While 2025 marks the 20th anniversary of Culture Ireland, it will also see the 21st edition of the Dublin Dance Festival taking place this month. Culture Ireland will once again be partnering with Dublin Dance Festival and Dance Ireland on the Originate Programme, a valuable platform for international programmers to experience new choreographies and works available for touring by artists based in Ireland. This support is provided under Culture Ireland’s See Here Programme.
Dublin Dance Festival, which runs from 13 – 24 May 2025, will host international programmers to attend this year’s Festival, offering key opportunities to witness new and award-winning works, and network with local artists.
Ireland’s National Dance Company, Luail, will open DDF’s 21st Edition with its inaugural performance of Chora at the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre on 13 May. This production will see Luail’s dancers join forces with the Irish Chamber Orchestra in a vibrant exchange of music and dance that draws on themes of home, memory, and landscape.
Other productions included in this year’s Originate programme are:
Specky Clark by Oona Doherty
Wed 14 – Sat 17 May
Abbey Theatre
Specky Clark blends myth and biography to tell a story of a young boy. With dance, text and haunting music by Lankum, a powerful narrative unfolds through a series of theatrical images, on a Halloween night.
When the Moon Spun Round by Fidget Feet & Ceol Connected
Thurs 22 – Sat 24 May
Samuel Beckett Theatre
Prepare to be mesmerised by daring aerial dance and enchanting traditional music. When the Moon Spun Round invites children and families on an imaginative journey where aerialists glide and twirl like ocean waves, a fiddler soars high, and where the mysteries that lie behind the moon are revealed. Don’t miss this one-of-a-kind show!
Scorched Earth by Luke Murphy’s Attic Projects
Fri 23 & Sat 24
Abbey Theatre
Part crime-drama, part psychological thriller, Scorched Earth blends dance and theatre to unearth a haunting tale of ambition, power, legacy and the cost of success, inspired by John B. Keane’s The Field.
Dance to Remember by Dónal Dineen
Fri 23 May
The Sugar Club
In this short autobiographical documentary, Dónal Dineen explores his relationship with his father, as well as the power of music and dance. With live performances, followed by a DJ set, this is a celebration of music, dance and community.
MOSH by Rachel Ní Bhraonáin
Fri 23 & Sat 24 May
Project Arts Centre
Is it aggression? Is it dance? Dive into the unfiltered chaos of the mosh pit in this award-winning show with raucous dance and live music, uncovering the ritual, the community and the meaning behind the misunderstood subculture.
The full Dublin Dance Festival 2025 programme can be viewed here.
Image credit: Scorched Earth, Luke Murphy’s Attic Projects. Photo by Sound of Photography.
