For over three decades, Mainstage Dance has premiered professionally choreographed works performed by students in the Bachelor of Arts dance program. These University of Calgary students get a rare opportunity to participate in a collaborative process and create a piece of original dance work.

The last time Anne Flynn was the artistic director of Dance Montage in 1995, most of the student dancers in this year's show were still in elementary school.

After previous artistic director Dawn Dymond moved to the United States with her family, University of Calgary dance professor Flynn wasn't intimidated about going back to the thick of organizing the extremely popular show.

It's a question that every artist eventually has to ask themselves: Why do art? The Michèle Moss-choreographed Why Dance? Two aims to answer this very question, taking diverse styles, from West African dance to house music, into its choreographic influences.

"Some of my research is in West Africa and Cuba," says Moss. "That's very important to me and close to the bone. It's the way that I move and the way that I like to move with the music also supporting that-- so it's heavy on the percussion."

Dancing events usually go unnoticed among the crowds at the University of Calgary. Midterms, exams and last night's party usually dominate a student's mind while major drama and dance events are largely ignored. Although this is unfortunate, now is the best time to break a dramaless habit and head out to watch Mainstage, a long-standing U of C event, showcasing brilliant choreographers from the United States and Canada and U of C's dance degree students.

Having been run for just under four decades, the University of Calgary's Dance Montage is Calgary's longest running dance show. Originally created to feature dances created by students in the faculty of kinesiology, it has grown over the years to feature university students, grad students and community members.

The show's creation begins in May. Choreographers' applications are sent in and a selection committee goes over the proposals and selects a wide variety of choreographers.

Dance is as universal a language as music. All you have to do is open your eyes and mind to understand it. As the University of Calgary dance program gets ready to host its professional series, all choreographer and dancer Marc Boivin asks is for your presence, mind and body.

Alberta Ballet is putting on the Christmas classic the Nutcracker again. Whatever you might have heard, it definitely isn't about your creepy uncle.

"It's really the coach of the company," says Edmund Stripe of his job as ballet master. "I basically oversee taking the classes for the dancers in the morning, and taking the rehearsals for all the ballets we perform. Every year around October, we start getting Nutcracker ready for our annual performances."

Any event that happens 37 times over 37 consecutive years deserves some ample respect, and the annual University of Calgary Dance Montage is no exception. Exuberant dancers of various skill levels chasseed across the University Theatre stage this weekend with flair, flamboyance and fun aplenty. Tickets were near sold out opening night and the theatre was packed--not surprisingly--with friends and family of the 100 some dancers featured in Montage.

What do a politician, Socrates and Zab Maboungou have in common? The answer is they all like to debate--how they choose to do it, on the other hand, is a bit different. Politicians and Socrates choose to convey their arguments through words, whereas dancer Maboungou chooses a different approach to debating. Maboungo's latest work Nsamu--which translates to "The Subject of Debate" in Kikongo--is an attempt to explain the concept of debate through contemporary African dance and live percussion music.

Since the advent of the internet, the entertainment industry's fight for your time and money has never been more of an uphill battle. While films, music and television shows can be enjoyed from the comfort of your living room, you must go outside to fully enjoy the performing arts of theatre and dance. This added element means the performing arts community faces an even stiffer challenge, one they're more than prepared to tackle.