Scotland’s National Centre for Dance, Dance Base is known for curating an ambitious programme of Scottish and international shows every August, giving a world-class platform to up-and-coming and established dance artists.
Dance Base Festival 26 in partnership with Assembly, a collaboration now in its fourth year, is Dance Base’s 25th festival programme – a milestone the team is marking with a fantastic line-up of shows.
2026 is also a landmark year for Dance Base as the organisation celebrates 25 years in its purpose-built home in the heart of Edinburgh’s Grassmarket which becomes one of the festival epicentres every August.
As always, Dance Base nurtures and celebrates the breadth of Scottish dance talent, this year featuring, among others, YDance – Scottish Youth Dance company, Penny Chivas and her politically charged Where We Choose to Stand and Jack Anderson, Charlotte Mclean, Malin Lewis’ not for glory which dissects heritage and resuscitates tradition, Marc Brew’s moving Boys Don’t Dance and Two Destination Language’s 40/40 celebrating a life of a woman, artist and a migrant.
Outwith the UK, artists from Brazil, Basque Country, Italy, Netherlands, Japan and Taiwan call Dance Base their home this August, presenting work as part of Taiwan Season, São Paulo Showcase and Basque Showcase.
From Breakdancing to Butoh, from Pole Dance to politics – this diverse programme caters to both dance curious and Dance Base’s regular audiences.
Tickets go on sale on Friday at 12 noon at assemblyfestival.com and on Monday 30 March at edfest.com with further shows to be announced in due course.
NEW SHOWS ANNOUNCED
Penny Chivas – Where We Choose to Stand (7-16 August)
A powerful dance-theatre show inspired by activism and political change. Blending movement, music, real stories and moments of audience connection, it invites reflection on the choices we make—and what it means to stand together.
YDance & National Youth Arts Wales – Celtic Collective (7-16 August)
Bringing together the National Youth Dance Companies of Scotland and Wales for an electrifying night of bold choreography, this special show celebrates the power of dance, blending distinct cultural influences with cutting-edge vibrant contemporary dance.
Erain / Helena Wilhemsson – Jarraibiderik Gabe / Trembling Frequencies (7-16 August)
A double bill of emerging choreographic voices from the Basque Country. Bodies and objects create shifting physical landscapes in Jarraibiderik Gabe, while the mysterious and dynamic solo of Trembling Frequencies takes a look at the shifting landscapes within.
Marc Brew Company – Boys Don’t Dance (7-23 August)
A poignant dance theatre show by acclaimed disabled choreographer and dancer Marc Brew, it draws on his experience as the only boy in a rural Australian town who wanted to dance, defying societal expectations. It combines movement, BMX tricks, storytelling, lighting and an uplifting 80s soundtrack, alongside visual projections and animation.
T.F. Cia de Dança – Border Bodies (7-30 August)
Border Bodies desires to rediscover ways of being together in times of social segregation. Despite their diverse backgrounds, artists unite, believing that their differences empower each other when they act as one.
LEI Dance Theatre – Proximities (6-30 August)
LEI Dance Theatre and Lao-French choreographer Olé Khamchanla create a captivating quintet about boundaries and rules, distance and closeness, alienation and connection. An intelligent, imaginative show, questioning blend of traditional, contemporary and classical styles.
Mailantia Dance Company – Under Mask (6-30 August)
What lies beneath the roles and identities we choose to play? Drawing upon folk ritual and a battery of cross-cultural movement styles, Lai Yun-Chi’s company Mailantia presents a bold, intricate quartet about concealment and transformation.
COSMIC DANCE – Space In Between (9-16 August)
A South Asian triple bill exploring tensions between intention and outcome, self and society. Blending Bharatanatyam, Kathak and Contemporary movement, three interconnected works examine regret, conflict and misalignment, revealing unseen forces shaping identity, relationships and choice.
Jack Anderson, Charlotte Mclean, Malin Lewis – not for glory (11-23 August)
A rebellious unravelling of traditional dance and music. not for glory is bodies and bagpipes, kilts and queerness, a battering, flinging skirl. This dance-theatre gig resuscitates tradition, dissects heritage, not for glory – but for what?
Corpo Máquina – Poles (18-30 August)
A champion pole dance artist. A spider-like steel structure. A live soundscape. At the cutting edge of personal and public space, pole dance virtuoso Yvonne Smink delivers a performance of technical strength and intimacy, choreographed by Guilherme Miotto.
Karl Jay-Lewin and Matteo Fargion – If I Can’t Dance I’m Not Coming (18-27 August)
Reimagining Fritz Lang’s 1927 Metropolis as a score for dance, an eclectic ensemble of performers embraces dignity over virtuosity, blending rebellion with humour in a process shaped with clarity and care.
Compagnia Bellanda – Il canto dell’assiolo (18-30 August)
In the silence of a summer night, a call returns. A duet rooted in Breakin’ explores love’s borders – between desire and control, tenderness and violence. Breath, language, and movement intertwine, exposing intimacy as threshold, conflict, and transformation.
Two Destination Language – 40/40 (18-23 August)
An inspiring and moving celebration of Two Destination Language co-artistic director Katherina Radeva’s 40 years as a woman, a migrant and an artist. Claiming space on a dance floor, she dances with joyous abundance and presents stories of her past and present.
Dance Base Yokohama/Conan Amok – R/evolution(s) (18-30 August)
A contemporary Butoh work, this piece reimagines Butoh for the present while carrying its inheritance forward. Uniting Conan Amok – heir to the lineage of Dairakudakan, one of Japan’s leading Butoh companies – and contemporary dancers, renewing the form from within.
Frauke Requardt and Vivienne Franzmann – Anatomy Of Survival (25-29 August)
A woman walks into a cafe. She orders a coffee. The barista doesn’t understand her request. The woman loses her sh*t. Chaos reigns.
PREVIOUSLY ANNOUNCED
Dance Base’s PRIME – We Are (6-9 August)
Who are we when we’re together? When we’re alone? When we fight for what we believe in? Hot off the heels of its 10th anniversary last year, Dance Base’s in-house company for dancers over 60, PRIME premiers new work from Artistic Director Kally Lloyd-Jones and choreographer Malcolm Sutherland.
Dance Base’s Common Ground(11-16 August)
Dance Base’s two in-house companies PRIME (for dancers over 60s) and Lothian Youth Dance Company (for 14-21 year-olds) come together in a quadruple bill to explore the pressures we all face. Features new pieces created over the past year by PRIME’s Artistic Director Kally Lloyd-Jones, as well as guest choreographers Malcolm Sutherland, Tough Boys Collective and Rosie Mackley.
Dance Base’s Fringe Fragments (24-25 August)
Catch a glimpse of the next big thing. An industry pitching platform open to audiences, Dance Base’s Fringe Fragments spotlights dance artists from Scotland and around the world as they share 15-minute excerpts of tour-ready performances. A unique event strengthening Dance Base’s position as the major launchpad for dance artists at the Edinburgh Fringe.
Continuing Dance Base’s commitment to providing a home for Edinburgh’s thriving dance community throughout the Festival, the venue also hosts a vibrant programme of public and professional dance classes from Monday 3 – Sunday 31 August.
