Tessa Virtue Makes Professional Dance Debut at Fall for Dance North
This weekend, Tessa Virtue, a two-time Olympic champion in ice dance, will debut her first professional dance performance on land at Fall for Dance North in Toronto. The choreography is by Alyssa Martin, the festival's artist in residence for 2026. The collaboration was made possible by festival director Robert Binet and National Ballet of Canada principal dancer Heather Ogden, a close friend of Virtue. After retiring in 2019 and starting a career at Deloitte, Virtue began working with Martin in July. She had previously turned down a spot at the National Ballet School at age 9 to focus on ice dancing, where she won Olympic gold in 2010 and 2018, and silver in 2014 with partner Scott Moir. Martin's piece, The Unruly Heart, is designed to highlight boldness, with Moir in attendance to watch.
Key facts
- Tessa Virtue makes her professional dance debut at Fall for Dance North in Toronto this weekend
- The piece is choreographed by Alyssa Martin, Fall for Dance North's 2026 artist in residence
- Festival director Robert Binet asked Martin to name her dream collaborator, and she chose Virtue
- National Ballet of Canada principal Heather Ogden connected Martin and Binet with Virtue
- Virtue retired from skating in 2019 and is an executive advisor at Deloitte
- Virtue began rehearsing with Martin in July
- At age 9, Virtue turned down a spot at the National Ballet School of Canada to focus on ice dancing
- Virtue and Scott Moir were the youngest ice-dance team to win Olympic gold in 2010, adding silver in 2014 and gold in 2018
- Martin's premiere for the festival is titled The Unruly Heart
- Scott Moir will attend the performance as an audience member
Entities
Artists
- Tessa Virtue
- Alyssa Martin
- Robert Binet
- Heather Ogden
- Scott Moir
Institutions
- Fall for Dance North
- National Ballet of Canada
- National Ballet School of Canada
- Deloitte
- Dance Magazine
Locations
- Toronto
- Canada