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Modul-dance was created and structured to address artists’ needs during their process of creation to allow them to follow itineraries across Europe through the modular system, an organised model of support for dance art, creation and dissemination. The selection of artists created a map reflecting artistic excellence and aesthetic diversity and the systematic approach ensured mobility and new experiences as well as a process of dialogue between artists, directors of dance houses and communities.

The project drawed on difference to create a commitment, a working model for the future of the performing arts and best practices for cultural management in Europe and beyond.

Core activities

Led by Mercat de les Flors in Barcelona, the project operated under the umbrella of EDN and was funded by the European Commission through its Culture Programme.

The project hosted a community of 52 European artists and offered them a framework to create and present their work to different audiences. The selected artists developed an artistic piece within a 4-module structure across Europe consisting of research, residency, production and presentation modules and they received advice on play-writing and engage in an intense process of dialogue with the dancehouses. More than 40 artists were invited to carry out research work within the Carte Blanche programme at 1 or more of the dancehouses participating. It worked across disciplines cooperating with dramaturgists.

It set up conferences and think tanks in order to share reflections and establish critical feedback among dance communities, and organises festivals and film screenings.

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Daniel Abreu (participating artist), Animal

Key figures and outcomes

  • 40 research modules, 120 residency modules, 55 production modules, 180 presentation modules
  • 450 presentations on tour, 60 carte blanche, 460 involved artists, 230 artists on stage
  • 6 conferences, 13 festivals, 20 film screenings, 15 dramaturgic advice, 10 think tanks
  • 150.000 spectators
Online resources
  • www.modul-dance.eu is a useful container of information. It includes information about all the selected artists and their projects, the partners, a calendar with all the activities developed under its umbrella and useful news.
  • moduldance.wordpress.com is the blog where the selected artists shared their experiences throughout their processes of creation.
  • The project Vimeo channel includes interviews with many artists and partners and a documentary about the project coinciding with the last modul-dance conference.
Modul-dance final book

Click here to read the modul-dance final book. You will find many layers of information, dealing with the selection processes, conferences, think tanks, film screenings addressing many of the key issues that were part and parcel of the project: mobility, community, cooperation, sharing, sustainability. All the participants, artists and partners, wrote about their experience.

Modul-dance city guides

The project produced a collection of 10 city guides. Each of the guides in this collection shows a city from the viewpoint of a local artist, who proposes his or her own particular route to artists in transit, seeking to put them in connection with their host city. While these city routes share some basic features, each one is different and in their differences lies a wealth of gazes, aesthetics, approximations to the local and much more. In a word, they form a mirror of the diversity that modul-dance has always fostered. Athens, Barcelona, Bassano del Grappa, Dresden, London, Stockholm, Vienna, Toulouse, Paris and Poznań ready to be discovered.

The ten city guides are available via issuu.com/moduldance.

Partners & Funders

Modul-dance was led by Mercat de les Flors (Barcelona, Spain) and involved the following EDN members: adc Geneva (CH), Art Stations Foundation Poznań (PL), CDC Toulouse (FR), CND Paris (FR), Centro per la Scena Contemporanea Bassano del Grappa (IT), Dance Gate Lefkosia Cyprus (CY), Dance Ireland Dublin (IE), Dansens Hus Stockholm (SE), Dansehallerne Copenhagen (DK), DeVIR/CAPa Faro (PT), DDRC Athens (GR), HELLERAU-European Center for the Arts Dresden (DE), Maison de la Danse Lyon (FR), Danshuis Station Zuid Tilburg (NL), Tanzhaus NRW Düsseldorf (DE), Tanzquartier Wien (AT), The Place London (UK).

Two Non-EDN partners were also partners of the project: Kino Šiška Ljubljana (SI), Plesna Izba Maribor (SI). The dancehouse in Ljubljana joined EDN in 2015.

This project was co-funded by the Culture programme (2007-2013) of the European Union.

Duncan Dance Research Center

DDRC | The Isadora & Raymond Duncan Dance Research Center

Vyronas – Athens I Greece
London I United Kingdom

Tanzquartier Wien

TQW | Centre for Contemporary Choreography and Performance

Vienna I Austria
Düsseldorf I Germany

Mercat de les Flors

Casa de la Dansa

Barcelona I Spain

HELLERAU

European Centre for the Arts

Dresden I Germany

DeVIR | CAPa

Algarve Centre for Performing arts

Faro I Portugal
Copenhagen I Denmark

Dansens Hus

International Scene of Contemporary Dance / Sweden

Stockholm I Sweden
Dublin I Ireland

Dance Gate Lefkosia

Dancehouse Lefkosia

Lefkosia I Cyprus

La Place de la Danse

CDCN | Centre de Développement Chorégraphique Toulouse - Occitanie

Artistic director I Corinne Gaillard
Toulouse I France

Founding member of the association in May 2009. 

During the General Assembly in Barcelona 28 June 2022, members confirmed dancehouse's ratification.

Centro per la Scena Contemporanea

CSC Bassano del Grappa

Bassano del Grappa I Italy

Art Stations Foundation

Artistic director I Joanna Leśnierowska
Poznań I Poland

Founding member of the association in May 2009

Pavillon ADC

Association pour la Danse Contemporaine

Genève I Switzerland

Kino Šiška

Centre for Urban Culture

Ljubljana I Slovenia