet on the ground. Tend to sadness, rage, grief, or otherwise. Reach for the people you love. Reconnection and joy is not avoidance, it’s repair. We sometimes forget that our communities aren't immune to havoc. Activism matters here in Canada just as much as anywhere in the world. It lives in our conversations, our organizations, our studios, our care for young people. Caring for your mental health isn’t indulgent it’s an act of resistance. Self-care is how we sustain the work of change. Move. Cry. Hold someone close. Tend to yourself and to each other. We heal and act together.

-The DMTAC Board of Directors
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Nous savons que les traumatismes ne font pas seulement la une des journaux, mais qu'ils sont également présents dans notre système nerveux et nos communautés. La fusillade dans une école de Tumbler Ridge a laissé un grand nombre d'entre nous en proie au chagrin. Cela se traduit par des sensations d'oppression dans la poitrine, une respiration superficielle et un sommeil agité. Il est temps de revenir à notre corps. Sentez vos pieds sur le sol. Occupez-vous de votre tristesse, de votre rage, de votre chagrin ou de tout autre sentiment. Tendez la main aux personnes que vous aimez. Renouer avec les autres et retrouver la joie, ce n'est pas fuir, c'est réparer. Nous oublions parfois que nos communautés ne sont pas à l'abri du chaos. L'activisme est tout aussi important ici au Canada que partout ailleurs dans le monde. Il est présent dans nos conversations, nos organisations, nos studios, notre attention aux jeunes. Prendre soin de sa santé mentale n'est pas un luxe, c'est un acte de résistance. Prendre soin de soi, c'est ce qui nous permet de poursuivre notre travail de changement. Bougez. Pleurez. Serrez quelqu'un dans vos bras. Prenez soin de vous et des autres. Nous guérissons et agissons ensemble.

09/22/2025

Our values in action:

The IDEAS Committee is excited to launch a brand-new Resources Webpage! This page is a living library grounded in Inclusion, Diversity, Equity, Accessibility, and Solidarity.

You'll find articles, videos, podcasts, books, trainings, and more so you can explore in the way that fits your learning style best.

These resources were selected with care to support our DMT community in reflection, education, and collective growth. We're learning too, and welcome your feedback and contributions.

Find the link to our new resource page in our bio!

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Nos valeurs en action:

Le comité IDEAS est excité de lancer une nouvelle page Web de ressources ! Cette page comporte une liste de ressources portant sur l'inclusion, la diversité, l'équité, l'accessibilité et la solidarité et sera appelée à évoluer au fil du temps avec l'aide de notre communauté.

Vous trouverez des articles, des vidéos, des balados, des livres, des formations et bien plus afin que vous puissiez explorer les thèmes de la manière qui vous convient le mieux !

Ces ressources ont été choisies avec soin pour soutenir notre communauté dans sa réflexion, son éducation et son évolution. Nous sommes aussi en apprentissage et c'est pourquoi votre rétroaction et vos commentaires sont les bienvenus !

07/14/2025

ADTA 60th Annual Conference Pre-Conference Intensive
“Embodied Connection in Dementia Care”
Thursday, November 6, 2025
Embassy Suites, Raleigh-Durham Research Triangle, NC

With over 55 million people worldwide diagnosed with dementia, dance/movement therapists have a vital role in transforming care. This intensive explores the therapeutic potential of DMT in dementia care—both in enriching the lives of individuals living with neurocognitive changes and in challenging the stigma that reduces their personhood. Rooted in clinical practice and informed by neuroscience, this workshop will integrate movement experience, theory, and practical strategies to explore self-expression and relational connection which fosters person-centered care. Participants will consider how they assess environments and groups, support embodied expression, and advocate for dignity through therapeutic presence. Movement explorations will lead to a discussion of how cultural differences, power hierarchies, and appropriation play out in DMT with people in cognitive decline. In addition to addressing these issues with awareness of our own biases in direct care, how do we ensure that older adults without socioeconomic privilege, those who are marginalized, receive the care they deserve?

Together we will broaden the knowledge base of each and all of us, as we dance, play, and care, integrate knowledge from interdisciplinary fields, and conceptualize practical strategies, our therapeutic presence will become brighter, our capacity to heal deeper. Rooted in practice and informed by neuroscience research, dance/movement therapists reclaim the body as a site of resilience, connection, and community in dementia care.

Presenters: Donna Newman-Bluestein MA, BC-DMT and Cecilia Fontanesi

This intensive is part of the ADTA’s 60th Annual Conference:
Dance/Movement Therapy: Deepening Community Care
Planting seeds, extending branches, growing together

We are proud to celebrate 60 years of the ADTA—our kanreki, a moment of reflection, rebirth, and growth.

The conference will be held on the traditional lands of the Coharie, Cherokee, Haliwa-Saponi, Lumbee, Meherrin, Occaneechi, Sappony, and Waccamaw-Siouan Nations.

Hotel reservations are now open, with discounted rates starting at $179 per night. Amenities include complimentary breakfast, airport shuttle, fitness center, indoor pool, and more.

Registration opens next week. Visit https://bit.ly/4laU7NU for more information.

05/14/2025

Thursday is the last day to register for the DMTAC training workshop on Saturday!

Reach out for the registration form if you need it
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Jeudi est le dernier jour pour s'inscrire à l'atelier de formation DMTAC de samedi !

contactez-nous pour obtenir le formulaire d'inscription si vous en avez besoin

01/27/2025

DMTs and DMT students!!

If you've always had an interest in learning more about the KMP, here is your opportunity. Join Introduction to the Kestenberg Movement Profile, a 10 week course meeting online via Zoom on Thursdays, 6-8pm ET from February 20-April 24, 2025; this course is for alternate route dance/movement therapy students as well as practicing DMT's, creative arts therapists, counselors, and other students/professionals interested in the nonverbal. Reach out for further information at [email protected]

01/17/2025

DMTAC is thrilled to announce the launch of Canada's own Dance/Movement Therapist (DMT) and Dance/Movement Therapy Supervisor (DMT-S) certification processes, along with the accreditation process for institutions providing DMT training.

These were multi-year, labour-intensive projects that required significant community input, resources and creativity centered around the conviction that the profession in Canada, our members and the public we serve benefit from certification and accreditation systems designed to support the specific needs and strengths of our community.

11/22/2024

Hello DMTAC followers!
The Regional Reps would like to invite you to an afternoon of enrichment on December 1, 2024.
Please join us at our first Cross Country DMT Check-In!

In October, several of our members attended the ADTA Conference in Chicago. Our own Rebecca Barnstable and Kerri Phillips presented!

6 DMTAC members have offered to share responses to presentations they attended at the conference. Karen Bradley, Angelique Dumet-Kerherno, Brigitte Lachance and Anne Claire Sokolosky will share a virtual stage hosted by Emilie Barrette. The presentations will be short, just a taste of the many inspired experiences at conference.

Topics shared will draw from, but many not include all, Themes of Indigenious populations, Neurodiversity, DMT for trauma from Internal Family Systems Perspective, Violence Prevention in Schools, Breathwork, DMT and Persons with Dementia, Decolonization, Indigenous Psychologies, Kestenberg and Gottman.

Come and join us. Find out what's inspiring your peers this month. We'd love to see you.

Sincerely, your DMTAC Regional Reps,
Meghan Thom, Tannis Hugill, Mary Moncrieff, Angelique Dumet-Kerherno and Karen Kohn Bradley

Keep an eye out for registration details to come soon!

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11/20/2024

Join DMT Karen Bradley online for this beautiful zoom event!

Community Harmony: Movement Choir for Our Times

Movement choirs are co-constructed, site specific dances that honor the individual and collective voices of the dancers themselves. As such, they are wonderful examples of democracy in action, in art, and in justice. In this 2.5-hour session, you will learn or recall the origins of the movement choir as Rudolf Laban developed the approach, see a few choirs from recent times, discuss applications of the choir to current challenges, and co-create next steps for further development. *This event will be conducted in English.

This workshop will be offered twice. Choose one or come to both.
Option 1 - Saturday, November 30, 2024 - 8:00 - 10:30 PM ET
Option 2 - Saturday, December 7, 2024 - 10:00 AM - 12:30 PM ET

Sign up via the lbms-community portal of the Laban institute website!

11/05/2024

The Laban Bartenieff Movement System Community is offering an alternate route course starting in January!

From January to April this course will introduce students to concepts and vocabulary of movement analysis through the LBMS lens.

Session will run online but is synchronous (attendance at the live calls is required).

10/26/2024

We are proud to have two Canadian DMTs present at the American Dance Therapy Conference this year. Kerri Phillips presented techniques of breathwork and their applications in DMT while Rebecca Barnstaple, in collaboration with Cecilia Fontanesi, presented neuroscience research into the impact of movement improvisation on the brain.

Address

160 Kendal Ave
Toronto, ON
M5R 1M3

Website

http://www.dmtac.org/

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