Visiting Artist Programme at One Dance Festival 2026
One Dance Festival welcomes the Visiting Artist Programme for the 4th time
Seven contemporary dance artists will join the latest edition of the Visiting Artist Programme during One Dance Festival. We will one again host the European program that promotes creative exchange, training, and professional development in the dance sector. It will take place between May 28 and 31, 2026, during the second long weekend of edition No.18 of One Dance Festival and the open-air One Dance City stage, with the support of the Municipality of Plovdiv.
It is our fourth time hosting the VAP, bringing diverse European talents together and fostering cultural dialogue. Since its enlargement as a separate project supported by the EU’s Creative Europe Programme, the VAP has doubled the number of visiting artists and, respectively, sending and receiving festivals.
Full list of participants and sending festivals:
Gaetano Palermo and Michele Petrosino - Torinodanza Festival, Italy
Eni Vesovic - Dance Week Festival, Croatia
Thjerza Balaj - Danish Dance Theatre, Denmark
Kinga Jaczeska – KAAP, Belgium
Maya Oliva - Zodiak / Side Step Festival, Finland
Stanisław Bulder - Lublin International Dance Theatre Festival, Poland
In Plovdiv, they will attend a sequence of meetings, workshops, performances and networking opportunities to deepen their engagement with the local and international dance scene. Each day offers opportunities to meet renowned tutors, experts in the field, local and international artists and contemporary dance works.
About the VAP
An 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.
As a collaborative project, the Visiting Artist Programme aims to offer valuable learnings and best practice to other festivals and organisations looking to create similar artist development and creative exchange platforms. The resources available here, including the VAP Handbook, can be used as templates and reference materials in making this possible.
Partners
Partner Festivals / Institutions of the 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), STL (Estonia), International Dance Festival Tanec Praha (The Czech Republic), CODA Oslo International Dance Festival (Norway), New Baltic Dance (Lithuania), Tanz im August (Germany).
With the support of the National Culture Fund.
