Shelby Richardson MA ISA

sHELBY RICHARDSON IS THE FOUNDER AND EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

OF METHOD DANCE SOCIETY.

Rooted in the confluence of movement, identity, and environment, my work is an ongoing investigation into how the body can hold, share, and transform experience. I approach dance as a language of connection—capable of articulating the unseen links between personal histories, communal narratives, and the ecologies we inhabit. My commitment is to creating collaborative spaces where perspectives are exchanged through movement, and where choreography becomes a site for identity-making and representation.

Born on the ancestral territory of the xʷməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Səl̓ílwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh) Nations, I now live and work on the traditional territory of the Lheidli T’enneh in Northern BC. Here, the act of making dance is inseparable from place—its landscapes, histories, and communities. In 2019, I founded Method Dance Society to cultivate a professional contemporary dance presence in the North, fostering artistic exchange, training, and presentation.

My practice moves fluidly between choreography, facilitation, and curation, weaving together visual and performing arts to create layered, research-informed works. Collaboration is not an afterthought but the foundation of my process, inviting artists and audiences alike into shared authorship. This approach reflects my belief that dance is not merely something to be watched, but a space to be entered—where meaning is co-created, where individual and collective experiences intersect, and where representation is expanded.

Each project becomes an opportunity to ask who is seen, whose movements are celebrated, and how art can deepen our understanding of both self and place. Movement, for me, is both lens and language—a way of mapping the connections between body, land, and community.

Traditional Biography

Shelby Richardson is the Founder and Artistic Director of Method Dance Society and Performing Arts Program Manager for the Community Arts Council of Prince George. A TEDx speaker whose work has been featured on CBC News, in Dance International, Dance Current, and by the Vancouver Ballet Society, she is recognized for advancing contemporary dance in Northern BC. Her leadership includes serving on the boards and networks of Two Rivers Art Gallery, Northern Presenters Network, and Dance West Network, and she has presented nationally on dancer health, Indigenous cultural expression, and rural arts development.