Led by artistic co-directors Lisa Gelley and Josh Martin, Company 605 is an arts organization based in Vancouver, on the unceded Indigenous territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. Producing various dance projects and performances through shared creative process, the artists place emphasis on movement invention and physically demanding works, juxtaposing raw with precision, and highlighting effort, risk and interconnection. 605 is an ongoing exchange between separate people, bodies and ideas, recognizing and celebrating the unique possibilities created in their attempt to co-exist. Valuing collaboration as an essential tool for new directions in dance, Company 605 continues to awaken a fresh and ever-evolving aesthetic, together building a highly athletic art form derived from the human experience.

With roots as a dance collective, the company was founded in 2009, and now has an expanding repertoire of diverse works and interdisciplinary collaborations. 605 has performed from coast to coast in over 30 cities across Canada, as well as in the US, Central America, Europe, Asia and Australia, presented at many notable festivals and venues such as: American Dance Festival (Durham, NC), New York City Center’s Fall for Dance Festival, Usine-C (Montréal), L’Agora de la Danse (Montréal), La Rotonde (Québec City), DanceWorks (Toronto), Live Art Dance (Halifax), The Banff Centre, On The Boards (Seattle), Yerba Buena Center for the Arts (San Francisco), Bumbershoot Festival (Seattle), Festival PRISMA (Panama), HebelHalle Heidelberg, Tempel Kulturzentrum (Karlsruhe, Germany), and Sydney Festival (Australia).

605’s co-directors have also created commissioned works for several other dance companies, including Vancouver’s acclaimed Ballet BC (Anthem, 2017), and their collaborations with filmmakers have allowed 605’s work to be shared globally, with award-winning short dance films shown at over 45 dance-on-screen festivals around the world.