Performance Meanings and connections in dance experiences for young people of all ages Ann Kipling Brown University of Regina Kathy Vlassopoulos Karen E. Bond Temple University Jeff Meiners University of South Australia Dance and the Child International and the Role of Performance Ann Kipling Brown Dance and the Child International (daCi); ‘is a non profit association founded in 1978 and subsequently entering the Conseil International de la Danse (CID), UNESCO, and is an autonomous, fully constituted branch of CID with the aim of promoting the growth and development of dance for children and young people on an international basis (Constitution, 2000). Throughout its history the international association has maintained its purpose to provide experiences of dance for young people as creators, performers and spectators with respect for the ethnic, gender and cultural identities of each young person. To that end members are encouraged to connect with dance in both the public and private fields of dance, to collaborate with members of other countries and make sure that dance is available to all young people. Within its mandate daCi provides a conference every three years at which dance educators, artists, researchers and young people are able to come together and exchange their ideas and experiences of dance. In this paper we present an overview of the organisation and the importance of performance in children’s dance. Following this discussion three daCi members, Kathy Vlassopoulos, Karen Bond and Jeff Meiners, whose