{"id":921003,"date":"2026-10-05T02:48:10","date_gmt":"2026-10-05T02:48:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/921003\/"},"modified":"2026-10-05T02:48:10","modified_gmt":"2026-10-05T02:48:10","slug":"barrie-dance-instructor-tapped-to-represent-canada-on-world-stage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/921003\/","title":{"rendered":"Barrie dance instructor tapped to represent Canada on world stage"},"content":{"rendered":"

Heather Dennis will be heading to Prague later this month to take part in International Dance Organization (IDO) World Tap Dance Championship<\/p>\n

Heather Dennis has spent nearly her entire life in a dance studio, but this fall the 35\u2011year\u2011old tap instructor from Barrie will step onto one of the biggest stages in her sport \u2014 representing Canada at the International Dance Organization (IDO) World Tap Dance Championship<\/a>\u00a0in Prague.<\/p>\n

Dennis, who has spent the past decade teaching at Moving Art in the city\u2019s south end, started dancing when she was just three years old.<\/p>\n

Over the years, she has trained in a wide range of styles \u2014 ballet, jazz, musical theatre, acro and hip\u2011hop among them \u2014 but tap has always held a special place in her heart, she told BarrieToday.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I was a kid, I found it easy enough with just the right amount of challenge, but I found that if I worked at it and practised it, then it got easier versus that was not the same case for some other styles.\u201d<\/p>\n

Now, as an adult who teaches both children and adults, Dennis says tap\u2019s accessibility is one of the things she loves most about the style. The benefits \u2014 exercise, co-ordination and the mental challenge of rhythm work \u2014 apply no matter your age, she said, and she\u2019s seen that firsthand in her classes.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs an adult, we have our days where we can move a little bit better than some other days. And tap is nice because you can really modify it to whatever your ability is in that moment and still get the same amount of benefits, whether that’s a challenge with your brain because of all the rhythm patterns or basic cardio doing your tap steps across the floor,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI feel like it is a style where you can really practise it and put the time in and it’s achievable versus sometimes something more technical like ballet for example,” Dennis added.\u00a0“Sometimes, no matter how much you practise your arabesque, your leg isn’t going to get higher because that’s just the way your body is built \u2026 but everyone can do a shuffle if they practise hard enough.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dennis learned about the opportunity through social media, where Team Canada Dance<\/a>\u00a0announced it was accepting video auditions for its Adult 2 tap teams. She decided to record a short submission of herself dancing and send it in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI just did a combination from the Advanced 2 tap syllabus \u2014 a little amalgamation with their set music,\u201d she explained. \u201cIt was just a quick 30\u2011second routine, and then I added a little \u2018Hi, my name\u2019s Heather, this is how old I am, this is what I teach.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

At the end of June, Dennis received an email from Team Canada Dance letting her know she\u2019d been accepted to the Adult 2 Tap East team, which will travel more than 6,700 kilometres to compete at the world championships, scheduled for Oct.\u202f20 to\u202f25.<\/p>\n

Dennis says\u00a0she was \u201csuper excited\u201d when the acceptance email arrived, followed quickly by the realization that she needed to decide whether she could make the commitment.<\/p>\n

\u201cEvery dancer has to pay their own way. Team Canada Dance isn\u2019t able to fund any part of it, so you\u2019re thinking, financially, can I swing it? Can I make it to all the rehearsals, especially with the commute to a different studio?\u201d<\/p>\n

After talking it over with her husband and family, she says\u00a0the answer became clear.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe decided this is a once\u2011in\u2011a\u2011lifetime opportunity,\u201d Dennis said. \u201cThey told me, \u2018You\u2019ve got to do it. We\u2019ll figure out the rest of the details, but you\u2019ve got to go.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Dennis noted that unlike many mainstream sports, dance is not recognized as a sport by the Canadian government. As a result, nonprofit organizations like Team Canada Dance don’t have access to federal funding for their athletes, meaning each dancer must cover their own costs to compete internationally. So\u00a0she\u00a0created a GoFundMe<\/a>\u00a0earlier this year to try to help cover some of the costs associated with the competition.<\/p>\n

Dennis says\u00a0the opportunity feels especially meaningful because dance was always her sport growing up.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was never going to be on the hockey team or the soccer team or anything like that \u2026 so it’s really cool to have that feeling that we see a lot for other sports,” she said.\u00a0“In Canada, the mainstream doesn’t necessarily view dance as a sport, but as all dancers know that dance is a sport.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe IDO Tap Championships is known as the Olympics of tap dance, so it’s cool to say I’m going to go compete on this world stage and represent Canada, along with other people from all over,” Dennis added.\u00a0“I’m really excited to say that I got to do that and be a part of that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dennis says\u00a0one of the things that makes the Adult 2 Tap team unique is its age range.<\/p>\n

\u201cI believe we have some people in their 60s, so it ranges from the early 30s to 60s,” she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

As for what she\u2019s looking forward to most, it’s simply being surrounded by tap dancers from around the world.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m excited to meet other adult dancers from different countries, see what their style of tap is like and watch them perform,” she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Getting to know her teammates over the last few months has made the upcoming trip even more meaningful.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t know anyone going into it, and now that I\u2019ve gotten to know a bunch of my teammates, I\u2019m really excited to go on stage with this group and feel that moment of, \u2018We\u2019re here and we\u2019re doing it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

Being part of the team has also allowed her to reconnect with the feeling of being a student again \u2014 something she told BarrieToday she didn\u2019t even realize she missed.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter my first rehearsal, (while I was) driving home, I hadn\u2019t had that feeling in a long time of going to a dance class and just showing up to learn and do,\u201d she said. \u201cYou forget what that\u2019s like. It\u2019s so fun to be able to go and be a student again.\u201d<\/p>\n

The experience has also allowed her to show her own students what continuing to pursue dance can look like.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve had students do the same kind of event with Team Canada Dance in other genres, but I never really thought this opportunity would be available to me as an adult,\u201d Dennis\u00a0said. \u201cIt\u2019s been really fun to be that example for them (and) to show that just because you grow up doesn\u2019t mean you stop dancing or stop going after opportunities.\u201d<\/p>\n

She added that it\u2019s been meaningful to model something different than her usual role in the studio.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s neat to be an example in a performance way, not just in a teaching way.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"09302026ncheatherdennistapper2\"
\nBarrie dance instructor Heather Dennis and her red tap shoes will represent Canada in October at the The IDO World Tap Dance Championship 2026 in Prague. | Nikki Cole\/BarrieToday <\/p>\n

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