VideoCabaret, in collaboration with Rough House Dance, is excited to present the inaugural Ripe Fruit Dance Festival! The Ripe Fruit Dance Festival is a four-day celebration of contemporary dance, featuring bold, physical, and visceral works by five Toronto-based artists and companies.
The festival showcases 25-30-minute performances rich in research, craft, and creative depth. Each work is performed multiple times over the weekend, allowing audiences to choose their experience.
Featuring works by Neena Jayarajan, Emily Duckett, Alli Carry, Angela Blumberg and Justin Fraser, the festival looks to celebrate choreographic innovation in Toronto.
See one performance for $19.78 or a full evening/matinee program (3 of the 5 festival shows) for $45.60 (tax and fees included)!
Artists receive direct ticket revenue, making your attendance a meaningful way to support these creators and their practices.
See the full festival schedule below:
Thursday, February 12th 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
7:45 pm to 8:15 pm - TEJAS by Neena Jayarajan
8:30 pm to 9:00 pm - A subject. by Alli Carry
Friday, February 13th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
Friday, February 13th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
7:45 pm to 8:15 pm - In A Landscape by Angela Blumberg
8:30 pm to 9:00 pm - Shapeshift by Justin Fraser
Saturday, February 14th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - TEJAS by Neena Jayarajan
Saturday, February 14th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - TEJAS by Neena Jayarajan
7:45 pm to 8:15 pm - A subject. by Alli Carry
8:30 pm to 9:00 pm - In A Landscape by Angela Blumberg
Sunday, February 15th, 2026 Matinee
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm - This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
Sunday, February 15th, 2026 Matinee
2:00 pm - 2:30 pm - This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
2:45 pm - 3:15 pm - TEJAS by Neena Jayarajan
3:30 pm - 4:00 pm - Shapeshift by Justin Fraser
Sunday, February 15th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - A subject. by Alli Carry
Sunday, February 15th, 2026 Evening
7:00 pm to 7:30 pm - A subject. by Alli Carry
7:45 pm to 8:15 pm - In A Landscape by Angela Blumberg
8:30 pm to 9:00 pm - Shapeshift by Justin Fraser
This Skin is Not My Own by Emily Duckett
This Skin is Not My Own is a visceral exploration of gender stereotypes through sensorial escapism. Faced with the inevitable performance of being in a body, this piece questions gender norms and stereotypes while using dance as its escape vehicle. Created through a queer lens, it questions the layers of expectations placed on us through our supposed gender and our ability to tear through, transform, and rebuild them.
Choreographer: Emily Duckett (in collaboration with the performers)
Performers: Emmet Bradshaw, Derek Souvannavong, Zuri Skeete, Millina Fletcher, and Shelby Nilsen
Outside Eye/ Dramaturg: Alli Carry
Music: Conceited- Lola Young
Composition by Ben Yoganathan
Composition by Ben Yoganathan
Past Collaborators:
Victoria Chadwick, Jordyn Howe, Robyn Haines, Grace Kuster, Irene Leung, Kaprice Myers, Connor McNeil, Annie Spence, Kaitlyn Wood, Jules Vance, Alli Carry, Kaelin Isserlin, Reece Caldwell, Frederique Perron, Kiah Franics, Leelee Oluwatoyosi Eko Davis, Syreeta Hector
Victoria Chadwick, Jordyn Howe, Robyn Haines, Grace Kuster, Irene Leung, Kaprice Myers, Connor McNeil, Annie Spence, Kaitlyn Wood, Jules Vance, Alli Carry, Kaelin Isserlin, Reece Caldwell, Frederique Perron, Kiah Franics, Leelee Oluwatoyosi Eko Davis, Syreeta Hector
TEJAS by Neena Jayarajan
TEJAS-A Sanskrit word defined as brilliant, filled with fire, and intense power. Using the entirety of Bharatanatyam this work challenges the traditional aesthetic and perspectives of the technique, while also honouring its complexity. With care for the form and each other arises a storytelling journey where tradition meets the contemporary ultimately finding community. A work rooted in deep respect for the classical tradition, with reinterpretation of vocabulary, displacement of context and shifting presentation norms, all while evolving its boundaries. Tejas is storytelling, community, and connection, in dynamic conversation. Aiming to isolate and elevate gesture, rhythm, emotion, and technique, revealing its full expressive range.
Choreographer: Neena Jayarajan
Music Composer: Ed Hanley
Outside Eye- Geneviève Beth Grady, Purawai Vyas, Arrthami Siva- Kuruvinth
Creative Collaborator: Anisa Tejpar
Dancers: Atri Nundy, Rachana Joshi, Nivedha Ramalingam, Nidhi Baadkar & Neena Jayarajan
A subject. by Alli Carry
A subject. is a contemporary dance work that confronts the space between performance and simply being. Through a feminist lens, the piece reflects on gaze, power, and the shifting dynamics of agency under observation. Influenced by the writings of Simone de Beauvoir, A subject. asks where autonomy resides when identity is continually shaped by others, and what it means to move from object to subject within the act of being watched.
A subject. is a contemporary dance work that confronts the space between performance and simply being. Through a feminist lens, the piece reflects on gaze, power, and the shifting dynamics of agency under observation. Influenced by the writings of Simone de Beauvoir, A subject. asks where autonomy resides when identity is continually shaped by others, and what it means to move from object to subject within the act of being watched.
Choreographed by: Alli Carry (in collaboration with the performers)
Performed by: Abby Silvera, Clara Isgro, Meghan McMartin, Micaela Van Rensburg
Composers: Ben Yoganathan and Hanna Mulak
Composers: Ben Yoganathan and Hanna Mulak
Vocalist: Hanna Mulak
With artistic contributions from:
Brianna Clarke, Bryony McCaughey, Eilish 미정 Shin-Culhane, Jessica Germano, Katie Adams-Gossage
In A Landscape by Angela Blumberg
In A Landscape was originally conceived as a moving meditation capturing the timeless emergence and disappearances of forms. Eventually, I understood that the context for such a performance would need to be a durational setting where audiences can come and go. I began to explore more concrete, physical and rhythmic images that emphasizes the permanence of kinetic presence while also touching upon the finiteness of form.
I dreamed all this, and this I’m dreaming
and I’ll dream this again. Everything
will repeat and realize its final form,
and you will dream whatever I dream.
Arseny Tarkovsky
Choreography: Angela Blumberg
Music, song 1: Augusto Monk
Music, song 2: “In a Landscape” by John Cage performed by Thomas Kotcheff and
Bryan Curt Kostors
Dancers: Zachary Cardwell, Sarah Di Iorio, Andrew McCormack, Meghan McMartin
Music, song 1: Augusto Monk
Music, song 2: “In a Landscape” by John Cage performed by Thomas Kotcheff and
Bryan Curt Kostors
Dancers: Zachary Cardwell, Sarah Di Iorio, Andrew McCormack, Meghan McMartin
Shapeshift by Justin Fraser
Shapeshift is a contemporary solo performance exploring the personal landscapes of gender, identity, and vulnerability. Through a body that fractures, contracts, expands, and regenerates, the solo moves from resistance to softening — from protection to surrender. It treats uncertainty not as a flaw but as a creative compass, revealing how vulnerability holds potential for strength and transformation. Shapeshift asks: what if the moments of falling apart are the very moments that give us life again?
Collaborators List:
Mentor/outside eye: Heidi Strauss
Sound design: Jeremy Mimnagh
Vocal Coach: Fides Krucker
Choreographer/ dancer: Justin Fraser
Costume Designer: Micheline Wedderburn (specifically the nude harness) Laura Stewart (black dress)
