“Diversity Is Being Invited to the Party, Inclusion Is Being Invited to Dance”

A performance by Hanna Felicia, a new duo of the dance company Spinn, at Reykjavìk Dance Festival. The company, based in Sweden, consists of two dancers with and without functional impairments. The performance explores sisterhood and the relationship between two people or perhaps just two sides of the same person – who yearn for recognition and love. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival)

Published at: Dec 02 2022 - 12:57 / Updated at: Dec 02 2022 - 15:29

Recently, the international Reykjavìk Dance Festival took place in Iceland. It seeks to challenge established ideas of how dance and dancing bodies are supposed to look – and which voices are allowed to be heard.

From Astri Edvardsen

In November, Reykjavìk Dance Festival celebrated its 20-year jubilee with a grand party program characterized by diversity – in a double sense.

In collaboration with the international Lòkal Performing Arts Festival, over 50 events over five days were organized for people of all ages.

"Diversity is being invited to the party, inclusion is being invited to dance."

Pétur Ármannsson, meddirektør for Reykjavík dansefestival. (Foto: Owen Fiene/Reykjavík dansefestival) — Pètur Ármannsson, co-director of Reykjavìk Dance Festival. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival)

This play on words – which comes from Vernā Myers, writer and VP of Inclusion Strategy at Netflix – has been a central source of inspiration for this year's festival.

"Through its curatorial activities, Reykjavìk Dance Festival tries to challenge normative ideas of how dance should look like, which bodies are represented within dance, and whose voices will be heard," says Pètur Ármannsson, co-director of the festival, to High North News.

"Reykjavìk Dance Festival strives to be a fun and inclusive festival full of parties, performances, workshops, conversations with artists, and relaxing get-togethers," he continues.

Photo gallery: Baby rave for children of all ages and their parents. With music from Brazil, Ukraine, Japan, India, South Africa, and Iceland as imagination input, the children can go on dance journeys to different corners of the world, writes the festival. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavik Dance Festival) >

The dance performance Feminist rave is created by Anna Kolfinna in close cooperation with and performed by a group of teenagers. This is a feminist utopia, inspired by rave culture, where everyone are free to move and express themselves as they choose to the music of their own choice. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival) >

Lunch beat has its own manifest. Mandatory dancing and no talking about work are among the rules. The concept was created in Stockholm and traveled to Reykjavìk Dance Festival in 2012. The event takes place under the auspices of the Coreography Reykjavìk collective. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival)

No dancing to someone's selective tune

This year's dance and performance arts festivities consisted of contributions from around 186 artists and a total of nearly 3300 audience members.

Not only have the events struck a chord with many, but the festival's framework also has a contemporary resonance.

A much-needed debate about inclusion within Icelandic performance arts, or lack thereof, has been conducted recently, it is said.

Both now and in previous years, Reykjavìk Dance Festival strives to contribute to an open community of great variety, both through the artists it provides an arena for and the people it addresses.

"There is power in choosing who will be seen and who will not, so we wish to continue this conversation, be an accessible festival and platform for different bodies, voices, and representations," states the staff on the festival's website.

Photo gallery: In Collaborative Contaminations (performance/interactive installation) the dynamics of water and how it is affected by contamination are explored. In this work, Rósa Ómarsdóttir and Hákon Pálsson bring interesting questions about the relationship between nature and technology into the light: Can we find playfulness in contamination? Can pollution be considered a possibility for cooperation? (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival) >

The Boob Sweat Gang is an Icelandic punk band that gives live stage performances. On stage, the six members' alter egos take over and they perform based on the following motto: "We do whatever the fuck we want. We scream our truth. We have sweaty boobs and we love it." (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival) >

In the performance Read me my Rites, Cindercat (Elísabet Birta Sveinsdóttir) is inside a coffin, desperate to move on to the afterlife. "How many times do I have to die to get there?", asks the cat and hopes the audience shares the desire for a festive afterlife. It moans and meows, yawns and wags its long tail, talks and sighs, shivers and shakes, and sings s soothing song – before it comes out of its coffin and becomes DJ Cindercat. (Photo: Owen Fiene/Reykjavìk Dance Festival)

Fierce and exciting

Among the participants at the festivities in Iceland's capital this late fall, was the Director of the Arctic Arts Festival, Icelandic Ragnheiður Skúladóttir.

Festspilldirektør Ragnheiður Skúladóttir. (Foto: Privat) — Ragnheiður Skúladóttir, Director of the Arctic Arts Festival.

Skúladóttir thanks Reykjavìk Dance Festival and the Lòkal Performing Arts Festival for inspiring and fun days. She has a background as co-founder and artistic leader of Lókal.

"To see how strong and influential works are being produced on Iceland's independent scene, despite difficult circumstances and limited interest from the cultural policy domain, is simply incredible," writes Skúladóttir on her Facebook page and goes on:

"My wish is that all this production, with the quality it stands for and the inspiration it provides, one day receives the recognition it deserves. It is time to develop a long-term policy and support measures that will really matter."

"As an expatriate Icelander, I am proud and excited to have taken part in the large amount of daring, energetic, and fun programs from these two festivals," she adds.