Our Story
Created and founded by sought-after choreographer Ashley Schofield, Opus Dance Collective is a performance-based contemporary dance company from southern Ontario, Canada. Known as storytellers, their focus is to create visually captivating choreographic work for industry events, concerts, corporate companies, not-for-profit organizations, and, of course, productions and digital work of their own. Part of their mission is to make dance relatable and accessible to everyone by taking inspiration from every day and bringing it to life in their work.
Their inaugural performance together was when Opus was chosen to perform in the prestigious Capezio ACE Awards Finalist showcase before an influential audience and panel of judges in both NYC, and then again the next season in Long Beach, CA. A few of the other notable industry events that Ashley and Opus have been a part of include Toronto Kids Fashion Week, 60×60 Toronto, The Toronto Choreographer’s Ball, Hit The Floor All-Star Showcase in Quebec (Levi and Gatineau) and Ontario, The Big Show (Toronto), VCR (Virtual Concert Reality) featuring Peyton Garcia, and Global News Morning Show.
In recent years, Opus Dance Collective was also a competitor on NBC’s World of Dance (Season 2). They battled it out in front of celebrity judges (Neyo, Jennifer Lopez, Derek Hough) against some of the world’s best dancers. Following their TV debut, Opus was chosen to present work at the annual APAP Conference in NYC.
Opus Dance Collective is one of the few companies in their area housing both professional and pre-professional dancers alike. By incorporating selected pre-professionals into their work, they help to give back to the younger dance community by bridging the gap between studio life and the professional world of dance. This allows the dancers to gain industry experience and portfolio content prior to graduating. This is also part of what makes Opus unique.
The origins of Opus were very organic. Ashley (director/choreographer) was looking for a creative outlet, something outside of teaching and choreographing for local studios. Although she never wanted to become a professional dancer herself, Ashley wanted to continue to workshop her choreography and create for different platforms. What began with one simple submission to the Capezio ACE Awards, has become something she never dreamt possible. Since the early days of Opus, Ashley has met, worked with, and taken on many new dancers each season. Her vision is to create opportunities by exploring new avenues and including not only older, experienced dancers, but younger dancers looking for industry experience and knowledge.
Thus far, Ashley and Opus Dance Collective are proud to have presented two full-length shows in Toronto – Volume 1: FORE/word and Volume 2: The Introduction. They have also created, styled, and produced multiple digital concept pieces. Opus had the honour of opening for all 4 Toronto Kid’s Fashion Week shows this summer as well. To learn more about the company and the director, check out the Dance Talks podcast for an interview and behind the scenes chat with Ashley! Available on Spotify and Apple Music.
Our Director
Ashley Schofield is a passionate, motivated choreographer and teacher from Toronto, ON. She is the founder and director of Opus Dance Collective, a contemporary company housing pre-professional and professional dancers. Her company debuted her work at the Capezio ACE Awards in both NYC and Los Angeles in front of an influential audience and panel of judges. They have since continued to train and perform across Canada and the US.
Ashley’s choreography and company can be seen on NBC’s World of Dance Season 2, as her Opus dancers battled it out amongst the top dancers in the world. She also had the honour of being selected to present a piece of choreography at the APAP Conference in NYC. Thus far, Ashley and Opus Dance Collective are proud to have presented two full-length shows in Toronto – Volume 1: FORE/word and Volume 2: The Introduction. She has also choreographed, directed, styled, and produced multiple digital concept pieces.
Ashley has been recognized for her creative concepts, artistry and choreography at both national and international levels of competition. Her choreography has been displayed across Canada and the US at the YAGP Finals in NYC, the Dance Awards, Global News Morning Show, charitable events and fundraisers, Toronto Kids Fashion Week, virtual concerts, promotional teams representing retail and media companies, along with numerous studio regional and national competitions.
Miss Schofield attended, by audition, the National Choreographer’s Intensive at Utah Valley University. While in attendance, she had the opportunity to work, study and create under the guidance of Nelly van Bommel. Ashley is a certified ADAPT & PBT teacher, and recently completed a course and examination by Intimacy Coordinators of Colour that allows her to act as an Intimacy Captain on set.
Ashley enjoys taking part in many annual industry events including Fever After Dark, Toronto Choreographer’s Ball, and Hit The Floor All-Star Showcase – she is also honoured to create choreography for World Performers Canada, a team that represents Canada at the Dance World Cup in Europe.