GENERAL
INFORMATION
HISTORY
Founded in 2002 by owner/artistic director Christie McKay-Hofland. Dancemakerz is one of the top dance studio's in the GTA, best known for high quality training in all disciplines. Dancemakerz has been the recipient of the Readers Choice Awards for Best Dance Studio/Best Instructor for 18 years in a row. We take great pride in our community and have been recognized for our Outstanding Parade Floats in Waterdown’s annual Christmas parade.
In 2006 and 2014, Dancemakerz won the Business and Growth Development Award through the Flamborough Chamber of Commerce.
Christie started the studio because of her passion for dance. Enriching childrens’ lives through music and movement is very important at DMZ.
This passion has also lead DMZ to move from humble beginnings in a relatively small facility to its current 7,000 square foot professional facility where all classes are held.
MISSION
DMZ strives to provide the best level of training in all dance disciplines. From our recreational programs to part time and competitive teams, we take great pride in each division. We believe team building is essential to our students progress and camaraderie.
Dancemakerz is a place where dancers can develop confidence and have fun all while progressing and learning new skills. We encourage a positive learning environment and find a dancer in each child.
FACILITY
We strive to ensure a clean and safe environment at Dancemakerz. We have a 7,000 square foot newly renovated facility with 3 large studios. Each studio has a professionally sprung flooring system to ensure our dancers safety. There is ample parking for all clients and we offer a comfortable lobby for seating and observation. We have two change rooms on the upper level, and dedicated spaces where homework can be done during breaks.
DIRECTORS
Christie Mckay and Irina Egorova have worked together training dancers for 30 years.
Christie McKay is a versatile choreographer and is the successful owner of Dancemakerz in Waterdown. In 1998 Christie was a participant on broadway for National Tap Dance Day, with Gregory Hines, Savion Glover, and Buster Brown. Since 2013, she has been choreographing for Team Canada Dance earning over 15 Gold Medals for Canada in both tap and jazz. Christie is also qualified judge for the International Dance Organization. She graduated from Toronto Metropolitan University (formerly Ryerson) with a degree in Business Marketing which has helped her develop a strong business model.
Born in St. Petersburg Russia, Irina Egorova has been a fundamental addition to the ballet community in Canada. She migrated to Canada over 30 years ago and has since devoted her life to Dancemakerz and training some of the best dancers in the GTA. Irina has been the Team Canada Ballet choreographer for 5 years. Her strong commitment to excellence has earned our dancers full acceptance into prestigious schools like The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, The National Ballet, and San Francisco Ballet. Irina travels to Japan annually to judge professionally. She is regarded as one of the best teachers in ballet in the Canadian industry. Irina is an active member of the Society of Classical Ballet where we study on the Vaganova style in ballet.