Our Story
A sixteen-year passion project — still gathering momentum.
From a Vancouver living room to a resident company at The Dance Centre, Chichak has carried Azerbaijani folk dance across two decades of Canadian stages.
Chichak's roots reach back to 2009. After ten years of training in Azerbaijani folk dance in Tabriz, Iran, under teachers she still holds in deep gratitude, Shalaleh Rismani began teaching a handful of people in her Vancouver community. It started as a passion project on the side, but it grew quickly into performances, cultural festivals, and more classes. In those early years the group went by Chichaklar Dance Group and operated under the Canadian Azeri Cultural Society, a nonprofit, with Shalaleh directing. Much of what made those first years possible came from the families of the original members, whose support and encouragement kept the group going.
In 2011, Asal Ahadi joined as co-director, bringing more than twenty years of training in Azerbaijani dance and music from Iran. From then on the group took on more ambitious work. There were plenty of twists and turns over the years, but the group stuck together and kept performing.
In 2024 the group was formally founded as Chichak Performing Arts, and in 2025 it registered as a nonprofit. Many of the original Chichaklar members stuck together through the years and became founding members of Chichak. Today the company is led by three directors, Asal Ahadi, Shalaleh Rismani, and Ghazal Nikjou. Chichak performs, choreographs, and teaches, bridging traditional Azerbaijani folk dance with contemporary movement and an ongoing exploration of cultural memory through the body.
Follow @chichaklar on Instagram→Mission
Connect through dance.
At Chichak Performing Arts, community comes first. We exist to bring people together through the movement of the Caucasus, drawing on the folk traditions of northern Iran, Azerbaijan, Georgia, and the wider region. For those of us living far from home, dance is a way to stay connected to our roots and to each other. We teach, we rehearse, and we perform, always striving to represent our stories and our culture with authenticity and care.
Vision
A living company, rooted and reaching.
We see Chichak as a lasting home for Caucasian dance in Canada, a place where the diaspora can gather and belong. We honour the traditions our teachers passed down while exploring contemporary movement, pushing boundaries, and making room for creativity. Our aim is to keep this dance alive for the next generation and to bring it to stages here and abroad, staying true to where it comes from as we grow.
A brief timeline
Sixteen years, folded neatly.
- 2009
Founded in Vancouver
Shalaleh Rismani founds the company and starts classes in Vancouver. First performance in December 2009. Ghazal, Nasime, Bahar, and Elmira are there from the start.
- 2011
Asal Joins as Co-Director
Asal Ahadi joins Shalaleh in the directorship, shaping the company's next decade.
- 2009–2016
Community Years
Dancers come and go as the company performs across Greater Vancouver for Nowruz, Tirgan, Yalda, and other cultural celebrations — Canadian Iranian Foundation, TCICS, Parvaz TV, Turkic Festival. Internationally: Silk Road Festival in San Francisco and the Azerbaijani Cultural Association's Nowruz event in San Francisco.
- 2017
The Journey
The company hosts its first full-length show, The Journey.
- 2018–2020
In-Studio Years
Adult in-person classes at The Dance Centre, with Shalaleh leading select performances.
- 2020–2021
Pandemic Practice
Shalaleh teaches classes virtual and outdoors through COVID — an ongoing experiment in staying in the body.
- 2022–2023
Quiet Seasons
Selected event performances and a lower-tempo chapter of company life.
- 2024
Chichak Performing Arts
A new start with a March 8 show at Evergreen Cultural Centre and a new name, brand, and logo: Chichak Performing Arts. Asal steps into a stronger leadership and teaching role, launching multiple class series at The Dance Centre and renewing the company's membership. Shalaleh and Asal join the 12 Minutes Max program with a piece on how dance shaped their lives, inside and outside Iran.
- 2025
Non-Profit & New Directors
Chichak Performing Arts is re-registered as a not-for-profit in February 2025. Ghazal Nikjou joins the board of directors. Classes continue. Confined Space and Boundless Movements is developed and performed at the STAND festival.
- 2026
Growing the Ensemble
Classes expand — including new children's classes at Zavieh Dance Academy — and a new dance ensemble emerges with performances at Sokhane Eshgh, the SJ Production show, and more to come.