Meet the Teacher: Honouring Contemporary Dance Roots across Generations with Lara Munro
Lara Munro is a Rambert Grades Trained Teacher and Studio Manager at Pegasus Dance Studios in Toronto.
Founded in 1987 by Lara’s grandmother, Lynda Johnson, and her mother, Jane Davis-Munro, Pegasus Dance Studios is now one of the largest dance schools in East Toronto, serving over 500 students.
Joining Rambert Grades in 2024 through our collaboration with the Royal Academy of Dance, Lara teaches Rambert Grades Contemporary Dance and is currently preparing students for her next examination cohort, bringing historic contemporary influences and individual expression into the studio.
Can you tell us about your journey into dance?
I have been dancing since a very young age, studying RAD Ballet and Limon Modern dance. I studied at a studio called Canadian Children’s Dance Theatre (now Canadian Contemporary Dance Theatre) for 10 years and was part of their performing company. I had the opportunity to dance in pieces choreographed by some of the leading Canadian contemporary choreographers such as Carol Anderson, Holly Small and Deborah Lundmark (the Artistic Director).
What inspired you to begin teaching?
I am a mother of three young adult sons, and when they were little I began teaching parent and child classes and early-childhood creative movement classes. As my children grew I also grew in my teaching, taking on older children. Today, I teach creative movement and modern contemporary dance from the youngest children all the way up to our graduating dancers at 18 years old. I also teach our adaptive dance classes.
How did Pegasus Dance Studios begin, and how has it evolved into the school it is now?
My mother and my grandmother opened our dance studio in Toronto in 1987 and we are now in our 39th year. They began as a combined dance and visual arts studio, as my mother taught dance and my grandmother taught visual arts. The school grew very slowly and organically as more space became available and more families were interested.
What started in a two room store front is now a large school housed in a three-story church building. We have four dance studios, a preschool space and an art studio. We have 12 instructors, around 500 students and teach ballet, modern contemporary, jazz, tap, hip hop, acro dance and visual arts, as well as adaptive dance classes for children with special needs and exceptionalities.
Our values include providing a space for all children to express themselves through the arts as well as being a third place for our students. We pride ourselves on being a strong influence in our community and valuing the whole child and the whole family.
What first sparked your interest in Rambert Grades, and how did you find the experience of learning the syllabus online?
As modern contemporary teachers, there are not a lot of resources available and we have to piece our lessons and goals together from many sources and influences. I was always looking for a good curriculum that I could incorporate into our studio. When the Royal Academy of Dance partnered with Rambert Grades it made sense for us, as an RAD school, to investigate it.
I really enjoy all of the education and training. I find the online learning to be very interactive and the instructors have been fabulous.
Rambert Grades is the reccomended Contemporary Dance syllabus of the Royal Academy of Dance. A unique collaboration between both organisations provides access to Rambert Grades membership and Syllabus Training to RAD Members, with exclusive discounts of up to 40% off membership.
Can you share an example of a moment in your teaching where you felt the impact of the Rambert Grades training?
As an older, classically trained modern dancer, I really love having contemporary exercises and current choreographers to bring to my students. The material is stretching me as a teacher and dancer and therefore I am able to bring so much more to my students. With my oldest teenage students, we dove deep into the Hofesh Schecter Performance Strand work and I saw them expand in their personal strength and style so much!
How have your students responded to the work?
I have seen my dancers really dig into the material and bring a lot of enthusiasm to what they are learning. They love the set exercises, the added floorwork and the dances. One of the things that we all love about the Rambert Grades is the emphasis on each individual dancer expressing themselves through the movement.
When preparing students for exam entry, how do you support them?
This is my second year preparing students for examinations. I learned a lot last year about the process and have been breaking down the set exercises and dances into smaller pieces so that they can really learn the material, before putting it together in the longer, full exercise. I have found that keeping up the classical modern technique through Limon or Horton exercises has helped them be stronger for the Rambert Grades work.
As a teacher based in Canada, how do you see Rambert Grades fitting into the wider dance education landscape here?
I would love for there to be a more unified children’s contemporary dance teaching community. It can be very isolating to teach modern contemporary dance here as everyone is doing different things and has different ideas of what modern and contemporary dance look like. I am excited to see the Rambert Grades grow in Canada and to have colleagues that I can connect with to share in this experience.
What advice would you give to someone just beginning their journey in contemporary dance?
From my perspective I think there is still so much value in learning about and knowing the founding modern dancers and techniques. I would recommend that if you are just beginning your journey in contemporary dance to explore and educate yourself in the history of modern dance. I love seeing the influences of the classical modern dance techniques coming through in the Rambert Grades work.
