Dancestreams Youth Dance Company is unique in a multitude of ways.  Carefully cultivated over the past 30 years,  Dancestreams brings together youth dancers age 12 – 18 from a variety of communities, training backgrounds and dance schools throughout Vancouver Island, exposes youth dancers to the works of professional choreographers, and shares that creativity in performances throughout the region and occasionally further afield.  For many small communities, Dancestreams  presents one of the rare opportunities to see contemporary dance.    It is important to understand that Dancestreams is  not a dance school, does not take part in competitions or adjudicated festivals, and does not replace regular training in the home studios.   The Dancestreams Company rehearses for six hours every Sunday from September to May.  Dancestreams provides enrichment for focused young people, who give back to the communities through their performances, and in the master classes offered throughout the season.  Company dancers learn about the creative process while working in studio with guest choreographers ranging from emerging to established professionals.  They learn about professional performance standards by performing in a wide-variety of venues, and the result over the past quarter century has been an extraordinary number of Island dancers who have gone on to professional careers following their time in the Company.  For children and youth who experience a Dancestreams school show or public performance, the value of hard work, dedication and commitment to an art form is driven home when they see outstanding choreography performed at the highest standards by their peers   The opportunities to liaise with and learn from working professionals have been the catalyst for many alumni to carry on to professional careers themselves, and school programming has inspired and widened the perspective for many children who previously have had no exposure to dance.