She/Her Born in Ukraine, Viktoriya Glozhyk cherishes her heritage by speaking Ukrainian, being a member of Plast (Ukrainian Youth Association of Canada), and of course, Ukrainian dancing. Viktoriya has been Ukrainian dancing since she moved to Canada at age 6, and at age 10, she expanded to competitive ballet, jazz, lyrical and contemporary styles at Dance Unlimited. After seeing many…

She/Her Ashlyn Grummett has been dancing since the age of three. Starting with ballet, jazz and tap, she quickly grew a liking for Ukrainian dance as well. Through the years she expanded her disciplines to add contemporary, lyrical, pointe and musical theatre. After 11 years of studying Ukrainian dance under former Shumka dancer, Doug Rachinski, Ashlyn joined the Viter Ukrainian…

She/Her Mikalina Rylance has been performing for as long as she can remember—she took her first dance class at age two and hasn’t looked back since. Over the years, she’s trained extensively in styles including ballet, jazz, tap, hip-hop, ballroom, contemporary, Ukrainian, German, and more. After graduating, Mikalina moved to Toronto to train at Conteur Dance Academy, where her dedication…

He/Him Michael Zukiwsky’s dance career began at the age of four in the basement of St. Andrew’s Ukrainian Orthodox church. Wanting to improve even further, he soon began dancing at the Shumka School of Dance. In 2016, he auditioned for the Viter Ukrainian Dancers and Folk Choir, where he would remain for four years, touring across Canada and parts of…

He/Him Zachary Wynnyk has been dancing with Shumka since 2015. He started training in the Shumka School when he was six years old and it was always his goal to dance with “big” Shumka one day. Since joining the company, he has always loved being able to share his passion for dance and a part of Ukrainian culture on stages…

She/Her Vanessa has been dancing with the Ukrainian Shumka Dancers since 2018. Her connection to the company began much earlier—growing up in the Shumka School of Dance, she was inspired by the energy and artistry of Shumka’s performances. One production that has always stood out to her is Shumka’s Nutcracker, which blends Ukrainian culture with classical storytelling in a way that…

She/Her Summer 2020 marks Ashlyn Waller’s one year anniversary of dancing with Shumka, where she first got involved after hearing of the company through our involved alumni. She is extremely grateful to be able to represent the beautiful legacy that Shumka has created over the past 60 years and is honoured to be part of something so special.

She/Her Since she was a young girl watching from the audience, Leda Tarnawsky has aspired to be a Shumka Dancer. She began her dance training at the age of four and three years later, joined the Shumka School where she discovered her love for Ukrainian dance. In 2018, Leda successfully auditioned for the Ukrainian Shumka Dancers. Since joining the company,…

She/Her Danica Skitsko began dancing at the age of 3 and instantly fell in love with the joy that comes from it. She has trained in various styles during her career including Ukrainian, ballet, jazz, and contemporary. Throughout her many years training primarily with Shumka School she was inspired by her instructors to further pursue her dreams of dancing with…

She/Her Julianna Shukalek’s dance journey began at the age of 5 with the Shumka School of Dance. Growing up and watching her instructors perform with Shumka, she was inspired to hopefully join the company in the future. Julianna has been dancing with Shumka since June of 2019. Throughout her time with Shumka she has had the pleasure of being a part…