DADAO 2025-2026
DADAO 2025-2026
We just out here Loitering!
Loitering is a dance-theatre duet that questions why every moment must have purpose. Rooted in street and contemporary dance, it explores drifting without direction as quiet rebellion and tender joy. Memories of skipping school, wandering malls, and chasing places we might never reach become metaphors for resisting productivity’s grip. Through playful partnering, grooves that break apart, and bodies leaning into uncertainty, the work asks why some are free to linger while others are judged. Beneath its surface, Loitering probes our inner wandering - daydreams, hesitations, unspoken fears, finding truth in simply being, without needing to arrive anywhere.
Punit
Punit is a first-generation Indo-Canadian dance and theatre artist based in Surrey, BC, whose practice spans contemporary and street dance forms. He has trained through mentorships with organizations such as Barangay Project Society and Higher Ground Dance, and with artists including Sophia Sosa, Natasha Gorrie, Marissa Wong, Arash Khakpour, Deanna Peters, and Lesley Telford.
His recent collaborations include projects with The Falling Company, ᐋᐧᐸᓇᒐᐦᑯᐢ Collective, Halfie Films, Mutable Subject/Deanna Peters, and Christopher Bonus. Punit has created original works through residencies and festivals hosted by New Works Dance, Dance West Network, Up In the Air Theatre, Chalk Dance Collective, and Method Dance Society, and has received a Canada Council award for dance film research. Currently, he is researching a duet with UK-based dancer James Olivo.
His work integrates movement and voice to explore themes of mental health, masculinity, and identity within contemporary life, framed by fictional and surreal narratives.
Contact:
Punit, punitt487@gmail.com
Photo: Carla Alcantra, 2024
Details:
Year of creation: 2025
Choreographer: Punit and James Olivo
Key collaborators:
Choreographers : Punit, James Olivo (Jamey Wamey)
Performers : Punit, another artist TBC
Audience Type: Elementary (Gr. 1-7), Youth (Gr. 8-12), Families, Young Adults, Adults, Seniors
Length of work: 30 minutes
Preparation time required on site: 5 minutes
Technical requirements required on-site: Standard speakers for music
Space required: Any space works (adaptable piece)
Availability: I’m fully available to tour across BC. While I hope to tour my other works too, Loitering feels right for now as it’s outdoors, rooted in a universal experience, and lets me literally loiter in each place as part of living the piece. I want to collaborate with local dancers wherever possible, given 4 to 5 days to connect and rehearse, or bring someone with me. Beyond performing, I hope to offer workshops or informal sessions to build real connections. Touring will help me grow my practice, adapt the work to new environments, and start a long term path of creating with communities across BC.
Community Engagement
Open to facilitating a community chat and a improv movement class for people of all abilities.