Four local dancers from Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent will represent Team Canada at the 2026 Dance World Cup.
The Dance World Cup will be held in Dublin, Ireland, from July 8 to July 18.
The four girls train at Pure Dance Academy, a premier dance studio serving Windsor-Essex and Chatham.
Mattia Klinger from Lakeshore, Lauren Murphy from Lakeshore, Finley Stedman from Tecumseh, and Gabrielle Hesse from Chatham will be among 11,000 dancers from over 50 countries during the competition.
A community send-off fundraiser will be taking place on Tuesday evening to raise money to help cover travel, accommodations, registration fees, and competition expenses.
The fundraiser will include food, prizes, music, and more, and will be held at Villa 92 in Tecumseh.
Sonia Klinger, organizer and mother of Mattia Klinger, says it’ll be a fun night.
“We’re also selling raffle tickets, we have raffle prizes as well. So it’ll just be a fun event to have a send-off for the girls and then also a bit of a fundraiser to help with the travel costs.”
She says the girls are overwhelmed but excited.
“They’re going to be competing in a variety of different dances. But they’re also going to be able to take some master classes from renowned teachers. So, it’s going to be fun; they’re going to meet a ton of people from across the world. It’ll be a great experience.”
Klinger says the event is about 10 days long.
“There’s an opening ceremony on July 12th; all the countries are involved. So, it’s cool to think that these four girls from the Windsor-Essex area are playing a part in this journey.”
The send-off party and fundraiser will run from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. at Villa 92 in Tecumseh. Tickets are $35 at the door.
The Dance World Cup is recognized as the world’s largest international dance competition for children and young adults, bringing together elite performers across disciplines, including ballet, jazz, contemporary, tap, acro, lyrical, musical theatre, and more.