MCAD Inc

What MCAD Inc does

MCAD Inc, legally the Maritime Centre for African Dance, is a privately held cultural arts education organization founded in 2005 and headquartered at 5516 Spring Garden Road in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. The company promotes African cultural awareness to children and youth (ages 5-20) through dance, music, and theatre programs delivered via its trademarked Afro Dance Camps and Cultural Expressions summer camps, which operate across at least 12 Canadian cities and in the United States using partner venues such as community centers, libraries, and churches. Its products and services include day and overnight summer camps (e.g., $85/day Antigonish, $200-$650 multi-day Halifax/Moncton/Amherst programs), fee-for-service workshops for schools, corporations, weddings, and birthday parties, professional performances by its Fara Dance troupe, an Afro Dance DVD, a Chaks Publishing House imprint for cultural literature, and entrepreneurial speaking engagements. Revenue is generated through one-time camp registrations and professional-services fees, distributed via direct registration (email/phone), venue partnerships, and field sales to schools and corporate clients, with marketing concentrated on its website (mcafricancamps.com) and a Facebook page.

The company has no proprietary technology stack — its offerings are fundamentally live, in-person cultural instruction and performance — and it holds no AI/ML capabilities, patents, or software products. Its claimed reach includes 60,000+ individuals taught across North America (with a conflicting 600,000+ figure cited elsewhere), and it has secured brand visibility through performances at the 2011 Canada Games, the African Inaugural Ball for President Obama, and a shortlisting for the Vancouver Winter Olympics. The organization operates with a 7-employee headcount, no disclosed funding rounds, no parent company, and no M&A activity, presenting as a small, founder-led cultural education operator rather than a venture-backed growth business.

Name

MCAD Inc

Legal name

Maritime Centre for African Dance

Website

https://mcafricancamps.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2005

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural Arts Education

NAICS

Dance Companies (71112), Fine Arts Schools (61161), Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers (7115), Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation (71)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900), Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990)

akta.pro primary industry

Performing Arts Camps (Theater, Musical Theater, Dance) (EDAMALAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural & Heritage Entertainment Booking (Traditional/Folk Acts) (HSACAHAG), Arts & Design Camps (Visual Arts, Crafts, Design Thinking) (EDAMALAH)

Keywords

• African dance education
• Cultural summer camps
• Youth arts programs
• Dance workshops
• Cultural awareness training

Headquarters

HQ city

Halifax

HQ country

Canada

HQ region

North America

Offices12 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Summer Camp Fees: Overnight and day camps charging registration fees ranging from $85 per day to $650 for multi-day camps, with pricing based on duration, location, and whether it's overnight or day camp.
2. Workshop Services: Dance and drumming workshops provided to schools, corporations, community events, weddings, and birthday parties on a fee-for-service basis.
3. Performance Services: The Fara Dance troupe performs at various events including multicultural festivals, African festivals, corporate events, and special occasions.
4. Speaking Engagements: Entrepreneurial and motivational speaking engagements offered for various audiences.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

MCAD operates trademarked Afro Dance Camps and Cultural Expressions summer day and overnight camps across Canada and the United States for children and youth ages 5–20, teaching traditional African dances from Kenya, Nigeria, Zambia, and South Africa, along with instruction on traditional instruments such as Marimba, Djembe, and Mbira. The company also delivers on-site cultural workshops for schools, corporations, weddings, and birthday parties, and offers professional performance bookings through its Fara Dance troupe.

Product overview

MCAD (Maritime Centre for African Dance) is a cultural arts education organization that operates as a collection of distinct programs and services. The core offerings include trademarked Afro Dance Camps and Cultural Expressions Summer Camps for youth across Canada and the US, providing instruction in traditional African dance and music with instruments like Djembe, Marimba, and Mbira. Supporting services include MCAD Workshops for schools, corporations, and private events, professional Fara Dance troupe performances, the Afro Dance DVD instructional product, Chaks Publishing House for cultural literature, and speaking engagements. The organization was formed in 2005 and has taught over 60,000 individuals across North America.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Fara Dance troupe: MCAD's professional dance troupe that has performed at prestigious events including Canada Games 2011, African Inaugural Ball for President Obama, and Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 60,000 individuals taught across North America
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater: Iconic American modern dance company with a renowned school offering dance education rooted in African-American cultural heritage. Highly comparable on cultural dance curriculum, youth instruction, and professional performance troupe model.
• Lula Washington Dance Theatre: Los Angeles-based African-American dance company and school offering youth dance education and professional performances. Comparable cultural-dance curriculum, youth instruction model, and touring performance troupe.
• Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp: Michigan-based summer camp offering arts programming including dance, music, and visual arts for youth ages 6–18. Closely aligned model of multi-city youth arts camp programming with overnight and day options.
• Interlochen Arts Camp: Premier performing arts summer camp in Michigan offering dance, music, and theatre instruction to youth. Most directly comparable peer given the performing-arts summer camp focus and youth demographic overlap.

Broad incumbents

• Mark Morris Dance Group: Established dance company with significant youth and community education programming. Comparable as a cultural dance institution offering instruction and performances, though more mainstream in repertoire than MCAD's African focus.
• Zumba: Global dance-fitness brand combining dance movement with structured group programming. Adjacent comparable given shared Latin/Afro-Caribbean dance roots, though Zumba operates as fitness rather than cultural education.
• Steps on Broadway: Long-established New York dance studio offering technique classes across genres. Adjacent comparable as a professional dance education operation serving youth through adult learners, though mainstream rather than culturally specialized.

Emerging players

• National Dance Company of... Cultural/community dance organizations offering African or world dance instruction and performances across North America. Comparable niche cultural-dance education model though often smaller and less camp-focused.
• CityDance Institute: Washington D.C.-based dance education organization offering youth programming, performances, and community outreach. Comparable on dance education for youth and community-engagement delivery model.
• Joy of Motion Dance Center: Washington D.C. dance school and performance center offering classes across genres to youth and adults. Comparable dance-education delivery model though broader in genre than MCAD's African specialization.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses2 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Maritime Centre for African Dance Afro Dance Camps
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/mcad-inc

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about MCAD Inc