Visiting Artist Programme

Thank you to our group of visiting artists, travelling to Stockholm from all around Europe! 💚 @visiting_artist_programme @creativeeurope @big_pulse_dance Video made by: @xeniakoghilaki @antcacao @semela_skenderasi @juuliusvaiksoo @sroervik @kateryna.Kuznetsova_ @charlottegoesaert #sthlmdans2026

From Porto, with new ideas and new connections ✨ Dance artist @vella_sarah reflects on her time at @festivalddd in Portugal as part of the @visiting_artist_programme . Across performances, workshops and shared moments with fellow visiting artists, the programme created space for openness, curiosity and meaningful exchange. “I’m returning home with new ideas, new friendships and a renewed sense of what my practice can become.” @dancefestivalmalta @artscouncilmalta #VisitingArtistProgramme #CreativeEurope

🌍✨ Celebrating movement, connection, and the power of dance ✨🌍 This #InternationalDanceDay, we look back at the journeys, encounters and shared moments that make the Visiting Artist Programme what it is today. From festival stages to studio conversations, VAP brings together a growing network of artists and partners across Europe, creating space for exchange, inspiration and collaboration. Every encounter is more than a visit – it’s a catalyst for new connections, fresh thinking, and lasting relationships. So, today, we celebrate all the artists, partners and communities who have been part of this journey so far — and the many more to come. Because dance doesn’t just move bodies — it connects worlds. #VisitingArtistProgramme #VAP #CreativeEurope #DanceDay #InternationalDanceDay #ContemporaryDance #CreativeExchange #DanceCommunity #EUculture @danscentrumsyd @festivalddd @dublindancefestival @biennaledeladanse @decemberdance_festival @onedance.festival @torinodanzafest @zodiak_helsinki @bratislava_v_pohybe @sismografolot @sthlmdans @lubelskiteatrtanca @julidans_amsterdam albaniadancemeetingfestival @tsp_danceweekfestival @skopjedancefest @cndb.ro @reykjavikdancefestival @soltumatutantsulava @festival_tanec_praha @codadancefest @newbalticdance @tanzimaugust @eba_europebeyondaccess @danceumbrella @plataforma_pid @dansametropolitana @festivaldansavalencia

Da Albânia à Polónia, da Noruega a Malta: 𝟳 artistas, de 𝟳 festivais europeus associados ao 𝒱isiting 𝙰rtist 𝘗rogramme (@visiting_artist_programme ) têm estado a percorrer o #DDD2026 de uma ponta a outra, numa verdadeira maratona pelo Porto, Matosinhos e Gaia. 🏃 Financiado pelo Europa Criativa, o programa reúne mais de 20 festivais de 22 países europeus, promovendo a troca e a circulação criativa pelo continente. 🌍 ∞ From Albania to Poland, from Norway to Malta: 𝟳 artists, selected by 𝟳 European festivals associated with 𝒱isiting 𝙰rtist 𝘗rogramme have been racing from one end of the #DDD2026 to the other in a truly marathon-like experience through Porto, Matosinhos and Gaia. 🏃 Funded by Creative Europe, the programme brings together more than 20 festivals from 22 European countries, promoting creative exchange and circulation across the continent. 🌍 📸 João Octávio Peixoto/DDD (@joctaviop )

What happens when artists step outside the expected? ✨ Our latest reflections from the Side Step Festival (@sidestep_fest ) explore the power of experimentation, collaboration, and pushing creative boundaries. Curious to dive deeper into the ideas, moments, and insights that emerged? Read the full text by @enadmarouf via the link in our bio 🔗 📷 Annukka Pakarinen @tanzimaugust #SideStepFestival #VisitingArtistProgramme #ContemporaryArt #ArtPractice #CreativeProcess #ArtistLife #CreativeEurope

✨ What happens when artists meet across borders? The Visiting Artist Programme (VAP) is all about connection, exchange and creative growth – bringing artists together at some of Europe’s most exciting dance festivals. At @sidestep_fest 2026 in Helsinki, artists from across Europe came together for an immersive 4-day experience: 🎭 attending performances & workshops 🤝 meeting local and international artists 💬 sharing ideas, practices, and perspectives 🌍 building networks that spark future collaborations From pitching their work to curators, to engaging in discussions and studio visits, the programme creates space for meaningful encounters that go beyond the stage. This is just one stop in a much bigger journey… More encounters. More artists. More exchange. Participating artists and partners: Valgerður Rúnarsdóttir (@reykjavikdancefestival ) @enadmarouf (@tanzimaugust ) @martina__apostolova (@onedance.festival ) @compagnie.relevant (@biennaledeladanse ) @doggy.tz (@zodiak_helsinki ) @no_deadline (@danscentrumsyd ) @mariondarova (@onedance.festival ) Stay tuned for what’s coming next. #VisitingArtistProgramme #VAP #DanceNetwork #CreativeExchange #ContemporaryDance #ArtistsOnTheMove #SideStepFestival

“Overall, my experience in Lublin was full of contrasts: historical and contemporary, polished and raw, planned and improvised. Maybe that’s precisely what made it so real. I left with a few new contacts, a few good laughs, and a renewed sense that artistic exchange doesn’t always have to be grand to be meaningful. Sometimes, it’s enough to just show up, listen and find inspiration in unexpected places.” Ugnė Laurinavičiūtė, a dance artist from Lithuania, shares her experience of participating in the Visiting Artist Programme at Lublin International Dance Theatre Festival (Poland). 👉 Read the full blog by clicking the link in our bio.   Participating artists: @rembetska_ @__debit__ Mateusz Kowalski @ugne_laur Hosted by @lubelskiteatrtanca #VisitingArtistProgramme #contemporarydance #artistreflection

✨ New read alert! ✨ Choreographer Soili Huhtakallio (@soilihuhtakallio ) shares her reflections on taking part in the CODA Oslo International Dance Festival 2025 edition through the Visiting Artist Programme.  Dive into her experience of meeting artists from all over Europe, witnessing contemporary dance at its most vibrant, and exploring what it means to connect – through movement, collaboration and community.  👉 Link in bio to read the full piece – come with us on this inspiring journey. #CODA2025 #VisitingArtistProgramme #SoiliHuhtakallio #contemporarydance #artistreflection

We were delighted to host four Visiting Artists during CODA 2025 as part of the @visiting_artist_programme ✨
They joined performances, talks, TheDEN – Dance Expo Norway, and festival gatherings across the city, creating new artistic connections and conversations. Meet our 2025 VAP artists:
Soili Huhtakallio @soilihuhtakallio • Anton Ovchinnikov @inkolynikoly • Michiel Vandevelde @vandevelde.michiel • Maurícia Barreira Neves @mauricia.barreira.neves With 23 partners across 22 countries, the VAP strengthens artistic exchange across Europe, and we are so happy to be part of it.
Thank you to everyone who took part 💛

#CreativeEurope

New Report Launching December 3! How accessible - or inaccessible - is performing arts education in Europe for disabled artists and cultural workers? The report Learning to Change: Accessibility in Performing Arts Training Across Europe, authored by On The Move, and commissioned by Skånes Dansteater in the context of Europe Beyond Access with the support of the British Council, explores the barriers – and breakthroughs – in higher arts education across Creative Europe countries and the UK. Drawing on surveys, interviews, and focus groups with disabled artists, cultural organisations, and institutions, it calls for a shift from individual goodwill to systemic change. 📅 Wed 3 Dec, 11:00–13:00 CET (On the International Day of Persons with Disabilities) 📍Online (Zoom) 💬 English with spoken Spanish and International Sign interpretation. Participate and be part of the change (link in bio)

We’re so grateful to Lublin International Dance Theatre Festival (@lubelskiteatrtanca ) for hosting the most recent Visiting Artist Encounter from 8 – 12 November! This special gathering brought together dance artists from across Europe, in a space of creativity, exchange and belonging. For the 29th edition of their festival, Lublin welcomed artists from France, Spain, Germany, Lithuania, the Czech Republic, Georgia, Ukraine and Poland with performances, workshops, artist talks and more. Through the Visiting Artist Programme, we tapped into the power of dance to connect cultures, inspire risk-taking and build networks. Over the course of the week, artists immersed themselves in Lublin’s warm and creative atmosphere – learning, discussing, collaborating and simply being together. Under the guiding theme of “RE:UNION” – which echoes Lublin’s journey toward European Capital of Culture 2029 – we were reminded how reunion isn’t just about gathering, but about reimagining what unity can be. To everyone who danced, spoke, listened and shared: thank you. We can’t wait for more moments like this ❤️ Participating artists: @rembetska_ @__debit__ Mateusz Kowalski @ugne_laur

So, these were a couple of incredible days at the 29th edition of @lubelskiteatrtanca where I had the honor of participating as part of the Visiting Artist Program @visiting_artist_programme I was present for only four out of the seven days of the festival, but those days filled me with so many new experiences. This amazing event included workshops, meetings for exchange and discussion, and, of course, performances. Most importantly — the networking that happens at a festival because of its unique, concentrated way of bringing people together. This format gave me a sense of wholeness of everything that was happening during those days. I was personally deeply moved by the amount of support that arises from having artists in one place, all of whom actively contribute so much to contemporary art. So many different experiences complementing one another. And, of course, the dance itself — so-called contemporary dance. What does it mean to be an artist today? Is there still dance? Or has it become something so hybrid that it has a new name we don’t yet know? All the performances I saw were truly unique, and that is the essence of it. My deepest gratitude goes to the fact that we can be free in our expression, and that there are people, festivals, and platforms that support these values. Events like this sustain a sense of vitality for each of us — we need to see each other, and then everything becomes meaningful. To see how each person reflects through the combination of so many elements and shares it with the audience on stage or in creating a possibilities for others. I don’t know if there’s anything better than being present with so many talented people in one space; it alone generates so much newness that can emerge in the future in various forms. I am incredibly grateful to @festival_tanec_praha for the opportunity to refresh my perspective, move, see others, get inspired, meet many artists, and feel that the artistic space holds so much meaning. I truly hope that as many artists as possible can travel, share, and exchange what they create, think, and plan. Thank you for this wonderful experience❤️