Dance festival Tanz NRW 25: A fireworks of contemporary art in NRW!

Dance festival Tanz NRW 25: A fireworks of contemporary art in NRW!

On April 12, 2025, an exciting artistic program in the Pina Bausch Center Wuppertal announces various events that combine contemporary dance with other forms of expression. This is done under the patronage of the Festival Tanz NRW 25, which presents the diversity of dance in North Rhine-Westphalia from May 8th to 18th, 2025. A central highlight is the fourth world premiere of the Urban Arts Ensemble Ruhr with the title Exposure , which takes place on May 7, 2025 at 8:00 p.m.

The choreography, written by Julio César Iglesias Ungo and Hans van den Broeck, combines elements of contemporary dance with Afrocuban traditions and hip-hop culture. Live music by Ben Frost accompanies the action and ensures an intimate examination of topics such as urine instincts and human nature. Cooperation with Danza Contemporánea de Cuba increases the cultural connections and deeply addresses identity and interpersonal connections.

variety of dance and new performances

Another remarkable event at the festival is the performance The Day I Became a Cloud , which takes place on May 14th and 15th, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. This performance focuses on visibility and survival and is part of a program that promotes exchange and reflection on contemporary dance. Emanuele Soavi, the choreographer of the performance, works with sound artist Johannes Malfatti. On May 13, 2025 at 12:00 p.m. there is also a follow -up discussion that is offered as part of the dance.

The wide range of events during the festival is supplemented by a total of 16 productions, including two premieres, which are listed in nine cities in NRW. This network model, which includes ten theater and urban cultural offices, shows the dynamics and diversity of the contemporary dance scene in the region.

urban arts ensemble ruhr and hip-hop aesthetics

The Urban Arts Ensemble Ruhr , which was founded in April 2023, counts one of the actors who contribute to the reinterpretation of contemporary dance in NRW. Minister of Culture Ina Brandes emphasizes that the ensemble pursues the goal of further developing hip-hop aesthetics in the Ruhr metropolitan region and beyond. Through state funding from the Ministry of Culture and Science NRW and the city of Herne, the ensemble shows remarkable success after a short time.

with a line-up of seven international dancers: inside and varying choreographer: Inside, the ensemble breaks the limits of conventional contemporary hip-hop theater. It is considered a significant contribution to the artistic development of the 21st century and can be compared to Pina Bausch's dance language in the 20th century.

cultural highlights and musical experiences

The offer is rounded off in the Pina Bausch center by the release concert by Charles Petersohn and the Children of Zu zu , which takes place on May 31, 2025 at 7:30 p.m. The evening promises a musical journey of discovery in a wide range, from electronic dance music to spiritual jazz to African and Brazilian rhythms. The presentation of new music is visually supplemented by light art by Tobias Daemgen and a photo exhibition by Daniel Schmitt.

Overall, the ** Pina Bausch Zentrum **, a project of the city of Wuppertal, which is funded by the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and Media, offers a platform for innovative artistic cooperation between dance and music. Interested parties will find more information and tickets on the Website des Center.