Author: renate.dinu

We are delighted to announce the selection of ten contemporary dance productions and six Dance Scape project pitches that will be presented at the second edition of the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase, taking place from 13–16 May 2026 in Novi Sad (Serbia).

Chosen from a highly competitive pool of 214 applications, the final ten productions were selected by the Artistic Board of the Moving Balkans platform, together with two external international dance experts (Ingrida Gerbutavičiūtė, director of tanzhaus nrw Düsseldorf, and Samme Raeymaekers, former director of Dansens Hus Oslo), during a curatorial meeting held in Sofia, Bulgaria. The chosen works embody the wide range of perspectives and choreographic languages that make the Balkan contemporary dance landscape so vibrant.

In addition to these productions, the program will also feature six Dance Scape project pitches, offering a chance for artists to present their works to an international network of curators, producers, and festival representatives. Dance Scape aims to spark dialogue, foster collaborations, and open new touring opportunities.

The 10 selected artists/collectives and their works are (in alphabetical order):

Enya Belak & Kristýna Peldová: Unfolded Moments (Slovenia)
Ilias Chatzigeorgiou: SCARED (Greece)
Alexandra Mihaela Dancs & Vlad Benescu: Somatic Freaks – The Proprioceptors Revolution (Romania)
Adrijana Danchevska Rovchanin (Skopje Dance Theater): Mockumentary (North Macedonian)
Deyan Georgiev: Last Orbit (Bulgaria)
Ermira Goro: TELOS (Greece)
Kosta Karakashyan (Karakashyan & Artists): INSERT COIN / PLAYER ONE (Bulgaria)
Chara Kotsali: It’s the End of the Amusement Phase (Greece)
Ginevra Panzetti & Enrico Ticconi (Studio Contemporary Dance Company): ALL’ARME (Croatia)
Marta Rak: Appropriations:territory (Croatia)

The 6 selected Dance Scape artists are (in alphabetical order):

Kristina Aleksova (Via Negativa), Slovenia
Mădălina Dan, Romania
Canan Yucel Pekicten, Turkey
Neda Ruzheva (Trevoga), Bulgaria
Alexandros Stavropoulos, Greece
Sonja Stojanović-Aufreiter, Serbia

The 2026 Showcase will provide a unique opportunity for artists to present their work to a wide audience of international dance professionals, cultural organisations, and the general public. Beyond the performances and pitches, the program will include networking events, creating space for artists and audiences alike to exchange ideas, connect, and become part of a growing artistic network.

Launched in 2024 and co-funded by the European Union, the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Platform was created to enhance the visibility and competitiveness of Balkan contemporary dance on the global stage. Through the showcase, Dance Scape pitches, and other initiatives, Moving Balkans is committed to supporting artistic talent and strengthening the regional dance ecosystem.

After the successful first edition of the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase, held in Ljubljana (Slovenia), Rijeka (Croatia), and Zagreb (Croatia) between 10–13 May 2025, the second edition will take place in Novi Sad (Serbia) from 13–16 May 2026.

The project is co-funded by the European Union.

The project is supported by: National Culture Fund of Bulgaria, Ministry of Culture of Slovenia, City of Ljubljana, Ministry of Public Administration of Slovenia, Ministry of Culture and Media of the Republic of Croatia, City of Zagreb, Ministry of Culture of Romania, Ministry of Culture of the Republic of North Macedonia.

OM Choreographic Center is launching 𝗗𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀 this fall—a pilot platform for creation, dialogue, and dissemination dedicated to contemporary dance. Designed as an open meeting place for artists, curators, and the public, Dansens takes place between October 9 and 16, 2025, in 𝗖𝗹𝘂𝗷-𝗡𝗮𝗽𝗼𝗰𝗮, and offers a program developed in partnership with Arta Cinema, The National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB), Contemporar Gallery and Youth Pavilion.

Under the theme “Memory and temporality”, Dansens explores dance as a form of archiving, as a space for reflection and reimagining the past through the body and movement.

The events organized in partnership with CNDB are as follows:

THURSDAY, October 9
The platform will debut at OM Studio, from 7:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m., with a selection of films from the Bucharest National Dance Center Archive, entitled Retrospective of Contemporary Dance I – The Beginnings of Modern Dance (1925–1960), presented by Corina Cimpoieru, coordinator of the National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB) Archive. More information and registration here.

FRIDAY, October 10
Retrospective of Contemporary Dance II – Forms of Experimentation in Dance (1965-1990), presented by Corina Cimpoieru, will take place at OM Studio, from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. More information and registration here.

SATURDAY, October 11
From 8:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., the film Miriam Răducanu – Rigor and SenZ will be screened, followed by a special Q&A session with 𝐕𝐥𝐚𝐢𝐜𝐮 𝐆𝐨𝐥𝐜𝐞𝐚, the artist who composed the film’s soundtrack, and 𝐂𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐚 𝐂𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐞𝐫𝐮, coordinator of the CNDB Archive.

More information and registration here.

The film Miriam Răducanu – Rigor and SenZe brings together for the first time photographic and videographic documents recovered from both public archives and the private archives of artists who have collaborated with her from the 1960s to the present day. “For me, the art of dance was never detached from senZe,” confessed Miriam Răducanu, who turned 100 in October 2024.

The film was made as part of the Miriam Răducanu project – an archive exhibition with SenZe.

Year of production: 2024
Duration: 76 minutes
Concept, editing: Alexandra Gulea
Audio restoration, sound design, music: Vlaicu Golcea
Archive consultant: Corina Cimpoieru
Script consultant: Vava Ștefănescu
Editing and graphics consultant: Ciprian Cimpoi
Colourisation: Andrei Oană

Producers: Bucharest National Dance Center (CNDB) and Romanian Television (TVR), with support from the National Center for Cinematography (CNC) and DACIN SARA.

The film is part of the Bucharest National Dance Center’s film archive.

The Choreography of Water asks: what futures might emerge if, instead of controlling water, we learned to move with it?

Bucharest, September 16, 2025. Tangaj Collective announces the premiere of The Choreography of Water, created by an artistic trio consisting of choreographer Simona Deaconescu, visual artist Ioana Vreme Moser, and sound artist Simina Oprescu. The Choreography of Water explores the movement of water, from the invisible flows within the body to those that shape the planet, and is performed by three dancers who move within a unique set design consisting of transparent glass sculptures through which water continuously circulates. The first performances will take place on October 4 and 5 at the National Center for Dance in Bucharest (CNDB).

Tickets are available for purchase online HERE.

The cast of the show consists of four young dancers, who were selected following an international workshop-audition attended by 45 artists from 12 countries: Silvia Brazzale (Italy), Chelsea Reichert (USA), Ada Anghel, and Laura Murariu (Romania). On stage, they interact with fluid objects created by Ioana Vreme Moser—transparent glass structures and tubes that set 50 liters of water in motion. These hybrid objects, with shapes resembling organs or underground waterways, act as “components” of a fluid computer, where the speed, resistance, and oscillation of water currents generate sound. Sometimes the dancers initiate the interaction, triggering flows, loops, or blockages through touch and movement; other times, the objects themselves provoke the dancers, releasing sounds and flows that demand a response. The result is a constant exchange — always in motion, never silent. The immersive sound universe is created by Simina Oprescu.

The continuous movement of water in nature was the basis for the artistic vision, as choreographer Simona Deaconescu explains: “In the human body, water circulates continuously—through blood, lymph, tears, sweat, menstrual fluid. These flows keep us alive, regulate our temperature, help us heal, feel, and procreate. If they are blocked or diverted, the entire system collapses. The same thing happens to the planet: when rivers are dammed, lakes emptied, seas diverted, or waters relocated, the Earth’s circulatory system becomes unbalanced, and the connections between all forms of life are broken. Our show constantly alternates between micro details and macro perspectives, resulting in a speculative image of a future hydrological cycle in which humans no longer try to control water, but move with it.” The creative process for The Choreography of Water began in March–April 2025 at CNDB with an interdisciplinary laboratory, continuing in July with a site-specific development stage in Copenhagen as part of the European platform In Situ. At the end of August, the artists organized an open rehearsal, in which the audience was invited to actively participate in the creative process.

More details about the show and upcoming performances – https://www.tangajdance.com/cowevents

Choreographer Simona Deaconescu works in Bucharest between performance, installation, and speculative research, exploring themes such as marginality, feminism, virtuality, and the sensation of existing between times, histories, and realities, with works presented in Europe, as well as Mexico and Canada. Ioana Vreme Moser, based in Berlin, was twice awarded the Prix Ars Electronica in 2025 for her works infused with experiments in electronics and sound, while Simina Oprescu, also based in Berlin, focuses on acousmatics and the sonification of data.

The project is produced by the Tangaj Collective Association in co-production with the National Center for Dance Bucharest, co-financed by AFCN—the National Cultural Fund Administration, and supported by the Goethe-Institut Bucharest, the Italian Cultural Institute in Bucharest, and benefits from the scientific and logistical contribution of the NGOs Marginal and Qolony, as well as the Ecosystem Festival.

Media partner: Radio Guerrilla

The project does not necessarily represent the position of the National Cultural Fund Administration. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or how the results of the project may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the funding recipient.

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For more details:
Ioan Maxim
0726 18 58 12
ioan.maximmm@gmail.com

Reel culture does not stand still. Neither do we. We are launching The Body In REEL Time, a project that explores corporeality in the age of reels and analyzes, with irony, humor, and a critical eye, a world full of virtual dopamine and fingers tired from scrolling.

Conceived by Vlad Benescu and Alexandra Mihaela Dancs, a project of the Art No More Association, co-financed by AFCN, The Body In REEL Time is an artistic reaction to the digital consumption that consumes us and a call for awareness by questioning reel culture and transforming it into an instrument of exploration, creation, and reflection.

It is about bodies and relationships caught in the infinite flow of social networks; about authenticity and presence in a universe of absence, fragmented realities, ephemerality and superficiality, glitches, fast pace and algorithms.

From September to December 2025, The Body In REEL Time means:

• triluREELu – a choreographic-performative-multimedia puzzle show, created by Vlad and Alexandra together with video artist Alexandru Claudiu Maxim, interaction designer Cristian Iordache, musician Lala Mișosniky, and playwright Mihai Ivașcu — October 16, 25 & 26, November 26, December 11
• Let’s get triluREELu! – a movement workshop with Vlad and Alexandra where you can experience what it means to be triluREELu — September 27, 28
• Two public debates with choreographers, influencers, psychologists, and anthropologists — October 15, November 12
• A written documentary by Rucsandra Pop — December 17
• A video documentary by Vicențiu Amarandei — December 17

Details also available on social media pages:
https://www.facebook.com/trilureeluthebodyinreeltime
https://www.instagram.com/trilureelu_thebodyinreeltime
https://www.tiktok.com/@trilureelu__

Partners
National Center for Dance Bucharest, Masca Theater, /SAC @ Malmaison, Recul, Rezidența9 a program of Fundația9, Hearth Association

Media partners
Radio România Cultural, ISCOADA

The project does not necessarily represent the position of the National Cultural Fund Administration. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or how the results of the project may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the beneficiary of the funding.

Iridescent – international festival of contemporary dance and other reconfigurations of the sensible returns in November and brings back to the forefront movements, images, and narratives that seek freedom and new forms of expression. In a global context marked by uncertainty, increasingly difficult to frame, the festival continues its mission to offer the public dance performances and related events that reflect the complexity of the present.

We will (re)meet in November at IRIDESCENT! Stay tuned — we will announce the full program soon.

The National Center for Dance in Bucharest is resuming its Performing art school for children. The program is aimed at children aged 7-15 and includes courses in contemporary dance, theater, and movement. The Performing Arts School for Children focuses on developing creativity, expressiveness, technique, and body language specific to contemporary dance.

The first two modules will take place between September 22 and October 24 (Module I) and November 3 and December 19 (Module II). The price for the first module is 400 RON, and for the second module, 560 RON.

Auditions:

• September 11: auditions for children aged 7-11 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) – with Mariana Gavriciuc and Eva Danciu
• September 12: auditions for children aged 12-15 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) with Andreea Belu and Catrinel Catană
• September 17: auditions for theatre classes for children aged 7-15 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) – Alexandra Vieruru

Registration
Registration for auditions is open until September 10, 2025, at the email address cursuri@cndb.ro. Please specify the day and time you would like to participate.

Dear friends,

In order to avoid disruptions to the schedule of projects that you intend to submit for funding in the next two AFCN funding sessions, which you wish to develop in partnership with the National Dance Center Bucharest (CNDB), we would like to make the following clarifications.

Given that from October 2025 to September 2026 we are running a new edition of the Dance and Performance Academy—a project that requires almost all of the space at 80-82 Mărășești Boulevard—we will unfortunately only be able to provide a very limited amount of space for rehearsals and performances. Therefore, please send your partnership requests by September 10 at the latest. This will allow us to carefully review your projects and find the best solutions that will not hinder their development.

Unfortunately, we will not be able to consider partnership requests that arrive after the above-mentioned date.

Thank you, and we wish you every success in writing and implementing your projects!

The National Center for Dance is relaunching its Performing art school for children! The program is designed for children aged 7-15 and includes courses in contemporary dance, theatre, and movement. The Performing art school for children focuses on developing creativity, expressiveness, technique, and body language specific to contemporary dance.

The first two modules will take place between September 22 and October 24 (Module I) and November 3 and December 19 (Module II). The price of a module is 560 RON.

Auditions:

• September 11: auditions for children aged 7-11 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) – with Mariana Gavriciuc and Eva Danciu
• September 12: auditions for children aged 12-15 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) with Andreea Belu and Catrinel Catană
• September 17: auditions for theater classes for children aged 7-15 (at 5 p.m. or 6 p.m.) – Alexandra Vieru

Registration
Registration for auditions is open until September 10, 2025, at the email address cursuri@cndb.ro. Please specify the day and time you wish to participate.

Keep Calm and Keep on Moving

Now in its 11th edition, the Bucharest International Dance Film Festival (BIDFF) will take place between September 11 and 14, 2025, in six locations across Bucharest. This year’s theme, “Keep Calm and Keep on Moving,” reflects the emotional and affective crises that shape our world today, but also the urgent need to find in movement a tool for resilience, dialogue, and reinvention. We live in times when uncertainty has become part of everyday life, and collective emotions are rewritten from one day to the next. In this context, movement is no longer just an artistic gesture, but a form of resistance, a way of remaining present, of not letting ourselves be defeated.

The structure of the festival is deliberately built around the idea of staying connected to the reality of the present, no matter how fluid and unpredictable it becomes. Whether we are talking about how technology changes our bodies and perceptions, about the individual and collective memory that shapes our identity, or about our projections for the future, BIDFF seeks to bring these themes into dialogue through dance and film. The five sections: Expand, Community, Exchange, VR, and Films, are not just simple program categories, but meeting places between artists from around the world and the public, places where dance becomes a tool for understanding, questioning, and reimagining the world we live in.

The BIDFF Film section hosts the dance short film competition, where the jury consists of special guests: Judith State (RO), Kati Kallio (FI), and Andreas Hannes (NL).

Important titles such as “The Flamenco Guitar of Yerai Cortés” (dir. Antón Álvarez), “Night Stage” (dir. Filipe Matzembacher, Marcio Reolon), “Rains Over Babel” (dir. Gala del Sol) and “Dreams” (dir. Michel Franco), which premiered at renowned festivals such as Berlinale, Sundance, and San Sebastián, will be screened every day at BIDFF.

The highlights of this edition bring Danse Macabre! A Choreography of Terror to the stage, a performance by Italian artist Jacopo Jenna, an intense exploration of dance in unstable and ever-changing forms, combining film, electronic music, and light, alongside the world premiere of Mihai Mihalcea’s performance, Sweet Spot (From the Middle of Terror) — a synthetic exercise in entertainment that provokes and surprises.

The education program complements the BIDFF Expand section with the FRAMING video dance lab, led by Jacopo Jenna, the masterclass Cinematic Spheres: Exploring the Cinematic Environment in 360° with Marius Hodea (RO), and the BIDFF Exchange event “Dance and Film Today: Perspectives, Challenges, and Collaborative Connections,” which opens a discussion about the future of dance film in Europe, the current challenges facing filmmakers, and the role of education in training new creators.

The Community section features collaborations with artists Andreea Novac (RO), Silvia Brazzale (IT), and Catrinel Catană (RO).

The festival’s hosts and partners are Cinema Elvire Popesco, Grădina cu Filme – Cinema & More, the National Dance Center Bucharest, /SAC @ MALMAISON, and the MASCA Theater, and specific activities dedicated to communities of all ages take place at the Amalia and Chief Rabbi Dr. Moses Rosen Residential Center in collaboration with the ADO Association and Ferentari Studios, and in public spaces in Bucharest.

The complete festival program can be found on the BIDFF website: www.bidff.ro

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Bucharest International Dance Film Festival (BIDFF) is organized by the Tangaj Collective Association.

“Bucharest International Dance Film Festival, the 11th edition” is a cultural project co-financed by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. The project does not necessarily represent the position of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or how the project results can be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the beneficiary of the funding.

“Bucharest International Dance Film Festival, the 11th edition” is a project co-financed by the Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB within the „București. Împreună” 2025 Programme. The content of this material does not necessarily represent the official position of the Bucharest City Hall or that of ARCUB. For detailed information about the financing programme of Bucharest City Hall through ARCUB, you can access www.arcub.ro. 

Partners: Institutul Francez din România (Cinema Elvire Popesco), CREART – Centrul de Creație, Artă și Tradiție al Municipiului București (Grădina cu Filme – Cinema and More), Asociația Spațiul de Artă Contemporană (/SAC@Malmaison), Centrul Național al Dansului București/CNDB, Institutul Italian de Cultură, Studiourile Ferentari, Teatrul MASCA, Asociația ADO – Artă pentru Drepturile Omului (Centrul Vârsta4), Centrul Rezidențial pentru persoane vârstnice „Amalia și Șef Rabin Dr. Moses Rosen”, Animest, Happy Friday Catering

Watched by: Radio Guerilla

Media partners: ELLE, Libertatea, Viva, Unica, Revista BIZ, Haute Culture, IQads, Revista FILM, The Trends, Movienews, Happ.ro, Cărturești, Observator Cultural

Deadline for application: 10 July 2025 at 23:59 CET

After the successful first edition of the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase, held  in Ljubljana (Slovenia), Rijeka (Croatia) and Zagreb (Croatia) between 10–13 May 2025, the second edition of the showcase will be held in Novi Sad (Serbia) from 13–16 May 2026. The festival will present 10 contemporary dance productions, and 6 Dance Scape project pitches, and offer opportunities to meet,  exchange ideas, interact with the audience and dance professionals, and become part of a large artistic network.

More information on timeline and eligibility criteria provided in the Info Sheet & FAQ below. The applications must be submitted via Google Forms by 10 July 2025 at 23:59 CET.

Online info session
For additional questions you are kindly invited to attend a Zoom info session which will be held on 11 June 2025 at 16:00 CET (meeting link is provided in the info sheet).

Applicants will be notified about the selection in September 2025.

APPLY NOW!

We are seeking twenty emerging choreographers based in Europe.

You can now apply to become an Aerowaves artist with the opportunity to have your work presented at the Spring Forward festival next year on 6-9 May 2026 in Guimarães (PT), and also by many of our Aerowaves partners around Europe.

All eligible applications will be reviewed before the end of October. The selection of Aerowaves Twenty artists will be finalised in the week following the Partners meeting, and the successful candidates will be notified by email by mid November.

Deadline: 31 July 2025, 5pm CEST.

Find more information and apply.

For further queries, please contact us: info@aerowaves.org

Courageous citizens. How culture contributes to social change.
2018, Valiz&European CulturalFoundation

The book focuses on those whose daring, contribution and invention contribute to our collective future and for whom culture and democracy are the starting points for vision and action. The cycle of (re)thinking, action and change that is inherent in reshaping the way we see the world and, at the same time, the potential of culture to contribute to positive social
change is addressed through three key themes:

I – Diversity and equality;
II – Communities and democracy;
III – Fragmentation and solidarity;

In recent decades, the cultural and political map of Europe and the world has changed rapidly. Developments such as the changing status of the European Union, migration and the wider repercussions of globalisation have created numerous social and political challenges. This book celebrates the capacity of individuals and small groups to contribute to social change through culture and art. It is a source of inspiration for renegotiating our understanding of the world and affirming culture as a critical space for practising courage and perseverance in the midst of complex societal reconfigurations.

The book contains texts by visionary thinkers, artists and writers such as John Akomfrah, Borderland Foundation, Rosi Braidotti, Vasyl Cherepanyn, Bojana Cvejić, Fatima El-Tayeb, Pascal Gielen, Stuart Hall, David Harvey, Stefan Kaegi, Ivan Krastev, Wietske Maas, Marina Naprushkina, Lia Perjovschi, Saskia Sassen, Ana Vujanović, Katherine Watson.

The National Centre for Dance in Bucharest (CNDB) launches the third edition of the Dance and Performance Academy with an open call dedicated to artists and artists at the beginning of their career in dance, performance and choreography, who want to improve their professional skills and find their voice to become creators on the local and international scene.

This year’s edition takes the form of workshops, through an intensive and consistent programme of practices that focus on the body, knowledge production and contemporary creation. The programme includes lectures, practical and theoretical workshops, visual dramaturgy, choreographic composition and performative practices, as well as a series of mentoring sessions that guide participants on their own artistic path. The courses and workshops are held in English and Romanian and are supported by over 15 practitioners, teachers and guest professionals from the local and international scene.

Trainers*:

Miriam Althammer  (DE/AU) Joanna Leśnierowska (PL),  Rui Catalão (PT), Charlie Prince (LB), Beniamin Boar (RO/BE), Funmi Adewole Elliott (NG/UK), Ivana Muller (HR/FR), Sigal Zouk (IL/DE), Jan Burkhardt (DE), Sergiu Matis (RO/DE), Gisela Müller (DE), Rok Vevar (SI), Gregor Kamnikar (SI), Dejan Srhoj (SI), Alesandra Seutin (ZW/BE/UK), Rebecca Journo (FR),  Irina Botea Bucan (RO), Simina Oprescu (RO), Laura Murariu (RO/BE), Larisa Crunțeanu (RO), Mihaela Michailov (RO), Mihai Mihalcea (RO), Simona Deaconescu (RO), Simona Dabija (RO), Mădălina Dan (RO), Eduard Gabia (RO) Corina Cimpoieru (RO), Andreea Belu (RO), Manuel Pelmuș (RO/NO).

*list in the process of finalisation

Eligibility

• choreography graduates – high school or university – from Romania and the Republic of Moldova;
• master level students in the process of graduation;
• emerging artists with relevant experience beyond the formal education framework;
• knowledge of English (intermediate level);
• availability for online interview and audition-workshop (June-July 2025);
• availability to attend, in Bucharest, the entire training programme over an extended academic year (October 2025 – September 2026).

The selection of participants for the Dance and Performance Academy Labs follows the following schedule:

FIRST PHASE

1. Candidate registration: 20 May – 30 June
2. Candidate pre-selection: 2 – 3 July
3. Online interviews: 4 – 6 July

SECOND PHASE

4. Selection workshop: 17 July (at the National Dance Centre Bucharest)
5. Posting of the results/admitted candidates: 21 July

The first step is to register by filling in THIS FORM.

Deadline for applications: 6 June 2025.

Participation fee

A fee of 3000 RON is required for courses and workshops during the whole academic year, payable in two equal instalments.

The Academy of Dance and Performance Labs are held over two semesters, as follows:

1. SEMESTER I (October 2025 – February 2026)
2. SEMESTER II (March – June 2026)

Participants will follow an intensive program of courses and workshops (theoretical and practical) from Monday to Friday, lasting 6-8 hours each day.

3. Mentoring sessions (June – September 2026)

Find more information here.

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Dance and Performance Academy Labs participants have free admission to performances scheduled at the CNDB from October 2025 through September 2026.

The CNDB aims to support participants by integrating them into paid artistic practice (e.g. in the Performative School for Children and/or dance workshops for adult audiences).

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The Academy of Dance and Performance Laboratories is a program co-financed by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund.
The project does not necessarily represent the position of the Administration of the National Cultural Fund. AFCN is not responsible for the content of the project or how the results of the project may be used. These are entirely the responsibility of the grantee.

A new initiative uniting 23 leading contemporary dance festivals and organisations across Europe, the Visiting Artist Programme is set to foster creative exchange, artistic development, and valuable networking opportunities for early and mid-career dance artists. 

The programme offers selected artists the chance to immerse themselves in the vibrant atmosphere of Europe’s top dance festivals, with access to performances, masterclasses, discussions, and networking sessions.

The first series of encounters will take place in May 2025, where 20 artists from across Europe will visit three partner dance festivals where they will have the opportunity to explore, share, discuss and broaden their artistic horizons.​

Upcoming Encounters:

• 14 – 17 May 2025 – Dance Week Festival, Croatia
• 21 – 23 May 2025 – Dublin Dance Festival, Ireland
• 21 – 25 May 2025 – ONE Dance Festival, Bulgaria

These encounters are designed to stimulate artistic development, encourage creative exchange, and create valuable networking opportunities for participating artists. By engaging with diverse dance communities, artists can gain inspiration, share ideas, and build connections that will support the growth of their careers.

Having started as an activity within Big Pulse Dance Alliance, the Visiting Artist Programme gained momentum, with additional encounters being scheduled to accommodate the level of interest from partners and artists alike. This success led to 91 artists benefitting from 16 encounters between 2021 – 2024, and the programme being awarded its own Creative Europe funding for a 2-year project (Feb 2025 – Jan 2027).

Over the course of the coming two years, more than 150 artists will benefit from the encounters that will take place at partner festivals throughout the year. The project also invites collaborating partners to connect and send artists to partner festivals as part of this project.

For more information about the Visiting Artist Programme and upcoming encounters, please visit www.visitingartistprogramme.eu.

Media Contact:
Ruth Riordan, Communications Manager, ruth@visitingartistprogramme.eu

About the Visiting Artist Programme:
The Visiting Artist Programme is a collaborative initiative, co-funded by the Creative Europe Programme of the European Union, that invites early and mid-career dance artists to participate in encounters hosted by leading contemporary dance festivals across Europe. The programme aims to stimulate artistic development, encourage creative exchange, and create valuable networking opportunities for participating artists.

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Partner Festivals / Institutions of Visiting Artist Programme
Danscentrum Syd (Sweden), DDD – Festival Dias da Dança (Portugal), Dublin Dance Festival (Ireland), Biennale de la Danse de Lyon (France), December Dance (Belgium), One Dance Festival (Bulgaria), Torinodanza Festival (Italy), Zodiak – Side Step Festival (Finland), Bratislava in Movement (Slovakia), Festival Sismògraf (Catalonia – Spain), STHLM DANS (Sweden), International Dance Theatre Festival in Lublin (Poland), Julidans (The Netherlands), Albania Dance Meeting (Albania), Dance Week Festival (Croatia), Dance Fest Skopje (North Macedonia), Iridescent Festival (Romania), Reykjavik Dance Festival (Iceland), STU (Estonia), International Dance Festival Tanec Praha (The Czech Republic), CODA Oslo International Dance Festival (Norway), New Baltic Dance (Lithuania), Tanz im August (Germany)

The National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB), in collaboration with the Moving Balkans platform, successfully hosted a dynamic Workshop for Choreography from 7–12 April 2025. This intensive program aimed to foster cross-border artistic dialogue and to support the growth of contemporary dance in Southeast Europe.

 

The workshop gathered 24 emerging choreographers and dancers from Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Albania, Greece, North Macedonia, Türkiye, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo*, and Romania. Structured as a masterclass, the workshop offered comprehensive approach to interdisciplinary techniques, choreographic composition and text, visual dramaturgy, and artistic research methods.

Sessions were led by acclaimed mentors including:

• Patricia Apergi (Greece), Choreographer and director of Aerites Dance Company
• Rita Góbi (Hungary), Choreographer, teacher, and founder of Góbi Dance Company
• Joanna Leśnierowska (Poland), Independent artist, curator, choreographer, and visual dramaturg
• Mădălina Dan (Romania), Choreographer, performer, and dance educator
• Simona Deaconescu (Romania), Choreographer and film director

Beyond the studio, participants explored CNDB’s extensive dance archive in the Mediateque, guided by curator Corina Cimpoieru, and took part in DANCEtalk—a public dialogue event featuring leading artists and thinkers discussing the role of movement as knowledge in today’s society.

 *This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ Opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.

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Project implemented with the financial support of the Creative Europe Program of the European Union and the Bulgarian National Fund for Culture.
The views and opinions expressed are, however, those of the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the funding authority can be held responsible for them.

News From Polska Performing Arts Festival – fifth edition May 5 – 11, 2025
National Center for Dance Bucharest & Teatrelli

Under the theme Resisting Bodies, the News From Polska Festival proposes a curatorial concept dedicated to the human body as a space of resistance, transformation and empowerment in a world of crises on all levels. The fifth edition proposes to the Bucharest audience four performances from Poland, which provoke questions, lead to unfamiliar ways of thinking, imagining and defining multiple forms of the protest potential of the body in movement. All performances are subtitled in Romanian, and tickets will be available soon on bilet.ro.

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The schedule of the performances is:

May 5, 2025, 19:30
𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀 𝐕𝐀𝐋𝐄𝐒𝐊𝐀
Concept, direction, choreography: Dominika Knapik
Production: Performa Foundation
@Centrul Național al Dansului București

May 7, 2025, 19:30
To bitch or not to bitch
Directed, choreographed, performed by Hertz Haus (Magdalena Kowala, Natalia Murawska, Joanna Woźna, Anna Zglenicka)
Production: Hertz Haus
@Centrul Național al Dansului București

May 9, 2025, 19:30
WoW
Concept, direction, choreography: Marta Wołowiec
Production: Przestrzenie Sztuki Taniec 2023, Wrocławski Teatr Pantomimy
@Centrul Național al Dansului București

May 11, 2025, at 19:30
Cezary goes to War
Directed by Cezary Tomaszewski
Production: Teatr Komuna Warszawa
@Centrul Național al Dansului București

Alongside these performances representative of contemporary Polish performing arts, the organizers also propose workshops for dance professionals, exploring the connections between other artistic languages and the moving body, as well as the expressive power of improvisation and intuitive dance.

May 5, 2025, 9:00 am
Between disciplines
Contemporary dance workshop for professionals
With Dominika Knapik
@Centrul Național al Dansului București

May 8, 2025, 4:00 pm
Open Bodies. Intuitive dance / Improvisation
Contemporary dance workshop for professionals
With Marta Wołowiec
@Teatrelli – CREART

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Project team
Andreea Andrei – curator
Paweł Rutkowski – project manager Polish Institute in Bucharest
Alex Iliescu – graphic design
Anca Spiridon – PR and communication
Gabriel Copoeru – teaser video

The event is organized within the framework of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union 2025 and the Poland-Romania Cultural Season 2024-2025, the result of the cooperation between the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage, the Adam Mickiewicz Institute in Warsaw, the Romanian Ministry of Culture and the Romanian Cultural Institute, with the support of the Polish Institute in Bucharest.

Organiser
Polish Institute in Bucharest

Co-financed by
Adam Mickiewicz Institute Warsaw

Partners
The National Center for Dance Bucharest, Teatrelli – CREART

Media partners
Bookhub, Ceașca de Cultură, Daily Magazine, Happ.ro, Haute Culture, Iscoada, LIFE.ro, Liternet, Modernism, Observator Cultural, Radio România Cultural, Revista Arta, Revista BIZ, Revista Golan, The Institute, Visit Bucharest, Zeppelin, Zile și Nopți.