© Rudy Carlier
Presentation Dansstroom. Amateur dancers dive into repertoire
Non-professional dancers dive into dance repertoire with an experienced coach.
The opening weekend of Body of Work – with Heritage Day on Sunday April 26 – will revolve around the presentations of Dansstroom, a project that in a unique way builds bridges between different dance genres, between amateurs and professionals, and between the present and the past. Dansstroom – a collaboration between STUK, Danspunt and CEMPER – invites five non-professional dance groups to dive into the repertoire of their own choosing, under the guidance of an experienced coach. At the end of the journey, on April 25 and 26, they will present their work at the Soetezaal in STUK.
During this very first edition of Dansstroom, this will result in an exciting evening or afternoon offering a range of classical Indian (temple) dance, classical ballet, tap dance and excerpts from the work of Alain Platel and Frank Van Laeke, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Ugo Dehaes. Young and older, from Ghent to Herk-de-Stad, gathered on one stage.
The presentation of the event will be taken up by Anke Verschueren.
Video maker Sander Tas followed the six groups and made a “making of” of their Dansstroom adventure. To be seen in the Vitrine during the entire festival, and in STUKcafé on Sunday 26.04.
PRACTICAL
Saturday 25.04 - part of the Opening Night of Body of Work 2026
➤ programme:
- 19:00 - 20:00: Dansstroom part 1: Drops of Dance & Friends / Rosa’s Goesting / Moving Ground x Huys Arts
20:00 - 20:45: festive opening of Body of Work 2026 with a reception and speeches @ STUKcafé
- 21:00 - 22:00: Dansstroom part 2: Platform-K / Dance Images / Solemates
➤ prijs: €5 per deel (19:00 - 20:00 of 21:00 - 22:00)
Sunday 26.04
On Sunday afternoon – Heritage Day! – we present the six pieces of Dansstroom in one continuous programme, with a half-hour interval.
➤ programme:
- 15:00 - 16:00: Dansstroom part 1
- 16:00 - 16:30: pause
- 16:30 - 17:30: Dansstroom part 2
➤ price: €10
Platform-K
Repertoire: Alain Platel & Frank Van Laecke / les ballets C de la B - Gardenia (2010)
Dance coach: Hendrik Lebon
Credits photo: Tine Declerck
A company for dancers with disabilities, based in Ghent and Brussels. Platform-K's experienced dance troupe dives into Gardenia (2010) and performs an ode to non-conformity, grotesque expression and breaking expectations.
Dance Images
Repertoire: Remakes of Swan Lake
Dance coach: Nicola Wills & Wim Vanlessen
Workshop: Tiemen Bormans
Credits photo: Bruno Holvoet
The performance team of Dance Images, a ballet school from Kortenaken and Herk-de-Stad, is delving into one of the great ballet classics: Swan Lake. They are exploring the various reinterpretations the piece has undergone over the years, drawing particular inspiration from Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake (1995), in which traditional gender roles are reimagined. Inspired by this and other versions of the influential work, they are developing their own creative interpretation.
Drops of Dance & friends
Repertoire: Classical Indian temple dance Bharatanatyam - Kalakshetra style - work by Guru Adyar K. Lakshman (1933-2014)
Dance coach: Sooraj Subramaniam
Credits photo: Sunny Jagesar
Four dancers from Mechelen, Herent and Ghent learn a work by Guru Adyar K. Lakshman (1970s) and delve deeper into the Kalakshetra style within the Bharatanatyam genre.
Rosa's Goesting
Repertoire: Ugo Dehaes - WOMEN (2011)
Dance coach: Natascha Pire
Nine dancers from Flemish Brabant who got to know each other through the Leuven danst Rosas danst Rosas project are bringing Women (2011) by Ugo Dehaes back on stage.
Moving Ground x Huys Arts
Repertoire: Vlaemsch (chez moi) (2022) - Eastman / Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Foi (2003) - les ballets C de la B / Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui
Dance coaches: Jonas Vandekerckhove, Greet Van Poeck & Laura Neyskens
Two youth companies from Antwerp (Moving Ground from Deurne & Huys Arts from Wilrijk) will spend a week exploring the repertoire of Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui together. They are joining forces to work with material from the pieces that inspire them most: Vlaemsch (chez moi) (2022) and Foi (2003).
Solemates
Repertoire: Historic evolution of tap dance – Waltz clog, Soft Shoe, Buck and Wing, Paddle and Roll (period 1840 – 1940)
Dance coach: Josh Hilberman
Five tap dancers from Ghent and Brussels delve into the traditions of tap dance between 1840 and 1930. Starting from the traditional material, they develop new choreographies through improvisation techniques.
CREDITS
project coordination and documentation Charlotte Schramme presentation of Dansstroom showcase Anke Verschueren documentary Dansstroom Sander Tas (Kadanja) acknowledgements to all participants and their entourage! Dansstroom is made possible thanks to a project grant from the Cultural Heritage Decree of the Flemish Community
Anke Verschueren takes her great love, language, with her everywhere she goes, from paper to stage to podcast. Anke is almost always talking, writing, singing, listening, reading, presenting, moderating, editing or doing theatre, and she thoroughly enjoys it. The only hobby she has not yet turned into a profession is dancing.
On Saturday 25 April the presentation of Dansstroom is part of the Opening Night of Body of Work. In part 1 at 19:00, two groups dance in the Soetezaal, at 20:00 there's the official opening of the festival in STUKCafé, and at 21:00 the three remaining groups dance in the Soetezaal. We work with separate tickets for both parts.
On Sunday 26 April the presentation of Dansstroom is one programme, with a pause between both parts. You buy one ticket for the entire afternoon.
Location
Price
€5 per part (25.04)
€10 entire night (26.04)
