Sylvain Émard receives a Governor General’s Award
Sylvain Émard is one of seven winners of the 2026 Governor General’s Performing Arts Award, one of the highest cultural honours in the country.
This prestigious award pays tribute to the choreographer’s 45-year artistic career and his 35 years as artistic director of Sylvain Émard Danse. For us, the announcement of this honour is a shining moment because of what it implies: a journey marked by hard work and shared actions, as well as loyalty and the pursuit of common goals. It is a moment that celebrates both the progress made and the pleasure of continuing to move forward together.
For more than four decades, Sylvain Émard has been creating unique, demanding and generous works where the body becomes a sensitive conduit for connection and sharing. From theatre venues to public spaces, from the intimate to the monumental, his choreography combines formal rigour with compassion and constant attention to the realities of the world we live in.
With a repertoire of over 40 dance works presented on 4 continents, Sylvain Émard has affected and inspired hundreds of thousands of people, not only spectators, but also performers sharing the stage as they become a cohesive part of the performance. His iconic, inclusive piece Le Grand Continental has attracted thousands of dance enthusiasts of all ages, both here and abroad, and has helped break down barriers in contemporary dance in more than 13 major cities.
A curious and inventive artist, Sylvain Émard is constantly exploring new formats: stage works, in situ creations, immersive projects, community outreach activities. The company continues to pursue its commitment to community development, knowledge transfer and the recognition of dance as an essential art form. Alongside his personal work, he is also active in theatre, opera, and film.
Receiving the Governor General’s Performing Arts Award is recognition that his work is profoundly rooted in the present, focused on others and driven by a strong conviction, i.e. dance has the power to bring people together, to touch and inspire, to get them moving, to (re)connect with their humanity.
Congratulations to the other award recipients: Susan Benson, James Cameron, Daniel Lavoie, Tonya Williams, Sae Hoon (Stan) Chung and Barbara Hannigan.
