From November 7 to 29, Derida Stage becomes a space for international artistic encounters in which the body explores the boundaries of freedom, memory, identity, and human relationships.
From November 7 to 29, 2026, Sofia will once again host the international contemporary dance festival Derida Dance Fest. Across 11 festival evenings at Derida Stage, audiences will experience 14 choreographic works by artists and companies from Romania, South Korea, Slovenia, the Czech Republic, Taiwan, Italy, France, Gabon, French Guiana, Croatia, Finland and Spain.
The festival brings together different generations and artistic approaches – from experimental choreographic research and physical theatre to visual performances, multimedia works and dance inspired by digital culture. The programme includes productions from the international platforms Aerowaves and Moving Balkans, award-winning works from prestigious festivals and competitions, a special focus on the French scene, and performances connected with Derida Dance Center’s international residency programme.
How do we find balance in a constantly changing world? How does the body preserve stories that words cannot tell? Where does the boundary lie between individual freedom and collective power? How is technology changing not only the way we communicate, but the very way we move?
These are some of the questions connecting the festival programme. Each performance offers a different perspective on human experience, turning dance into a space for reflection, shared experience and encounters with the unfamiliar.
Derida Dance Fest 2026 continues Derida Dance Center’s mission to develop contemporary dance in Bulgaria, build lasting international partnerships, and give Bulgarian audiences access to diverse artistic languages and leading developments on the international choreographic scene.
OPENING: BALANCE BETWEEN FRAGILITY AND RESILIENCE
November 7 | 16:30 and 20:00
The festival opens on November 7 with two distinct choreographic encounters, united by themes of embodied memory, vulnerability and our capacity to find resilience in moments of uncertainty.
From Romania, Alexandra Mihaela Dancs and Vlad Benescu present Somatic Freaks – The Proprioceptors Revolution. Over three hours, the two artists work with a large tandem balancing apparatus, turning the constant transition between stability and imbalance into a living choreographic laboratory. The performance explores trust, interdependence and the capacity to adapt.
Later that evening, at 20:00, South Korean artist Heungwon Lee presents Speechless – an intimate 20-minute solo developed during a residency at Derida Dance Center. Drawing on personal experiences, the performance explores how loss, family trauma and silence leave traces in the body. For this performance, the festival offers pay-what-you-can tickets, including a limited number of free seats.
FROM THE INNER WORLD TO OUR RELATIONSHIP WITH OTHERS
November 13 | 19:00 – UNFOLDED MOMENTS, Slovenia/Czech Republic
On November 13, the festival continues with Unfolded Moments by Kristýna Peldová and Enya Belak. Selected as one of ten productions for the second edition of the Moving Balkans Contemporary Dance Showcase, this hybrid dance-visual performance takes audiences on a journey through the human mind. Through movement and video projections, the work explores inner fears, crises of identity, and the ongoing search for peace in a world full of shifting stimuli.
November 14 | 19:00 – TOWARDS EQUILIBRIUM, Taiwan
The following evening, Taiwanese choreographer KUO Chueh-Kai and the company Nonly Body present Towards Equilibrium – the premiere of a 30-minute version created during a residency at Derida Dance Center.
Using contact poles, two performers explore the physical dynamics of approaching, withdrawing, and continually readjusting to one another. The performance treats equilibrium not as an end goal, but as an ongoing process of negotiation. The work was among the seven finalists at RIDCC 2026 and received six awards at the Stray Birds Dance Platform.
November 16 | 19:00 – THAUMATA & IKARO, Italy
Founded in 1979, Italian company ASMED Balletto di Sardegna visits on November 16 with two choreographic works devoted to the human desire to transcend our own limits.
In THAUMATA, choreographer Mario Coccetti explores the relationship between the human and the divine through ancient rituals, mystical visions and religious iconography. Inspired by the ancient Greek myth of Icarus, Rocco Suma’s IKARO examines freedom, inner fears and the courage to take risks. Together, the works present the body as a site of transformation, struggle and the pursuit of transcendence.
FRENCH FOCUS: FREEDOM, RELATIONSHIPS AND EMBODIED MEMORY
The French scene holds a special place in this year’s programme, with choreographic works exploring human relationships, social expectations, memory and identity.
November 19 | 19:00 – ADSURBE, France
The French Focus opens on November 19 with ADSURBE by OUPS Dance Company. Created and performed by Emilie Joneau and Clémence Juglet, the work blends contemporary dance and physical theatre in an absurd, humorous journey through the limitations we impose on ourselves. Recognised at international choreographic competitions, ADSURBE invites us to embrace absurdity, challenge our beliefs and live more freely.
The presentation is supported by the French Institute’s Mouvements programme.
November 20 | 19:00 – YOU’RE MY SISTER & I NEED TO, France
On November 20, audiences will experience two performances in a single festival evening.
In You’re My Sister by Cie IN VITRO, artistic director Marine Mane places relationships at the heart of the choreographic exploration, approaching them as spaces of mutuality, care and freedom. Inspired by the ideas of bell hooks, the work offers a different perspective on human connection – beyond confrontation, competition and the assumption that relationships must be defined by conflict.
The second part of the evening features I Need To, Clémence Juglet’s multi-award-winning solo, which exposes the exhausting pace of contemporary life. Time becomes a measure of productivity and personal worth, while the body is drawn into an endless race against its own expectations.
November 21 | 19:00 – THE MOTHER EFFECT, France/Gabon
On November 21, Carmel Loanga presents The Mother Effect – a deeply personal choreographic solo devoted to memory, motherhood and family heritage.
Born in Gabon and based in Paris, the artist creates a poetic narrative of female strength, loss and belonging. The body becomes a living archive of family history, where memories of her father, the birth of a child and the legacies of generations of Black women converge. The performance explores female identity as a space of resilience and constant transformation.
November 25 | 19:00 – (TITRE PROVISOIRE), France/French Guiana
The French Focus continues on November 25 with (titre provisoire) by Johana Malédon of Compagnie MÂLE, selected for Aerowaves Twenty26.
In the performance, the body enters into dialogue with an LED screen displaying words at random, visible only to the audience. A constantly shifting system of meanings unfolds between language and movement. The work questions language’s power to define human identity and explores ambiguity as a possibility for freedom and resistance.
THE COLLECTIVE BODY, WOMEN’S VISIBILITY AND THE FUTURE OF MOVEMENT
November 27 | 19:00 – ALL’ARME, Croatia
On November 27, Croatia’s Studio Contemporary Dance Company presents ALL’ARME, choreographed by the internationally acclaimed duo Ginevra Panzetti and Enrico Ticconi.
Featuring six performers – the largest ensemble in the festival programme – the work explores the power of synchronised movement and the tension between individual freedom and collective authority. Through military gestures, rhythmic structures and formations, the choreography asks where the boundary lies between solidarity and obedience, protection and aggression.
November 28 | 19:00 – AS YOU LIKE IT, Finland
On November 28, Finnish choreographer Maria Nurmela presents As You Like It – a provocative and witty performance blending dance theatre, stand-up comedy and autobiographical storytelling.
Inspired by Shakespeare’s ‘All the world’s a stage’, Nurmela explores societal ideas about femininity, ageing and the visibility of women’s bodies in the performing arts. Moving between humour and serious reflection, she challenges expectations placed on women performers and insists on the body’s right to continue changing, taking up space and being seen.
November 29 | 19:00 – VIRTUAL CHOREOGRAPHIES: FUTURE MOVEMENT(S), Spain
The festival concludes on November 29 with Virtual Choreographies: Future Movement(s) by Spanish artist Mauricio Pérez Fayos.
The performance examines TikTok dances as a signature movement language of Generation Z, raising questions about the influence of social media, algorithms and digital platforms on how we perceive our bodies and create shared movement vocabularies.
Neither nostalgic for a lost past nor uncritically celebratory of technology, the work approaches digital culture as a reality that is already shaping our physical existence. What movements are we creating today, and which of them will remain in the cultural memory of the future?
With this question, Derida Dance Fest 2026 closes its programme, looking towards the future of dance and the continually changing relationships between the human body, society and technology.
TICKETS AND FESTIVAL PACKAGES
All performances will take place at Derida Stage, 32 Tsar Samuil Street, Sofia.
Regular tickets cost €15, while reduced tickets for students and pensioners, upon presentation of valid ID, cost €10. When purchasing four or more regular tickets for the same evening, the price is €12 per ticket.
For Speechless on November 7, a special pay-what-you-can ticketing system offers tickets at €0, €5, €10, or €15.
The festival also offers special ticket packages:
3-festival-evening package – €39
5-festival-evening package – €55
Festival pass for all evenings – €99
The 3- and 5-evening packages allow audiences to choose their dates, excluding Speechless. The Festival Pass provides access to all festival evenings, including Speechless, and is limited to 20 passes.
Packages and the Festival Pass are on sale until November 6, 2026. Tickets for individual performances can be purchased through ePayGO.
Further information: www.derida.eu
Contact: office@derida-dance.com
ABOUT DERIDA DANCE FEST
Derida Dance Fest is an international contemporary dance festival organised by Art Link Foundation / Derida Dance Center. The festival provides a platform connecting the international choreographic scene, independent dance artists and Bulgarian audiences.
Derida Dance Center is Bulgaria’s first centre for contemporary dance and training, founded in 2010 by Atanas Maev and Jivko Jeliazkov. Through its independent productions, educational activities, international partnerships, residency programmes and curatorial work, the centre supports the development of contemporary dance and international exchange in the field.
The festival showcases diverse artistic approaches and encourages dialogue across cultures, generations and choreographic practices.
FUNDING AND PARTNERS
The Derida Dance Center Residency Programme is implemented with the financial support of Sofia Municipality – Calendar of Cultural Events.
Derida Dance Fest is organised by Art Link Foundation / Derida Dance Center with the financial support of the European Commission through Aerowaves – Dance Across Europe and Moving Balkans – Balkan Platform for Contemporary Dance, Sofia Municipality through the Culture Programme and the Calendar of Cultural Events, the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Bulgaria, the French Institute in Bulgaria, the Teatroskop programme and Instituto Cervantes – Sofia, and with the support of the Regional Centre for Contemporary Arts Toplocentrala.
Derida Dance Fest holds the EFFE Label 2025–2026.
