Alexandra Savard, Dance Can Make You Soar!
Brilliant performer, teacher, choreographer and director: Alexandra shares the joys of dance with openness, heart-warming empathy, and respect… So that dance can make you soar!
Dance Can Make You Soar!
Incandescent Alexandra! A bigger-than-life smile, laughing, sparkling eyes, a face shining with love, ringed with blonde hair; it’s as if these qualities themselves express her brimming, fundamental goodness, and open heart… You just feel she’s meant to be one of those beautiful people everyone likes! Truly, all you need to see is the pure delight in her youngest students when, as class begins, they follow her in single file, on tiptoe, moving towards their first dance steps… A child’s eyes don't lie! The way we interact with people who have disabilities, impairments, or a loss of autonomy also speaks volumes about who we are, deep down. And Alexandra succeeds on all counts, as she shares the joys of dance, with an openness, with a heart-warming empathy and respect. So that dance can make you soar!
Choosing dance
Alexandra grew up in St-Fidèle, amidst a tight-knit, loving, large, and extended family that included cousins, uncles, aunts, parents, and friends. Her father, a mason, built the family home from field stones. Besides being a mason, he had also been a sailor, piling the whole household onto his boat for a lungful of sea air and for a different perspective on the area they call home. Still, as a teenager, a longing for the sea came to be a longing for freedom! The freedom of the city, preferably living in an artistic community. Something of a rebel, Alexandra still worked hard in her dance classes and, when she was a student, as an assistant to Linda Tardif, a retired Grands Ballets Canadien ballerina who had been teaching up this way: When it came time for her to leave the nest, Alexandra pursued her education in dance, first at the Cégep de Drummondville, then at UQAM [the Université du Québec à Montréal]. There, she thrived in the artistic/bohemian Plateau Mont-Royal district, a pretty coffee shop waitress on the weekends, and a student during the week. Until the day she decided to give up everything to come back home, to Charlevoix and take her turn at passing the joy of dance on to the youngest generations. Joined by a devoted man who followed her here, she began her family, her business, and her school in 2008.
Solo dans la vallée des glaces
Building a school
The challenge when building a school isn’t just putting a roof over people’s heads to keep the rain off: a school is so much more than that! A school is a place of learning… Learning not only skills, but learning about oneself. And, to succeed at that, one has to know how to create an open space, a welcoming space, an inspiring space… Space for trust and respect!
When she came back to Charlevoix in 2003, this was exactly what Alexandra wanted to do. Fully trained and educated, she wanted to share her passion for dance, in the place she was born and raised. A woman with a plan, who enjoys working together with the whole community, she established her school in a deconsecrated village church, which became a venue for for every member of her large family to express their talents and enthusiasm. The building that serves as the arts and culture centre becomes the first home of the École de la Cité Danse school. Under the impressive wood-frame barrel vault, the mirrors and dance mats saw their first students when Alexandra taught, choreographed, directed, and administrated a school which espoused a philosophy of respect for the body through the use of proper technique, and genuine care for the student, for their individuality, and for their growth.
Values fully shared by the woman who became her close associate, Marie-Noëlle Jacob-Tardif, also a highly-qualified dance teacher. Rounding out the team, Myriam Gunner, the assistant-turned-teacher. And that’s truly the kind of success that warms your heart!
When one builds a school, one also builds a business, and one’s livelihood, expending the necessary elbow grease, surrounding oneself with good people, getting to know people, learning and staying up to date… Beyond being a recreational dancer, Alexandra is a professional, recognized by the Réseau d’enseignement de la danse (RED) [Dance Education Network].
Now based in the city of Clermont’s recreational services facilities, the Cité Danse school comfortably accommodates students of all ages and from all walks of life, all year long. She spends class time putting together choreography to be presented on-stage in the annual show, a touching, vibrant, lively celebration of shared passion for dance!
In 2023, the École de la Cité-Danse will also offer courses in Baie-Saint-Paul, to better serve the residents of the western region of Charlevoix’s vast territory.
Welcoming difference
For several years now, a particular group of students elicit tears of joy from attendees at the big, end-of-the-year show… It’s because the artistry of the performance from students whose emotions are so pure and unfiltered, whose gestures are so spontaneous and free, contains something that transcends a dance number performed by rote. The group of adult students from the Regroupement pour l’Intégration Sociale de Charlevoix (RISC), who have intellectual disabilities, are the fullest expression of Cité Danse’s “Dance can make you soar!” mission statement.
After a meeting with Cécile Martinez during a RED network training session, Alexandra developed the plan to work with individuals who have intellectual and physical disabilities, thus allowing them the opportunity to freely express themselves in the language of dance. The connection with RISC was made entirely naturally, and brought together the first group of Adapted Dance class dancers. With great compassion, Alexandra teaches movement adapted to individual aptitudes and strengths. Above all, she awakens the joy of movement, and of spending time together!
In December 2021, this École de la Cité Danse de Charlevoix initiative won her an award in the Diversity/Inclusion category, bestowed on her by her peers at the first Gala de reconnaissance du RED [DEN Appreciation Gala]. A source of great pride to Alexandra, a woman of feeling, truly blessed by the joy of working, and growing, with her students!
Courses offered
First movements and dance steps for 3- to 4-year-olds.
Attendance and participation of a parent is required.
First movements and dance steps with dance components; body space, time. Developing awareness of the corporeal schema, overall locomotion, coordination and rhythm. Moving in different ways through space. 45 minutes of dancing good times with your little one! Only registered children and an accompanying adult are allowed in the room.
This class is open to girls and boys.
Specifically for young children, ages 4 to 5 years old, this class allows the child to explore and improve their locomotion, laterality and balance, their coordination, and rhythm through the expression of dance and games. Children are introduced to dance while developing their creativity and their body awareness and exploring basic movements such as walking, running, prancing, chasing, jumping, crawling, rolling, and more. Classes incorporate an energetic warm-up circle, dance and exploration games, and the learning of choreography, nursery rhymes, diagonals to learn different basic steps and a short relaxation period at the end of the class to explore various ways to relax. This class is open to girls and boys.
In addition to encouraging the child’s creative potential, this class is intended to improve locomotion, laterality, use of space, rhythm, balance, and memorization. This class also enables the child to broaden their dance vocabulary while having fun and socializing. The Creative Dance I and II classes are a solid foundation for ballet classes, jazz dance, hip-hop, gymnastics, figure-skating, and more. This class is open to girls and boys.
Inspired by the Simonson method and contemporary dance. The Jazz-Contemporary class begins with a gradual warm-up of all muscles before going on to work more specifically. Among other things in this class, we work on coordination, posture, the trunk, flexibility, rhythm, precision, muscle endurance, and oppositions such as balance versus imbalance, falling and suspended movement. The student is also led to develop control and awareness of their body in space through motivated learning that respects each student’s physical abilities. By and large, classes are taught using the RED (Réseau d’enseignement de la danse) guide. At more advanced levels, there is some difficulty of execution.
Ballet technique based on the Réseau d’enseignement de la danse du Québec (RED) program. Emphasis is placed on exercises at the barre and centre floor work based on the l’en-dehors movement and proper bearing. Stretching and strengthening exercises develop good muscle control, and an enjoyment of physical exertion. Ballet also develops good personal discipline and a taste for excelling, while improving physical fitness. Enchaînements, as well as choreography, will allow students to use the space, creativity, and grace. Pointe shoes are incorporated into more advanced levels, when the student is deemed physically ready. Classical ballet is the basis for all forms of dance.
Adapted dance is a form of recreational dance adjusted for individuals who have functional limitations. Dance movements are taught based on each student’s strengths and aptitudes, and allow the development of greater mobility, greater expression of ability, and greater body awareness. It’s a warm, welcoming space, where the enjoyment of movement is the core of the experience. The adapted dance class is open to eligible individuals who want to experience something new.
Gumboot is a percussive African dance performed while wearing rubber boots. It’s a type of rhythmic, multi-faceted, and energetic dance.
Administration adress:
École de la Cité Danse
C/O Alexandra Savard
1875 rang Ste-Mathilde
La Malbaie, Qc
G5A 2G1
EMAIL - ecole@cite-danse.com
418 633-2729
School adress:
Chalet des loisir
7 rue Maisonneuve
Clermont, Qc
G4A1G6
