32nd Kalamata International Dance Festival

Description :

Dedicated to the “magic” of the art of dance and its power to break new ground in times of instability and uncertainty, The 32nd Kalamata International Dance Festival will take place this year from July 17 to 26, under the artistic direction, for the second year, of Jenny Argyriou. 

The 12 international artists hosted at this year’s Festival – 5 of whom are coming to Greece for the first time – come from Finland, Brazil, France, Germany, Sweden, Cape Verde-Portugal, Slovenia, the Netherlands-Venezuela and Spain while great emphasis is placed this year on Greek creators, also hosting 12 choreographers.

The 32nd Kalamata International Dance Festival places great emphasis on inclusion and new collaborations such as the SYSTEMA – For the Greek Performing Arts partnership with the Athens Epidaurus Festival and the National Theatre to promote Greek artists abroad. It is also worth noting that this year, for the first time, the archaeological site of Ancient Messina will be activated with a performance, in an evening that will end with the audience dancing themselves, as part of the new section Dancing with the Community.

At the same time, last year’s very successful sections Dancing on Screen, Encounters Off Stage, Dance in the City with performances in public spaces in Kalamata and Dance in Cities of the Peloponnese, which this year brings dance productions to 6 cities in the Peloponnese. The Festival continues for the second year the production of exhibitions on contemporary dance, with the exhibition Zouzou Nikoloudi: Methodology as Practice, based on the archives of Zouzou Nikoloudi, one of the most important figures of contemporary Greek dance.

Finally, the Festival announces this year the creation of a new international artists in residency program, which will be implemented with the support of the Ioannis F. Kostopoulos Foundation. Through assignments and an open invitation, creators from Greece and abroad will be hosted in Kalamata, in order to dedicate time to creation, to get to know the city and its inhabitants and to develop proposals with the prospect of future collaborations and co-productions. This is a new initiative of the Festival that seeks to highlight the history of Greek dance and its connection with contemporary artistic practices.

 

Kalamata Dance Hall | Main Stage

18/07/2026 | 22:00
HE WHO FALLS | YOANN BOURGEOIS ART COMPANY

20/07/2026 | 21:30
TEMPO | KALLE NIO & FERNANDO MELO

23/07/2026 | 22:00
MALDONNE | LEΪLA KA

26/07/2026 | 22:00
ΤΟΣΑΙΣ ΦΟΡΑΙΣ ΤΟΣΟ ΚΟΝΤΑ ΕΙΜΑΙ | GREEK NATIONAL OPERA BALLET & GIORGOS KOUMENTAKIS

 

Kalamata Dance Hall | Alternative Stage

18-19/07/2026 | 19:00 & 22:00
MERCURY RISING | JEFTA VAN DINTHER

20/07/2026 | 20:00
ΙT’S THE END OF THE AMUSEMENT PHASE | HARA KOTSALI

23-24/07/2026 | 20:30 & 21:30
GUINTCHE (LIVE VERSION) | MARLENE MONTEIRO FREITAS

25/07/2026 | 18:30
A USER’S MANUAL | KONSTANTINOS PAPANIKOLAOU

25/07/2026 | 19:30
LUNAR SEAGA | ANTONIS VAIS

25/07/2026 | 20:30
MOUNTAINS | GARAGE21 

26/07/2026 | 19:00
WHAT ARE THE BODIES OF OUR TIME; | IRIS KARAGIAN

26/07/2026 | 21:00
SUPERSTAR | IOANNA PORTOLOU / GRIFFÓN DANCE GROUP

 

DANCE IN ANCIENT MESSENE / DANCING WITH ΤΗΕ COMMUNITY

22/07/2026 | 20:00
Amazigh in Situ | PLAN-K / Filipe Lourenço | Ecclesiasterion (Conservatory) of Messina

22/07/2026 | 20:30
Dancing with the Community | Amine Nouri | Ecclesiasterion (Conservatory) of Messina

 

DANCE IN THE CITY

18/07/2026 | 21:00
Metamorphosis | Greek National Opera Higher Professional School of Dance | Central Square of Kalamata 

19/07/2026 | 21:00
ONE BODY – CSOT 3rd year | State School of Dance | Central Square of Kalamata 

21/07/2026 | 21:00
Do Birds Dream of Flying? | Fabla Collective | Central Square of Kalamata 

24/07/2026 | 20:00
Mariposa |  David Zambrano | Municipal Railway Park of Kalamata 

 

PARALLEL PROGRAM

TEMPORARY EXHIBITION

July 17-26, 2026

Zouzos Nikoloudis Report: Methodology as Practice | Kalamata Dance Hall

 

DANCING ON SCREEN

Kalamata Dance Hall

17-26/07/2026
– BARE under | Vitoria Kotsalou

– All She Likes is Popping Bubble Wrap | Ioanna Paraskevopoulou

21/07/2026 | 21:30
The Heart of the Bull | Eva Stefani

24/07/2026 | 22:30
Dancing with the Community | projections of video-clips curated by Vassilis Papaefstathiou

 

OFF-STAGE MEETINGS

Kalamata Dance Hall

19/07/2026 | 18:00
Inclusion in the performing arts

20/07/2026 | 18:00
Presentation of the book Use of the sky. A dance | Deborah Hay

26/07/2026 | 11:30
The Unstable Terrain in Contemporary Dance Practice

 

EDUCATIONAL ACTIVITIES

Professional seminars and 3 dance and movement workshops for the general public of all ages and for people with and without disabilities

17-20/07/2026 |10:00-12:00
Flying Low | David Zambrano | Municipal Stadium of Kalamata

17-20/07/2026 |13:00-16:00
Passing Through | David Zambrano | Municipal Stadium of Kalamata

20-26/07/2026 |10:00-13:00 & 20-26/07/2026 |14:00-17:00
Improvisation on Stage | David Zambrano | Municipal Stadium of Kalamata

 

Workshops for the public

11-12/07/2026 |18:00-20:00
PassingThrough Workshop for Adults 40+ | Alexis Tsiamoglou | Kalamata Dance Hall

11-12/07/2026 |18:00-20:00
Dance in the Moment | Artemis Lampiri | Kalamata Dance Hall

18-19/07/2026 |11:00-13:00
Dance workshop for people with and without disabilities | Irene Kourouvani & Venetsiana Kalampaliki | Sports and Cultural Events Hall “Tenta”

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