Andrew Oxenham undertook the project of photographing a large and representative selection of Canadian dance companies, once an unfortunate and chric injury had forced his own premature retirement from the stage. His goal was more than ambitious. In order to present an overall view of our dance theatre from coast to coast, it entailed two and a half years of work, travelling, shooting, processing and then selecting, from a vast store of photographs, those which best represented the dazzling range of dance activity in Canada and the quality of its artists. The text of this book is by Michael Crabb and strives to set those companies of dance in Canada within a context, to provide a perspective against which their present character and extent may be set and fully appreciated.