Niagara-on-the-Lake resident Jennifer Zabek Stewart and her daughter Emmy, 11, are in the Czech Republic, preparing for Emmy to take the stage in Prague for an international dance competition.
The Grade 6 student at Crossroads Public School has been training for this opportunity since she auditioned for Team Canada Dance last spring, learning in June that she was on the team, and had earned a place with the national tap team that has her dancing at the International Dance Organization (IDO) World Tap Championship in Prague, beginning Oct. 23.
Team Canada Dance, Jennifer explains, is the official world championship national team representing dancers from across Canada now in Prague, with Emmy dancing with a 12 and under group.
Team Canada is a not-for-profit organization which has been auditioning dancers to attend world dance championships for almost 30 years. Team Canada dancer “have not only brought home several gold, silver, and bronze medals from the world championships, but have also made connections and friendships with dancers from all over the world. Previous dancers have made professional dance careers, became adjudicators, and even became Team Canada choreographers themselves,” says Jennifer.
Jennifer and Emmy left for the competition Sunday, arriving Monday. “After a long day of travel, we arrived in Prague yesterday morning. Today we did a little sight-seeing before the competition begins tomorrow,” Jennifer said in an email to The Local Tuesday.
The championships are considered the Olympics of dance, with only one gold, silver, and bronze medal awarded for each division after the dancers successfully make it through up to three elimination rounds. The top three medalists "then stand proudly on the podium as their flags are raised and the winning national anthem is played," says Jennifer. “It is also great to see the ‘best of the best’ in Canada, dancers from various studios, towns and provinces coming together into one team with one goal – to represent Canada.”
However, “Canada still does not recognize our dancers as the athletes they are when they compete at world level competitions,” she says.
Emmy, her mom told The Local before they left, “is beyond excited” to be taking part in the prestigious competition. “She loves dancing, and she loves being on stage. If she could dance in her sleep she would.”
Emmy has been dancing at various Niagara studios since she was 18 months old, says Jennifer, and trains six days a week, more than 16 hours per week, in all genres of dance — tap, ballet, theatre jazz, musical theatre, hip hop, modern, contemporary and character ballet. She is now with the Niagara Ballet School in St. Catharines, where she also assists in teaching young dancers.
Although she loves all dance, her favourites are tap and ballet, and in addition to training for this competition, she is preparing to perform in The Nutcracker with the Niagara Ballet School this December at the FirstOntario Performing Arts Centre in St. Catharines.
As a member of the school's competitive team, she has also been working hard on all of her numbers going into the competition season in the new year — there will be five to seven competitions, mostly in southern Ontario, coming up for her.
And as if dancing isn’t enough, Emmy loves musical theatre, and is also a member of Niagara Star Singers, founded by Queenston’s Lisa Brillon, recently taken over by her daughter Celeste Brillon
“Whether it's to perform or compete, Emmy is most at home while she is on stage. Her dream is to be on Broadway one day,” says Jennifer.
Emmy isn’t the only talented offspring of Jennifer and Adam Stewart. The eldest of four, Emmy’s brother Weston, nine, is a lacrosse and hockey player, and plays with an elite travel hockey team.
Sisters Gigi, six, and Andie, four, are both dancers with the Niagara Ballet School, and with the three girls in dance, “I feel like we spend more time at the studio than at home,” says Jennifer. “It’s our second home. And Niagara Ballet is like a family to us.”
Gigi also plays hockey and lacrosse. And not surprisingly, Jennifer and dad Adam, who just moved his law practice to Virgil, spend a significant amount of time making sure all four kids get to where they need to go, whether it’s a competition, rehearsal, game or practice.
And whether it’s dance or sports, Jennifer says, the kids learn more than the skills they need to take part in their activities — in addition to creating friendships, they learn about discipline, and respect for others.
With some time away from school necessary for dance, Emmy also has learned to manage her time. "That’s something she’s had to learn early, and at Crossroads, they are very understanding. They know she’s following her dreams. It’s crazy, she’s only 11, but this is a great opportunity and we couldn’t pass it up.”
Jennifer’s life became increasingly busy leading up to the departure for Prague, not only preparing for Emmy’s competition and the outfits needed for that, but also making sure Adam, who stayed home to look after the other three, had everything he needed — especially, she explains, “all the outfits for the girls.” Dad, she adds, is “not great at matching.”
She and Emmy will have a chance to relax and be tourists once the competition finishes — it wraps up Oct. 27 but the dancers must successfully win in rounds leading up to the final, so there is no guarantee how far the Canadian team will go. And when they are done, Jennifer and Emmy will head to Paris for a few days of down-time before heading home on Nov. 1.
