$1,000 prize highlights early competitive season showing by Shaunavon Dance Co.

Posted on April 7, 2026 by Ryan Dahlman

Shaunavon Standard

The Shaunavon Dance Co. (SDC) kicked off its competitive season in impressive fashion, with one of its dance groups taking top spot at the MeetinYXE (Dance City Promotions) event and claiming a $1,000 prize.

Although the $1,000 victory was a highlight, it was not the only notable achievement for the local dance company at the competition, nor was it the only strong showing at a dance competition in Saskatoon during the month of March.

SDC had 31 entries at the first of two Saskatoon competitions, including solo, duo, trio, and group performances in categories such as ballet, pointe, contemporary, musical theatre, tap, jazz, and acro (acrobatic).

The group “Hairspray” scored 94.5 marks in the final event of the four-day competition, winning the $1,000 prize in the Group Elevation Challenge in an open category featuring the top group numbers.

Meanwhile, SDC finished in the top three in every category it competed in, earning High Mark recognition and special awards in numerous Overall and Combined Categories.

While the $1,000 prize was impressive, it is not the largest prize SDC has ever won. In fact, it is not even the biggest prize they have taken home from Saskatoon. The dance company also competed at the 2024 MeetinYXE event (having skipped the 2025 event) and won $2,000 in the same Elevation category but with a different dance.

The Shaunavon dancers returned to Saskatoon a few days later for the Spring Stars competition, bringing home significant cash prizes once again. This time, the local team earned approximately $1,600 in cash prizes, spread across about three dozen different group, solo, duo, and trio entries.

That $1,600 total does not include a couple of scholarships earned by Shaunavon dancers Sawyer Thiessen and Cambria Hunter for summer dance camps. SDC teachers Hannah MacNeil and Vivienne MacNeil also won cash prizes for their choreography in separate entries.

Among the dancers participating in the solo, duo, and trio categories were Alayna Hunter, Cambria Hunter, Blakely Hunter, Clarissa Groenewald, Sawyer Thiessen, Harper Aadland, Lily Nelson, Milla Groth, and Cairys Johnston. Group numbers included “Can’t Smile,” “Confident,” “Wolves,”

“Angels,” “Ordinary,” “Teen Beach,” and “Hairspray.”

In both Saskatoon events, SDC dancers and groups were often singled out for special adjudicator awards as well, ranging from inspirational and technical performances to rising star and most promising designations.

“I think everyone left both competitions in Saskatoon on a pretty big high,” said SDC teacher and principal Vivienne MacNeil. “Everyone was excited about our results, and everyone performed really well. We spend a lot of time working on dances, and it was nice to see some of that work come together and pay off.”

The Shaunavon Dance Co. also traveled to Moose Jaw for a three-day competition this past weekend and will round out their competitive season with events in Medicine Hat and Moose Jaw (again in early May).

The group will cap off its 2025/26 campaign with its traditional year-end showcase at the Public School on May 16. The Dance Co. also plans to hold a special competition performance to showcase solo, duo and trio dancers not included in the year-end recital. A date for the competition performance – which the group has been staging for the past several years – has not yet been determined.