As these winds blow, between low and high tides, may we, in spiral movements, retreat, advance. May we see the shores, dock and a little… dance!

The tide has brought us to the shore. Today, we dock in an urban, contemporary and plural quilombo – the bicentennial Porto de Trás neighbourhood in the city of Itacaré, southern Bahia, Brazil, where the winds have brought dancers from three continents. Amid the challenges of the tree-of-life of this territory, the fruits of the Festival expand from the craftsmanship of production to the beyond-borders reach of the call for the event, like a concave and convex that shines on both sides.

The days between October 28 and November 10 will bring to life the edition with the theme “Expand, expand”, celebrating the internationalisation of the event. In this project, promoted by the FUNARTE PROGRAM FOR SUPPORTING CONTINUING ACTIONS 2023, Brazilian and foreign artists will meet in a space of affection and creation for an even more diverse exchange that promises a rich generation of knowledge in dance.

Despite the long road travelled, it is as if it were the first time. This perspective of the new is due to the debut of new dialogues, new counter-hegemonic approaches, spaces of otherness and infinite possibilities in dance, which will boost affections in this creating-doing-dancing. The expansion of this edition was revealed within Brazilian territory and beyond the oceans: there were 394 registrations of proposals from Brazil and 21 other countries, the highest number of applicants since the first edition, in 2008.

Prioritising proposals for compositional deviations, we promote encounters that go far beyond the obvious. In this perspective, this program includes workshops-performance and interventions, performances, meetings and video screenings. In addition to Brazil, we will have Argentina, France/Ivory Coast, Portugal and Mozambique enriching and pulsating in these exchanges.

We thank everyone who makes the Itacaré Dance Festival happen. Now, it’s time to experience the event and create memories. We wish you great experiences!

Verusya Correia
Artistic Director and Curator