www.ihoopu.com

IHOOPU was created to support the growth of a hoop community in Montreal, through instruction, performance and hoop production and professional training for hoopers.

Rebecca Halls arrived in Montreal in 2005 in search of a hoop community. Coming from Victoria, BC, she expected that if anywhere in Canada had a hoop community, it would be Montreal, considering it is the home of Cirque du Soleil and the dance capital of Canada.  She soon became the go-to person for hooping, performing at events, teaching weekly classes and selling hoops to all of Montreal.  In 2006 Rebecca met Julia Harnad. They taught each other everything they knew about hooping and quickly doubled their repetoire of hoop tricks.  They worked together for four months to create an acrobatic hula hoop choreography and performed at the Montreal International Jazz Festival, Red Bull Ascension in New York, the International Buskers Festival and numerous other events locally and Internationally under the name Arcus Intorchao.

In 2008 Rebecca offered her first hoop dance intensive 'Hoop-Camp-Boot-Camp'.  In this hooping workshop, hoopers of all experience levels showed up for free hoop lessons and rehearals each day for 2 weeks.  Together the group created a 5 minute hoop dance choreography that was presented at Short & Sweet as part of the OFF Festival Transamerique (OFFFTA).  This was the birth of the Hoop Bandits who later collaborated to put on an 8 hour hooping marathon at 8 different locations around Montreal on World Hoop Day on 8/8/8.

This was also the year that Rebecca realized she could no longer meet the demand for hoop classes in Montreal alone.  She needed a team of teachers!  She didn't feel comfortable having just anybody teach her classes though.  This initiated the creation of the IHOOPU Teacher Training Program.  IHOOPU is the first Canadian hoop company to offer a Hoop Dance Teacher Training Certification. HOOPU now has certified hoop dance instructors teaching on Montreal’s North Shore, the West Island, Drummondville, Ottawa and even in Merida, Mexico!

In 2009 Rebecca offered the training to four teachers followed by a Performance Intensive for hoopers who wanted to participate in the IHOOPU Hoop Troupe, the Glitterati.  The Glitterati Performance Troupe specializes in choreographed hoop dances with acrobatic flare.  Their bright and sparkly performances have been featured at local and international events including Shambhala Music Festival and the Montreal International Jazz Festival.

And a hoop company wouldn’t be complete without designer hoops.  Our hoops have developed greatly over the past five years.  We now have a team of Hoop Artisans who go through an extensive training process to be able to craft specialty hoops that are available in various shapes and sizes for the beginner to advanced hooper. With an IHOOPU hoop, you’ll definitely stand out!

The People Behind the Hoop

IHOOPU was founded by Rebecca Halls in Montreal in 2009. In 2010 she partnered with Julian Hughes and our local team now includes five certified hoop dance instructors.