Alida Esmail is a dance and theatre artist of Indo-African descent whose practice spans performance, choreography, teaching, health research, and audio description. She holds a BFA in Contemporary Dance with a minor in Psychology from Concordia University and a MSc in Rehabilitation Sciences from the University of Montreal.

Her work engages socially driven practices and examines the role of art and the artist in society, in dialogue with identity, ancestry, accessibility, and community. Her recent work, Those Roots Within, a Deaf/hearing co-creation, was presented at Montreal, arts interculturels in 2025. Alongside her practice, she contributes to arts and health research published in peer-reviewed journals. She’s learning ASL and works in live audiodescription to advance inclusive performance practices.

Alida has presented work across Canada, Europe, the United States, India, and South Africa, and continues to build interdisciplinary collaborations.