THE PEGGY BAKER PRIZE FOR PERFORMANCE
a new award at Dance Arts institute (formerly The School of Toronto Dance Theatre)

After more than a decade spent in New York dancing with the Lar Lubovitch company and the White Oak Dance Project with Mark Morris and Mikhail Baryshinkov, Peggy returned to Toronto in 1990 and renewed her long association with The School of Toronto Dance (STDT).

She has been a guest teacher at STDT for more than 30 years, and has staged existing repertoire as well as created new works on the students since 2002. The inaugural Louise Smith Artist-in-Residence in 2012, and the recipient of the 2017 Kathryn Ash Choreographic Commission, Peggy has also led an annual two-week fall residency for the 3rd year students from 2014 to 2021.

In honour of the profound contribution that Peggy has made to the school and hundreds of graduates, the Board of Peggy Baker Dance Projects is thrilled to announce the creation of the Peggy Baker Prize for Performance, which will be awarded annually to a 3rd year student who has demonstrated outstanding skills as an interpreter and collaborator over the course of their training. A cash prize for the winner, this initiative is designed to assist a promising dancer realize their potential, and to honour the legacy of Peggy’s pedagogy with this storied contemporary dance training institution.