Aerowaves’ call for choreographers is open

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

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.

OPEN CALL: Academy of Dance and Performance Academy Laboratories 2025-2026

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

  1. Selection workshop: 17 July (at the National Dance Centre Bucharest)
  2. 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.

  1. Mentoring sessions (June – September 2026)

Find more information here.


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).


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.

European Dance Festivals and Organisations Unite to Launch the Visiting Artist Programme

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.


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)

CNDB x Moving Balkans: Empowering a New Generation of Choreographers

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.


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 Poland. Resisting Bodies I Performing Arts Festival – 5th edition

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.


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


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, TeatrelliCREART

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.

Open call for collaborators – Visiting Artist Programme

Open Call collaborators – Visiting Artist Programme
About the Visiting Artist Programme

With 23 partners in 22 countries across Europe and UK, the Visiting Artist Programme is a collaborative project aimed at stimulating artistic development, creative exchange and valuable networking. With support from The European Union the program runs 2025-2027 inviting independent choreographers to visit one of the diverse and vibrant partner dance festivals with an especially curated programme.

Each VAP visit includes: 

  • meeting with the artistic director
  • meeting local artists, presenters and promoters
  • performances 
  • workshops

The programme hosts a maximum of 8 artists per visit and runs over approximately 4 days.

This Open call goes out to organisations that wish to support an independent choreographer to participate in the Visiting Artist Programme. 

The collaborating partner is responsible for:

  • selection of the artist/artists
  • costs for your artists expenses (travel, accommodation, per diem and stipend)
  • estimated to approximately 2.500 EUR/artist
  • providing VAP with the artist information requested for marketing and logistics

The hosting festival is responsible for:

  • a specially curated VAP programme 
  • marketing 
  • providing tickets to performances included in the Visiting Artist Programme 


Apply to become a collaborating partner!
If you would like to join the Visiting Artist Programme, please fill out this FORM with information about how many artists you would like to support to take part in the Visiting Artist Programme and which meetings you would like to attend. 


The VAP festivals will be presented at the upcoming Artistic Directors meetings:

17th of April 2025 10.30 – 11.30 CET

  • Bratislava in Movement, Bratislava, Slovakia, Oct 2025 
  • Dance Umbrella, London, United Kingdom, Oct 2025 
  • CODA, Oslo, Norway, Oct 2025
  • Lublin International Dance Theatre Festival, Lublin, Poland, Nov 2025
  • Zodiak, Side Step Festival, Helsinki, Finland, Feb 2026

23rd of Oct 2025 10.30 – 11.30 CET

  • DDD Festival Dias da Dança, Porto, Portugal, Apr 2026
  • Festival Sismògraf, Olot, Catalonia/Spain, Apr 2026
  • Dance Fest Skopje, Skopje, North Macedonia, Apr 2026
  • One Dance Festival, Plovdiv, Bulgaria, May 2026
  • STHLM DANS, Stockholm, Sweden, May 2026

16th of April 2026 10.30 – 11.30 CET

  • Torinodanza Festival, Torino, Italy, Sep/Oct 2026
  • Iridescent Festival, Bucharest, Romania, Oct/Nov 2026
  • Albania Dance Meeting, Tirana, Albania, Nov 2026
  • December Dance, Bruges, Belgium, Dec 2026

After the Artistic Directors meeting you will be asked to fill out a form with input on which festival you would like to send an artist to. The selection process will be made by the VAP partners in accordance to availability and diversity. 
For more information please get in touch with our Partner Festivals listed below, if there is one in your country or Project Coordinator Hanna Falk: hanna@visitingartistprogramme.eu 


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)

Open call dedicated to dancers from Ukraine. Be a part of VAP (Visiting Artist Programme)!

Tanec PrahaLublin Dance Theatre, Lithuanian Dance Information Centre and The National Center for Dance Bucharest are looking for 10 Ukrainian dance artists to take part in Visiting Artists Programme.

The programme invites artists to visit partner festivals, stimulating artistic development, creative exchange and valuable networking. Selected artists will have the opportunity to visit diverse dance festivals across Europe, meet local artists, attend performances and gain inspiration and expertise as they progress in their work. It will also offer artists the chance to engage with presenters and promoters, providing essential networking opportunities.

We are looking for artists who have created and shared their own work— those who are no longer at the very beginning of their journey but aren’t yet fully established. They should be based in Ukraine or one of the Creative Europe countries (EU countries, Iceland, Norway, Liechtenstein, Albania, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia, Georgia, Kosovo).

The festivals you can visit are:

  • Bratislava in Movement (Slovakia) – October 2025
  • CODA (Norway) – October 2025
  • Dance Umbrella (United Kingdom) – October 2025
  • Lublin International Dance Theatre Festival (Poland) – November 2025
  • Zodiak – Side Step Festival (Finland) – February 2026
  • DDD – Festival Dias da Dança (Portugal) – April 2026
  • Festival Sismògraf (Catalonia – Spain) – April 2026
  • Dance Fest Skopje (North Macedonia) – April 2026
  • STHLM DANS (Sweden) – May 2026
  • Torinodanza Festival (Italy) – Sep/Oct 2026
  • Iridescent Festival (Romania) – Oct/Nov 2026
  • Albania Dance Meeting (Albania) – Nov 2026
  • December Dance (Belgium) – Dec 2026

Your travel expenses, accommodation and daily fee will be covered by the programme. The length of the visit will be 3-5 days depending on the festival.

If you are interested in participating, please fill out this form by 11th April 2025.
We will contact successful applicants by 16th May 2025.

Moving Balkans: excited to announce our first contemporary dance showcase festival!

The 10 selected performances will be presented from 10–13 May 2025, across Ljubljana, Rijeka, and
Zagreb. Dive into the vibrant world of contemporary dance as we spotlight some of the most visionary
creators from the Balkan region.


Have you registered yet? Spots are limited – secure your delegate spot for Moving Balkans 2025 now!

REGISTER HERE (deadline 31 March):

Aleși dintr-un grup extrem de competitiv de aproape 180 de candidați, cei 10 artiști finali au fost selectați de Consiliul Artistic al platformei Moving Balkans, alături de doi experți internaționali în dans, în cadrul unei întâlnire care a avut loc la Atena, Grecia. Lucrările alese reflectă diversitatea, creativitatea și inovarea care definesc scena dansului contemporan din Balcani.

Chosen from a highly competitive pool of close to 180 applicants, the final 10 artists were selected by
the Artistic Board of the Moving Balkans platform, alongside two international dance experts, during a
meeting held in Athens, Greece. The works chosen reflect the diversity, creativity, and innovation that
define the contemporary dance scene in the Balkans.
The selected artists/collectives (in alphabetical order) and their works:

  • Marko Milić: DILF (Serbia)
  • Patricia Apergi (Aerites Dance Company): The House of Trouble (Greece)
  • Filiz Bozkuş Al (GONG Sahne): GONG (Turkey)
  • Simone Aughterlony & Saša Božić (de facto theatre group): AGENDA (Croatia)
  • Emese Cuhorka & Csaba Molnár (En-Knap Group): Masterwork for Six Dancers (Slovenia)
  • Simona Deaconescu & Vanessa Goodman (Tangaj Collective): BLOT – Body Line of Thought
    (Romania)
  • Stanislav Genadiev & Violeta Vitanova: Saline Nebula (Bulgaria)
  • Linda Kapetanea & Jozef Fruček (RootlessRoot): Silence (Greece)
  • Christiana Kosiari: RUNWAY (Greece)
  • Barbara Matijević & Giuseppe Chico (Premier Stratagème & Omnibus): Screenagers Vol.2 (Croatia)

SCHEDULE available HERE

The Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase will be a unique opportunity for these
talented artists to present their works to an international audience of dance professionals, arts,
organizations, and the public. It aims to create an artistic network that fosters dialogue, exchange, and
future collaborations across the region and beyond.
In the coming weeks, we will be sharing more information about the artists, and the opportunities and
activities taking place in the days before and after the showcase.
Stay tuned for announcements about workshops, networking events, and other ways to get involved.

Full performance & Dance Scape schedule:

10 MAY, LJUBLJANA (SI)

  • 6:00 PM / Ljubljana Puppet Theatre
    Christiana Kosiari: RUNWAY
    40 min
  • 8:00 PM / Španski borci
    Emese Cuhorka & Csaba Molnár: Masterwork for Six Dancers
    60 min

11 MAY, LJUBLJANA (SI)

  • 11:00 AM / Ljubljana Puppet Theatre
    Filiz Bozkuş Al: GONG
    40 min
  • 4:00 PM / The Old Power Station
    Stanislav Genadiev & Violeta Vitanova: Saline Nebula
    40 min
  • 6:00 PM / Kino Šiška
    DANCE SCAPE: Jan Rozman
    20 min
  • 6:30 PM / Kino Šiška
    DANCE SCAPE: Magdalena Reiter
    20 min
  • 7:00 PM / Kino Šiška
    DANCE SCAPE: Aris Papadopoulos & Martha Pasakopoulou
    20 min
  • 8:00 PM / Kino Šiška
    Patricia Apergi: The House of Trouble
    70 min

12 MAY, RIJEKA (HR)

  • 3:00 PM / Filodrammatica
    Marko Milić: DILF (SHOW 1)
    35 min
  • 4:30 PM / Croatian Cultural Center
    DANCE SCAPE: Gentian Doda
    20 min
  • 5:00 PM / Croatian Cultural Center
    DANCE SCAPE: Ivana Balabanova
    20 min
  • 5:30 PM / Croatian Cultural Center
    DANCE SCAPE: Sofia Mavragani
    20 min
  • 6:30 PM / Filodrammatica
    Marko Milić: DILF (SHOW 2)
    35 min
  • 8:00 PM / Croatian Cultural Center
    Linda Kapetanea & Jozef Fruček: Silence
    60 min

13 MAY, ZAGREB (HR)

  • 2:00 PM / Travno Cultural Centre
    Barbara Matijević & Giuseppe Chico: Screenagers Vol.2
    65 min
  • 5:00 PM / Gavella Theatre
    Simona Deaconescu & Vanessa Goodman: BLOT – Body Line of Thought (SHOW 1)
    45 min
  • 5:00 PM / Zagreb Dance Center
    Simone Aughterlony & Saša Božić: AGENDA (SHOW 1)
    60 min
  • 8:00 PM / Gavella Theatre
    Simona Deaconescu & Vanessa Goodman: BLOT – Body Line of Thought (SHOW 2)
    45 min
  • 8:00 PM / Zagreb Dance Center
    Simone Aughterlony & Saša Božić: AGENDA (SHOW 2)
    60 min

The Moving Balkans platform was launched in early 2024, co-funded by the European Union, with the mission of enhancing the visibility and competitiveness of Balkan contemporary dance on a global stage. Through this showcase and other initiatives, Moving Balkans is committed to supporting and elevating the creative potential of the region’s dance artists.

For more information about the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase, the selected artists, and upcoming events, please subscribe to our newsletter

www.movingbalkans.eu
info@movingbalkans.eu
Follow us on IG
More about the project partners: https://www.movingbalkans.eu/projectpartners


The project is co-funded by the European Union.
@creativeeurope

CNDB brings to the forefront a new European contemporary dance network

The National Center for Dance (CNDB) is one of the founding institutions of the Moving Balkans network together with 10 other partners from 8 countries in the region.

Moving Balkans is a European project started in 2024 as a platform that brings together contemporary dance organizations and spaces with the mission to promote internationally the dance scene in each partner country and to exchange practices between choreographers and dancers. Over three years the project proposes numerous activities and events for the general and professional public such as: festivals, tours, contemporary dance co-productions, VR productions, dance workshops, debates, artistic mobility initiatives and others.

This year, the National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB), within the Moving Balkans project, is organizing a choreography workshop, which will take place in Bucharest between 7 and 12 April. Twenty-five young choreographers and dancers from 12 countries (Bulgaria, Serbia, Slovenia, Croatia, Albania, Greece, Northern Macedonia, Turkey, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Kosovo and Romania), selected from 85 applications, will participate. The program is designed as a masterclass and includes courses in interdisciplinary techniques, choreographic composition and text, visual dramaturgy and artistic research process. The participants’ mentors are Patricia Apergi (GR) – choreographer, director of Aerites Dance Company, Rita Góbi (HU) – choreographer, teacher, founder of Góbi Dance Company, Joana Leśnierowska (PL) – independent artist, curator, choreographer, visual dramaturg, producer, Mădălina Dan (RO) – choreographer, performer, dance teacher, Simona Deaconescu (RO) – choreographer and film director.

With this occasion, the CNDB organizes DANCEtalk, an event inviting the general public to a face-to-face dialogue about contemporary dance with dancers and choreographers from Greece, Poland, Hungary and Romania. The idea of movement as a form of knowledge will be debated, starting from the projects and experiences of special guests Patricia Apergi [Greece], Rita Gobi [Hungary], Joanna Leśnierowska [Poland] and Mihai Mihalcea [Romania]. The event takes place over four days from April 7-10 at the CNDB (Stere Popescu Hall) and is free of charge, subject to availability.

Between May 10 and May 13, 2025, the first edition of the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase will also take place in Ljubljana (Slovenia), Rijeka (Croatia) and Zagreb (Croatia), presenting the newest and most relevant productions from the Balkan region. Among the 10 selected performances is BLOT – Body Line of Thought (by Simona Deaconescu and Vanessa Goodman, with Simona Dabija and Maria Luiza Dimulescu), produced by Tangaj Association from Romania.

For more details about the current and upcoming events of the Moving Balkans project, keep following cndb.ro and movingbalkans.eu.


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.

Partners Moving Balkans
Albania Dance Meeting (AL), Art Link Foundation (BG), Contemporary Dance Association Slovenia (SI), Croatian Cultural Center Rijeka (HR), Croatian Institute for Movement and Dance (HR), DAN.C.CE UNITIVA (GR), EN–KNAP Productions (SI), Interart Culture Center (MK), Kino Šiška Centre for Urban Culture (SI), The National Center for Dance Bucharest (RO), Students’ Cultural Center Novi Sad (RS).

Supported by
Cărturești1000 de Chipuri5 to go

Main media partner
Radio Guerilla

Media partners
AdevărulAgerpressElleHapp.roLiternetTVR CulturalRadio România CulturalRevista ArtaThe InstituteZile și nopțiZeppelinISCOADARevista GolanFeederVisit BucharestZiarul MetropolisScena9IQadsCeașca de CulturăModernism.roHaute Culture Magazine

Mind the Map! History is not given! A Critical Anthology based on the Symposium

Mind the Map! History is not given! A Critical Anthology based on the Symposium, eds. Marina Gržinić (Academy of Fine Arts, Vienna), Günther Heeg and Veronika Darian (Institute of Theater Studies, University of Leipzig), 2006.

This month’s recommended book draws our attention, both by its title and its content, to the fact that history is not a given, that there are continuous dislocations in the construction of social and geopolitical histories that affect us, but in which we can be active participants by reconfiguring maps and networks of dialog and mutual understanding of the values that connect us. The result of the symposium of the same name, which took place in 2005 in Leipzig, the studies published in the book belong to researchers and theorists interested in drawing a map that aims to interconnect the artistic space of Eastern and Western Europe, the stake being the creation of a platform (EAST ART Map) that systematizes and (re)constructs possible ways of reflection and action in both the cultural and political arenas.
We invite you to discover the resource books in the CNDB Media Library!

Mind the Map! History is not given!

The National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB) organizes from 24-27 April a contemporary dance half-marathon at which you are invited to participate whether you are physical fit or not.

We dance for 4 days. We see 11 contemporary dance and performance shows in 4 locations.

If you want to see some of the best contemporary dance productions in Romania, you are expected at the National Center for Dance Bucharest, Linotip – Independent Choreographic Center, ARCUB and Galateca.

” Dance.Context.Showcase” presents a relevant* selection of contemporary dance and performance performances from the last years in Romania and aims to strengthen a national network of dance festivals and performing arts institutions in the country that promote contemporary dance, precisely to develop opportunities for the dissemination of dance performances. The selected performances are dedicated to the general public as well as to theater and choreographic center directors, festival organizers, curators, pedagogues, cultural managers, dance producers and representatives of European dance networks.

*More details about the open call and the jury that selected the performances can be found here.


With the support of
Administration of the National Cultural Fund (AFCN)

Main partner
Linotip – Independent Choreographic Center

Partners
Primăria Capitalei prin ARCUB – Centrul Cultural al Municipiului Bucureşti,Galateca, Universitatea Națională de Artă Teatrală și Cinematografică „I.L. Caragiale”, Liceul de Coregrafie „Floria Capsali”, Cinema UnionCărturești5 to go

Main media partner
Radio Guerilla

Media partners
AdevărulAgerpressElleHapp.roLiternetTVR CulturalRadio România CulturalRevista ArtaThe InstituteZile și nopțiZeppelinISCOADARevista GolanFeederVisit BucharestZiarul MetropolisScena9IQadsCeașca de CulturăModernism.roHaute Culture Magazinemunteanurecomanda.roDaily Magazine, Revista Ficțiunea

Dance. Context. Showcase | Schedule

Dates
April 24-27, 2025


SCHEDULE

Thursday, April 24
Passing Through | Sofia Sitaru-Onofrei @ CNDB, 16:00
Red Line | Alice Veliche & Alexandru Radu @ LINOTIP, 18:00
BORN(E) | Maria-Luiza Dimulescu & Beatrice Oneț @ ARCUB, 20:00

Friday, April 25
Balkan Ballerinas | Anca Stoica & Sergiu Diță @ LINOTIP, 14:00
Book Launch: The Exhaustion of Dance. Performance and the Politics of Movement by André Lepecki @ Mediateca CNDB, at 18:30
BLOT – Body Line of Thought | Simona Deaconescu & Vanessa Goodman @ CNDB, 20:00

Saturday, April 26
Roundtable | @ CNDB, 11:00
Somatic Freaks – The Proprioceptor Revolution | Vlad Benescu & Alexandra Mihaela Dancs @ Galateca, 14:00
Self ACME. rebalancing and personal optimization resort | Camelia Neagoe & Adrian Ionescu @ LINOTIP, 18:00
BPM – Beats per Millennium | Simona Dabija @ CNDB, 20:00

Sunday, April 27
Pathosphere | Mădălina Dan @ CNDB, 14:00
Humans | Bodies | Images | Ioana Marchidan | Ioana Marchidan @ LINOTIP, 20:00
OMEN | Arcadie Rusu @ LINOTIP, 21:00


The events are presented within the Dans.Context.Showcase project, co-funded by the Administration of the National Cultural Fund (AFCN). 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.

Selection of the performances within the Dans.Context.Showcase project

The National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB) announces the results of the selection of performances within the Dans.Context.Showcase project.

The Showcase will take place from April 24-27, 2025, and the performances will be presented at the CNDB and at Linotip – independent choreographic center. The project aims to present the choreographic creation of recent years, the Romanian dance scene, as well as to strengthen a national network of dance festivals and performing arts institutions in Romania that promote contemporary dance, precisely in order to develop opportunities for the dissemination of dance performances. The selected performances will be shown to the general public and to an audience of theater directors, directors of choreographic centers, directors of dance festivals, representatives of European dance networks, curators, educators, cultural managers and dance producers.

In the open call, 24 eligible performances from all over the country were submitted for juries. Works by Romanian artists realized in the period 2022-2025, with a minimum duration of 20 minutes, realized in independent contexts or produced by public institutions, as well as dissertations realized in university settings, were considered eligible. The qualitative criteria were the relevance of the theme in relation to contemporary realities, the consistency of the compositional structure and writing, the clarity of the artistic vision, the innovative character of the choreographic work, the diversity of directions and aesthetics, as well as of presentation formats (performances created for black box, but also in alternative spaces, public spaces, galleries, one-on-one).

The project jury was composed of Cristina Lilienfeld (choreographer, performer and Areal co-director), Sandra Mavhima (choreographer and lecturer, PhD. at the National University of Arts “George Enescu” in Iași), Mihai Mihalcea (director of programs and projects at the National Dance Center Bucharest), Andreea Novac (choreographer), Simona Paraschivu (choreography teacher at the “Floria Capsali” Choreography High School), Anna Maria Popa (manager of the “Andrei Mureșanu” Theatre in Sfântu Gheorghe) and Elena Zamfirescu (lect. In the case of the performances that the jury members could not rate due to a possible conflict of interest, the evaluation was made by Oana Stoica (theatre and dance critic) and Carmen Coțofană (artistic consultant/ coordinator of the production and broadcasting department of the National Dance Centre Bucharest), as substitute members of the jury. Artists who have submitted their performances to the project can request the evaluation grids for the selection process.

Following the open call, the jury decided that the following productions will be presented in the showcase:

  • BLOT – Body Line of Thought (Simona Deaconescu and Vanessa Goodman)
  • Humans Bodies Images (Ioana Marchidan)
  • Patosphere (Mădălina Dan)
  • Somatic Freaks (Alexandra Mihaela Dancs and Vlad Benescu)
  • Self ACME (Camelia Neagoe)
  • Balkan Ballerinas (Platforma 13 – Sergiu Diță and Anca Stoica)
  • OMEN (Arcadie Rusu)
  • ÎnTrecere (Sofia Sitaru-Onofrei)
  • BPM – Beats per Millennium (Simona Dabija and Vlaicu Golcea)
  • BORN(E) (Maria Luiza Dimulescu and Beatrice Oneț)
  • Red Line (Radu Alexandru and Alice Veliche)

Thank you to all participants for entering, congratulations to the winners and we look forward to seeing you at the showcase!

Event co-financed by AFCN. 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.

OPEN CALL | Video Dance Showcase 2025

Choreographers, dance companies and directors are invited to submit their work for presentation at the Video Dance Showcase.

Get the conditions and forms online here.

March 30, 2025 is the deadline for submitting proposals.

The Video Dance Showcase is included in the Quinzena de Dança de Almada – International Dance Festival, in its 33rd edition from September 27th to October 12th, 2025.

For more information, contact us at quinzena@cdanca-almada.pt

Save the Date! Dans.Context.Showcase at the National Center for Dance in Bucharest

The most relevant contemporary dance productions from Romania will be presented this April at the National Center for Dance Bucharest. Emerging and established creators have been invited to submit their works, which will be showcased to the general public and industry professionals.

The National Center for Dance Bucharest (CNDB) announces Dans.Context.Showcase, a project designed to present the most significant contemporary dance works of recent years to an audience of festival programmers from Romania and abroad, members of international networks, and the general public.

The showcase will take place from April 24–27, 2025, featuring a selection of 10–12 dance performances chosen by a jury of seven industry professionals, including independent artists and representatives from dance organizations and institutions: Cristina Lilienfeld, Sandra Mavhima, Mihai Mihalcea, Andreea Novac, Simona Paraschivu, Anna Maria Pop, and Elena Zamfirescu. Additionally, the event will include presentations from local dance spaces (Linotip, Areal, UNATC, Choreography High School) and a roundtable discussion featuring industry professionals and representatives of international dance networks.

Launched at the end of last year, the call for projects targeted artists active in contemporary dance and graduates of specialized master’s programs. The project aims to showcase recent choreographic creations and the Romanian dance scene while fostering a national network of dance festivals and performing arts institutions that promote contemporary dance, in order to develop opportunities for the dissemination of dance performances. The selected performances will be viewed by an audience of theater directors, choreographic center directors, festival organizers, representatives of European dance networks (Aerowaves, Moving Balkans, EDN – European Dance Development Network), curators, educators, cultural managers, and dance producers.

A total of 29 eligible applications were submitted by creators from across the country. The selected works will be announced on February 25, 2025.

Event co-financed by AFCN. 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.

MODINA 2025 Residency at the CNDB – “This is Unreal” with Liz Santoro and Pierre Godard

January 27 – March 7

“This Is Unreal” explores the intersection of dance, theater, and contemporary technologies like artificial intelligence, clones, and deepfakes. Through text and movement, Liz Santoro inhabits a world where the lines between human and machine, real and virtual, blur. The performance delves into the unsettling implications of AI on truth, creativity, and freedom, using both human-generated and AI-generated materials to create an emotional experience that questions our current relationship with reality. The project also introduces a novel “fourth wall” (the imaginary barrier theatrically imposed between performers from the audience) creating a hybrid space that integrates audience interaction through real-time feedback and digital extensions, offering a glimpse into the evolving future of human and machine collaboration in artistic creation.

Biographies

Pierre Godard is a French artist and performance maker with a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from Paris-Saclay University. With a background in applied mathematics and linguistic engineering, his research has focused on unsupervised word discovery and computational language documentation, particularly in low-resource languages. Beyond his academic pursuits, Godard is a prominent figure in the performing arts creating works with choreographer Liz Santoro that explore the intersection of dance, technology, and AI, pushing the boundaries of contemporary performance art. Their pieces have been showcased internationally, and Godard’s innovative approach continues to influence both the fields of AI and the arts.

Liz Santoro is an American choreographer and dancer with a background in neuroscience from Harvard University and professional training from the Boston Ballet School. Over her career, she has become known for her innovative works that blend movement with generative composition and technology. In collaboration with Pierre Godard, Santoro has created numerous acclaimed pieces that explore the intersection of dance and cognitive processes, presented extensively in Europe, North America and Asia. In addition to her choreographic works, Santoro’s artistic practice encompasses extensive pedagogical engagement through her curation, teaching, outreach, and mentoring work.

Mélanie Rattier first worked alongside lighting artist Georges Berne on large-scale architectural lighting projects (Philharmonie de Paris, Musée du Quai Branly, Centre Pompidou-Metz…). After graduating from the École d’architecture de la ville et des territoires (Marne-la-Vallée), she joined major Parisian architectural firms such as Atelier Jean Nouvel. For the past ten years, she has been developing her artistic work on the design of scenic space within the company Le principe d’incertitude.

Léo Chédin works at the intersection between dance and digital art. He is a PhD student at LISN, University of Paris-Saclay. He holds a diploma from ENS Paris-Saclay, a diploma in research-creation from Scène de recherche and a master’s degree in music technologies from IRCAM. Léo works on creating pieces and installations that combine dance and technology.

Pierre-Yves Macé (composer) combines electroacoustic music with instrumental writing. He has released CDs on the Tzadik, Sub Rosa and Brocoli labels, and regularly collaborates with stage directors and choreographers. His music was the subject of a Portrait for the 2023 edition of the Festival d’Automne à Paris. He is a resident at the Académie de France in Rome (Villa Médicis) in 2024-2025.

More info about MODINA HERE.