Via Dance Victoria:
“Amber Downie-Back from Victoria, a resident dance artist at both Impulse Theatre and Dance Victoria Studios, receives $10,000 towards the project, ‘on the nature of…’ This interdisciplinary work explores themes of memory and nostalgia, while incorporating interactive and digital elements with dance performance and sound. Downie-Back will collaborate with Emilie van der Waals, a Netherlands-based contemporary dancer and choreographer from Sint Maarten, and sound designer Angus Gaffney, to push movement and sound in collaborative contexts with other media such as digital and video art.“
Congratulations Amber!
Read More About the 2022 Crystal Dance Prize Recipients Here
About the Artist

Amber Downie-Back (she/they) is an interdisciplinary movement artist who lives and creates on the unceded territories of the lək̓ wəŋən and W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples. Interested in integrating dance in collaborative contexts with other media, such as sound and video art, Amber’s practice views the reflection of physical spaces in the digital world. Creatively, Amber focuses on Murphy’s Law and the contrasting adage Yphrum, exploring the many combinations of what can and will be, investigating perceived boundaries between process/product, and performer/audience. Amber has a BFA Contemporary Dance from Concordia University and has performed professionally in programs such as Festival TransAmeriques, among others, and has had creations exhibited at Toronto Harbourfront Centre, by Impulse Theatre, and more.
Amber has been participating in the PIDC Project as one of the 11 Artists since September 2022. In late February 2023, Amber, along with Ebony Rose and Jane Chan, presented Camber, a collaborative video and sound installation exploring the themes of endings and beginnings. Camber was on display at arc.hive gallery from February 24th to 26th, 2023.
Founded in 1995, Dance Victoria brings the World’s Best Dance to the Royal Theatre and supports the development of new dance for the international stage from its studios in Quadra Village. Dance Victoria has been a PIDC Project Community Partner since early 2023.

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