DDF 2016 opens tomorrow - here's what to expect!

The twelfth edition of the festival opens tomorrow night with Planites, a work from Greek choreographer Patricia Apergi that deals directly with the migrant crisis. It sets the tone for a programme that, in different ways, deals with dislocation - dissonance in sense of place or identity or means of expression.

While Planites deals with dislocation by channelling the physical experience of migrants (walking, marching, carrying belongings), other shows circle around the idea in different ways. Euripides Laskiridis is an Athens-based artist who experiments with the idea of transformation, devising an identity for characters based on an outward appearance he creates for himself through costume and make-up.

Titan of the Irish contemporary scene Liz Roche Company comes at the idea of dislocation through the theme of using technology to alleviate distance resulting from migration – and where it falls short in this. Lauded Candian choreographer Crystal Pite channels the dislocation between language and expression when faced with grief, having worked with theatre maker Jonathon Young to stage the unspeakable in Betroffenheit.

As ever, the programme ranges from large-scale, highly produced work to more lo fi studio showings; American choregrapher Alonzo King brings his slick contemporary ballet, set to a score of Shostakovich, to the Bord Gáis Energy Theatre, while the First Looks double bills in DanceHouse offer an insight into the bare bones of work still in development.

Also as ever, Irish artists are well represented in the programme, sitting alongside vibrant work from Europe. A moody and atmospheric double bill from Irish-based artists Liadain Herriot and Justine Cooper contrasts with exuberant solos from Amsterdam-based Fernando Belfiore and Pina Bausch soloist Cristiana Morganti.

Ranging from the local to the international, the opulent to the understated, it’s a programme that has wide appeal and reflects new director Benjamin Perchet’s commitment to relevant work that taps into the pulse of human experience.

See you at the festival!

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