Findhorn Dance North Scotland RISE festival set to return

A dance festival which will deliver a unique programme of events is set to return.

Dance North Scotland’s RISE will take place at The Park Ecovillage, Findhorn, from Friday, May 23 to Sunday, May 25.

This year’s RISE programme will celebrate the connections between people, delivering what has been described as a “powerful, life-affirming weekend of performance and participation”.

Supported by multi-year funding from Creative Scotland, Dance North has brought together a line up of international artists and performers to explore how people live, dream and move in extraordinary times.

Storytelling is at the heart of this year’s festival, inviting audiences to share in the personal experiences and journeys of the programmed artists through performance, participation and conversation.

One of the performances is inspired by a random encounter with a camera in Estonia which made Rakesh Sukesh a momentary poster boy for a right wing media campaign against immigration.

In because i love the diversity (this micro-attitude we all have it), Rakesh tells his story through the semi-improvisational, trance-like movement technique that has made him such an in-demand teacher, choreographer and dancer across the world.

A Palestinian born in Jerusalem, Ashtar Muallem tells her story, her relationship to her country, to her body and spirituality in Cosmos, a funny and moving show developed in collaboration with Clément Dazin.

Navigating between Palestine and France, seeking equilibrium and comfort in both lands. Inspired by Jerusalem and cherished memories of her grandmother, she seeks a connection with the Divine.

Charlotte Mclean’s critically-acclaimed And is a dance poem about wonder, worries and being alive.

A homage to the mothers and grandmothers who have danced before and the children yet to meet, And invites people to consider their view of the world, to relate, debate and dance.

In Long Solo 4, Seke Chimutengwende embarks on a one-hour performance without a plan. As he faces the empty space, alone, he draws on memory, sensation and imagination to conjure worlds out of nothing.

A fusion of dance, poetry, stand-up, storytelling, philosophy and politics: it is a riotous exploration of the present moment.

In Richard Layzell’s The Perfect Number, through live performance and on film, at the same time, he explores dreams, other living beings, brutality and survival, trees fighting back, how to pose, wearing the wrong clothes, undisciplined golfers, the Centre of the World and finding the Perfect Number.

Created by Marie Béland and Simon Laroche of Montreal, RADIOMATON is a total sensory and immersive experience which questions the construction of truth, media contamination, fake news and the role of the body in the perception of information.

Installed in a cubicle resembling a photo booth and equipped with headphones broadcasting live a local radio station, each RADIOMATON user must repeat aloud the words they hear, while imitating the gestures that are displayed on the screen in front of them.

Audiences will be invited to sit up and listen to the RISE artists in conversation with Māori contemporary dance artist and cultural advocate, Paige Shand Haami, recorded live for the newly launched podcast, Dance North Conversation.

These discussions will offer insight into the personal experiences and journeys of the programmed artists while looking ahead to RISE 2026, with its focus on First Nations and indigenous artists.

This year Dance North is offering a three day full festival pass, which gives everyone access to all shows, workshops and parties, with a couple of exceptions, clearly denoted.

Tickets for individual performances and workshops are also available.

Karl-Jay Lewin, RISE festival director, said: “RISE 2025 will bring together artists from different international backgrounds, each sharing their unique stories while celebrating the powerful connections between us.

“The recognition of our interconnectedness — how our individual experiences resonate with one another — is something that inspires and energises me and has shaped the curation of this year’s festival.

“This year expect a programme that packs the occasional punch, but above all is uplifting and often humorous.

“Each performance has been carefully chosen to challenge, provoke, and inspire — offering something for everyone, whether you’re a dance aficionado or simply curious.

“Be still, sit back and listen; celebrate, debate and relate; dance and feel alive at RISE 2025.”