![INTERNATIONAL DANCE DAY 2026.Dear dance artists and dance enthusiasts, it is our utmost joy at the national executive council to witness with all lovers of dance, yet another day dedicated to an art form we are all so passionate about.Salute to our elders, our pioneers, our living statues who carved the path we dance on.Salute to every dance artist around the world from the streets of Bariga to the stages of Berlin.Salute to the drummers, choreographers, teachers, costumiers, students, and dreamers.Happy International Dance Day.The day was initiated by the International Theatre Institute (ITI) to encourage participation in dance and create awareness about its importance worldwide.Today we gather because one truth has found us all: Dance does not survive in isolation.The caterpillar cannot become the butterfly alone. Inside that chrysalis, every cell must agree to die to what it was, so that wings can form. That is collaboration. That is the work we are called to do in GOND, and in Nigeria.Either at global, national, regional, state or community level, participation in dance, especially when it includes Co creation, culture sharing, physicality, and inclusivity, builds special connections, sense of belonging, trust, solidarity and social bonds.No single body holds the rhythm of this nation. Afrobeats needed fuji. Contemporary needed traditional. Ballet needed bata. The soloist is beautiful, but the ensemble is unforgettable too. When we create together Ikorodu with Ikoyi, Surulere with Sokoto, Eko with Enugu we compose a Nigeria that the world cannot ignore.So I ask you:Before you compete, create together.Before you copyright a step, teach a child.Before you build your brand, build the guild.Our stages are too small for ego, but wide enough for all of us.Unity is not sameness. The orchestra is not 50 talking drums or violins. It is clef, Bata , flute, Djimbe, strings, gong and even silence all listening.GOND is our orchestra. Troupes will differ. Genres will clash. That is healthy. But when the drum of disrespect sounds, we must silence it.We will not let tribe, gender, age, or style divide what the body has already j]()
INTERNATIONAL DANCE DAY 2026.
Dear dance artists and dance enthusiasts, it is our utmost joy at the national executive council to witness with all lovers of dance, yet another day dedicated to an art form we are all so passionate about.
Salute to our elders, our pioneers, our living statues who carved the path we dance on.
Salute to every dance artist around the world from the streets of Bariga to the stages of Berlin.
Salute to the drummers, choreographers, teachers, costumiers, students, and dreamers.
Happy International Dance Day.
The day was initiated by the International Theatre Institute (ITI) to encourage participation in dance and create awareness about its importance worldwide.
Today we gather because one truth has found us all: Dance does not survive in isolation.
The caterpillar cannot become the butterfly alone. Inside that chrysalis, every cell must agree to die to what it was, so that wings can form. That is collaboration. That is the work we are called to do in GOND, and in Nigeria.
Either at global, national, regional, state or community level, participation in dance, especially when it includes Co creation, culture sharing, physicality, and inclusivity, builds special connections, sense of belonging, trust, solidarity and social bonds.
No single body holds the rhythm of this nation. Afrobeats needed fuji. Contemporary needed traditional. Ballet needed bata. The soloist is beautiful, but the ensemble is unforgettable too. When we create together Ikorodu with Ikoyi, Surulere with Sokoto, Eko with Enugu we compose a Nigeria that the world cannot ignore.
So I ask you:
Before you compete, create together.
Before you copyright a step, teach a child.
Before you build your brand, build the guild.
Our stages are too small for ego, but wide enough for all of us.
Unity is not sameness. The orchestra is not 50 talking drums or violins. It is clef, Bata , flute, Djimbe, strings, gong and even silence all listening.
GOND is our orchestra. Troupes will differ. Genres will clash. That is healthy. But when the drum of disrespect sounds, we must silence it.
We will not let tribe, gender, age, or style divide what the body has already j
17 days ago
