Laurel Victoria Gray

Founded by Artistic Director Dr. Laurel Victoria Gray in 1995, the award-winning Silk Road Dance Company (SRDC) presents women's dance traditions from along the Great Silk Road trade route. Their imaginative concerts promote “cultural understanding through Beauty and Delight.” Silk Road Dance Company has performed at museums, universities and festivals throughout the US. They were the first American dance ensemble to perform in Samarkand, Uzbekistan at the Sharq Taronalari International Festival.
Ethnically diverse, SRDC dancers have mastered a wide range of styles, including rare choreographies that are part of the company's “Legacy Repertiore”. Other pieces include new dances by Dr. Gray, inspired by Persianate and Turkic cultures
In 2003, SRDC won the International Academy of Middle Eastern Dance Award for Best Dance Company and Dr. Gray won the Kennedy Center Local Dance Commissioning Project award. The Fulbright Association selected Dr. Gray to deliver the annual Selma Jeanne Cohen International Dance Scholar Lecture at their 2009 conference.
Silk Road will present Canadian premier of a repertoire of folkloric dances and a workshop in Persian dance (in English).