Artist in Residence 2026
LUCÍA LlANO
Casa De Danza is proud to host Lucía for an in-studio residency at The Fifth Dance, as she develops a new duet with Yiming Cai.
About Lucía
Originally from Colombia, Lucía Llano is a passionate learner and versatile performer who trained on scholarship at MISI, School of Musical Theatre in Bogotá and graduated with a BFA in Dance from York University.
Her artistic development has been shaped by international experiences, including participation in intensives such as Deltebre Dansa in Spain, where she focused on contemporary floorwork techniques. Drawing from jazz, Colombian folklore, ballet and contemporary/modern forms, Lucía creates a dynamic performance language that emphasizes versatility and cultural fusion.
She has collaborated with choreographers including Hanna Kiel, Carol Anderson, Falciony Patiño, Nina Milanovski, and Alexander Herrara, and has performed in diverse projects such as Jessie Reyez’s music video Mutual Friend (choreographed by Martha Hart).
Most recently, Lucía earned a Master of Teaching from the University of Toronto, where her research explored the role of dance and movement education in supporting physical literacy. She is currently active as a freelance performer, educator, and arts administrator, and one of the founders of Subsuelo Dance Collective.
IG @sofatamaraca
Artist in Residence 2025
SOFÍA ONTIVEROS
Casa De Danza is proud to host Sofía and the cast of Ojalá for an in-studio residency at The Fifth Dance, as they develop and rehearse for their upcoming performance at the 2025 Vanguardia Dance Festival.
About Sofía
Sofía Ontiveros is a queer, gender fluid Mexican dance artist and choreographer based in Tkaronto, Ontario. Sofía is a 2021 graduate from Toronto Metropolitan University 's The Creative School BFA Dance Program. The TMU faculty chose them for the Lipson Family Endowment Award for an Emerging Choreographer. Their most recent work Ojalá..., in collaboration with María Riaño was showcased at CAMINOS 2023 by Aluna Theatre and The Citadel Dance Mix 2023 by The Citadel + Compagnie, co-produced with Fall for Dance North. They are currently re-working and re-presenting Ojalá… for Vanguardia Dance Festival in May 2025.
As a performer, Sofía has worked with various artists/companies like Kelly Shaw, Justine Chambers, Kenny Pearl, Jera Wolfe, Bobbi Jene Smith, Or Schraiber, Kylie Thompson, Seanna Bailey, Zuri Skeete, Nina Li, Rose Harris, Proarte Danza, The Bentway, Aluna Theatre, Teatro Línea Sombra, and A Front Company. Additionally, Sofía has continued their commercial dance training, finding a passion for heels dancing. They trained with Kode Red Academy during their 2023-2024 season, a performance and dance training company run by choreographer Jac Valiquette. Versatility and diverse training is deeply important to Sofía, as it expands and challenges their mind and body as both performer and creator.
Sofía deeply enjoys creating in her life; cooking at home for loved ones, writing, dancing, acting, singing, playing the piano. She values curiosity and continuously learning new skills and knowledge. In their works, Sofía questions and explores social constructs, and how they play on individual or interpersonal relationships. Writing is important in their dance explorations, whether as pre-choreographic inspiration or as part of the movement. Merging and embodying texts in dance composition aids them in both research and personal growth/healing process. She is constantly left with important reflections post-choreographic research.