Roberta Thomas Legacy Award

Neighbourhood Dance Works is honored to administer the Roberta Thomas Legacy Award. The Award was established by Roberta (Robbie) Thomas' family in 2012 as a way to continue her infectious human spirit by supporting development and presentation in the field of dance and dance collaboration.

Harriett Roberta Thomas was an English émigré to Newfoundland who became a beloved and essential figure to the cultural life of her adopted country. A true believer in the creative arts, she was a friend and second mother to the swarms of young people drawn to her and her sons' musical home in St. John's. As an administrator she worked tirelessly to shore up many arts organizations, giving guidance to eager spirits that matched her own. She had a compelling desire to further all forms of art and loved collaboration. A champion of youth, she was an inspirational mentor to many emerging artists while fostering an environment of independent thinking and community activism. She was someone who got things done, embracing life and all it offered. She had a special passion for dance and was Executive Director of Neighbourhood Dance Works until 2009. She was emerging herself as a talented painter and her passing in December of 2011 left unfinished what was already a rich body of visual art work. A mother, a grandmother, a cook, a traveller, a painter, an archivist, an activist for human rights, an indispensable friend: in all those roles she had a profound effect on those whose lives she touched.

The Roberta Thomas Legacy Award (RTLA) is awarded annually to a dance practitioner or an artist in any discipline collaborating with a dance practitioner. Projects are funded with between $1000.00 to $1500.00 and this funds can be used for professional development, aspects of creation, or final production.

Apply Here for 2024