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Katia Krafft, Krafla Vulcano © Image'Est
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Dear {{firstname}} {{lastname}},
Slowly, we are approaching the fire.
On July 3, L.A.V.A. will premiere during Julidans.
The co-production with Compagnia Zappalà Danza will first ignite in a very special way some days before: a unique avant-première in Pompeii, a version created specifically for this historic site. Inspired by volcanoes, in L.A.V.A., the choreographers from Amsterdam and Catania explore how hidden inner forces gather, shift, and ultimately erupt — physically, visually, and sonically.
But first, spring.
On May 19 & 20, we take over Frascati with The Artists Are Present. During this annual festival, you can discover a wide range of emerging and established makers. Artists supported by ICK, both in developing their work and in creating opportunities to present it. This year’s theme is shamelessness: shedding shame in order to arrive at something essential.
On May 29, Robin Coops presents DONS in Rotterdam, offering a new perspective on masculinity through an immersive Club Opera — another remarkable co-production by ICK.
There is no time to be bored. Read on to discover what else is moving at ICK.
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COMPANY
Premiere L.A.V.A.
— From Pompeï to Julidans
It’s official!
Ticket sales have started and you can be part of it.
Between Catania and Amsterdam, we are looking ahead to two (!) unique premieres of L.A.V.A., where two choreographic worlds converge: an Italian-Dutch co-production charged with contrast and intensity.
The world premiere will take place in Amsterdam on July 3, as part of Julidans 2026.
Prior to this, a special avant-première will take place on June 26 & 27 in Pompeii. In this historic site — once devastated by Mount Vesuvius — a specially adapted version of L.A.V.A. will be presented.
Where dance moves like lava — layered and unpredictable — ICK Dans Amsterdam and Compagnia Zappalà Danza take you on a sonic journey through a landscape of tension, friction, and subterranean currents.
More L.A.V.A., underground rumblings, shifting magma and eruptions can soon be experienced virtually: keep an eye on our socials and website for the launch of LavaLive.nl.
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COMPANY
The Artists Are Present. And Have No Shame.
— Shamelessly radical human resistance
On May 19 & 20 it’s time for the newest edition of The Artists Are Present!
Artists connected to ICK Dans Amsterdam take over Frascati for two days of shedding shame. Powerful and vulnerable, performers reveal their bodies as they are. Dancing bodies reach out to one another, resist war, question gender, and enter into relationships with AI.
Let yourself be shamelessly carried away by performances from Thais Di Marco, Lucinda Wessels, Liza Sulaiman, and Emio Greco & Pieter C. Scholten, and discover Intuition Machine by ICK Collective.
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COMPANY
DONS
— Manosphere or confused man?
On May 29, you are invited onto the dance floor in Rotterdam for the club-opera DONS by director and composer Robin Coops, co-produced with ICK Dans Amsterdam.
What does masculinity mean in 2025? Coops challenges traditional ideas surrounding gender roles. In a society where narratives are shaped by political and commercial interests, DONS invites you to let go of fixed gender norms and embrace a fluid, authentic way of being.
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COMPANY
Wijs Gym & Physio expands
— Wijs in Amsterdam Noord
Working on your posture, recovering from injuries, or simply investing in your health: you can do it at Wijs Gym & Fysio. Wijs is the long-standing partner of ICK Dans Amsterdam for the supportive care of its dancers. For years, the skilled physiotherapists at Wijs have provided the company with personal guidance and expertise.
Alongside its location in Amsterdam West, Wijs is now expanding with a large state-of-the-art facility in Amsterdam Noord, featuring a fully equipped gym, e-gym, pilates studio, sauna, and an extensive range of personal training sessions and group classes.
Find more information here about therapies & memberships
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SPACE FOR DANCE ART
We Dance Together - Presentation
— What did De.sy.re bring?
Over the past weeks, dance enthusiasts had the opportunity to become acquainted with the working method of Elisa Zuppini, who led this edition of We Dance Together.
In her workshop De.sy.re., participants explored how movement emerges when the body begins to organise itself. As the closing moment of the workshop series, a presentation for friends, family, and other interested visitors will take place on May 11.
Both the workshop series and the presentation filled up very quickly, but there is good news: Elisa will lead another edition of We Dance Together. The new series starts on June 1, and registration is now open.
Register
De.sy.re for all movers →
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ACADEMY
Developments Intuition Machine
— presenting at The Artists Are Present in Frascati
On May 19 & 20, you can experience the latest developments of Intuition Machine yourself during The Artists Are Present at Frascati.
This continuously evolving AI installation — a body made of LED light — is becoming increasingly capable of recognising the choreographic elements within ICK’s dance idiom. Following a session in April, during which the light structure generated a wide range of visual variations, the research team will gather again on May 12 to further investigate the dialogue between movement and sound.
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ACADEMY
Embodied Knowledge: Articulations
— New publication
The new publication Embodied Knowledge: Articulations is now available on the ICK website.
The document brings together 170 key insights from the discussion Why Embodied Knowledge Matters. The conversation took place during Nederlandse Dansdagen 2025 and was led by Caroline Ribbers, Stephen Shropshire and Suzan Tunca.
Together, they shared insights from their doctoral research and engaged the audience in a conversation about embodied knowledge in dance education, choreography, and dance practice. The discussion was structured around five central questions concerning the meaning, definition, challenges, application, and relevance of embodied knowledge.
The transcript was later analysed and reworked into these 170 articulations.
You can download the publication here.
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ACADEMY
HAMLET
— AI Enablers
The research carried out by ICK Academy is characterised, among other things, by active participation in international research projects. Across technological, scenographic, scientific, and social domains, ICK sometimes takes the lead or collaborates within existing research initiatives.
For several years, ICK has been involved in the European HAMLET project. In April, a series of co-creation workshops explored two AI Enablers: a Dance Style Analysis and Generation Enabler, and a Music to Movement Translation Enabler. ICK is investigating how a dialogue between the Pre-choreographic Elements and these AI Enablers can give rise to a new choreographic process.
Would you like to receive more news and background stories from the Academy? Sign up for updates on various projects by emailing Francesco Cutillo.
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GUEST ARTISTS
Collectief MAMM
— RUIM on Tour
The new performance RUIM by Collectief MAMM will be presented in various theatres throughout May.
One reviewer already found themselves running out of adjectives: dazzling musicality, virtuosity in movement, and effortless humour.
RUIM is a performance about the maddening housing crisis. Four twenty-somethings search for a way forward through raw acrobatics and boundless imagination.
You can experience the performance in May in cities including Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Haarlem, and Alkmaar.
Madness caused by the housing crisis: what makes a home? →
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GUEST ARTISTS
Children of Zeus
— Robbeduz & Valentina Gal
On May 12, Children of Zeus will premiere at Theater Bellevue. Choreographer Robbeduz and visual artist Valentina Gal continue building on their earlier works with this new performance.
Within a mythical swamp, two queer performers discover the healing power of water. Here, they manifest their freedom, detached from the oppressive patriarchal forces of Zeus. Old paradigms begin to dissolve — though not without resistance.
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A Pelo
— The body as battlefield of queer desire
The performance by Fernando Troya is titled A Pelo—literally: on the hair, on bare skin, as in riding without a saddle, without protection or preparation. Troya exposes himself to the utmost, drawing on a dark period from his past, and has created a performance not meant to please you, but to take hold of you. In May the performance can be seen in Düsseldorf en Zagreb.
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GUEST ARTISTS
HUNTER
— Courtney May Robertson
The award-winning performance HUNTER by Courtney May Robertson will be presented in May in Stockholm.
Hidden underground, concealed from view inside an enclosed room, HUNTER plays with the redemptive structure of a classical tragedy, in which a character arrives at insight through suffering. But in this tragedy, Robertson performs “life-affirming monstrosities” upon herself — and upon her life-sized double.
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ABCDAIRE
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Surface /ˈsɝfəs/
noun
The upper layer.
Visible. Measurable. Exterior.
A reassuring physical boundary that keeps depth out of sight.
As long as we do not jump too hard, everything remains fine.
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EDITOR'S PICK
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The Fire Within – a requim for Katia and Maurice Krafft
By Werner Herzog
Herzog is a kindred spirit to the French volcanologist couple who travelled the world to capture the magic of volcanoes — the secret life of the earth itself. He discovered the astonishing images left behind by the lovers, who were consumed by their obsession with fire.
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Thu 7 May — 19:00 |
HUNTER
Courtney May Robertson
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Performance
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| Co-production — 2024 |
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| Dansens Hus — Stockholm SE |
Tickets ↗
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Fri 8 May — 19:00 |
HUNTER
Courtney May Robertson
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Performance
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| Co-production — 2024 |
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| Dansens Hus — Stockholm SE |
Tickets ↗
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Sat 9 May — 20:30 |
RUIM
Collectief MAMM
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| Theater De Vest — Alkmaar NL |
Tickets ↗
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Mon 11 May — 19:30 |
We Dance Together
Elisa Zuppini — De.sy.re. (Decentralized Systems of Relation) #1
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Community
Workshop
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| For everybody |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Fri 15 May — 19:00 |
A Pelo
Fernando Troya
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| D'haus — Düsseldorf DE |
Tickets ↗
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Sat 16 May — 20:30 |
RUIM
Collectief MAMM
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| Schuur — Haarlem NL |
Tickets ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Research
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| AI and XR Installation |
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| Frascati 3 — Amsterdam NL |
Free ↗
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Research
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| AI and XR Installation |
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| Frascati 3 — Amsterdam NL |
Free ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Research
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| AI and XR Installation |
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| Frascati 3 — Amsterdam NL |
Free ↗
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Research
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| AI and XR Installation |
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| Frascati 3 — Amsterdam NL |
Free ↗
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Company classes
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| For advanced |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Sat 23 May |
A Pelo
Fernando Troya
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| — Zagreb HR |
Tickets ↗
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Sun 24 May |
A Pelo
Fernando Troya
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| — Zagreb HR |
Tickets ↗
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Wed 27 May — 20:30 |
RUIM
Collectief MAMM
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| CC Amstel — Amsterdam NL |
Tickets ↗
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Fri 29 May — 22:00 |
DONS
Robin Coops
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| TR25 Schouwburg — The Kitchen — Rotterdam NL |
Tickets ↗
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Fri 29 May — 17:00 |
DONS
Robin Coops
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| TR25 Schouwburg — The Kitchen — Rotterdam NL |
Tickets ↗
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Performance
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| Co-production |
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| MIMIK XS — Deventer NL |
Tickets ↗
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Mon 1 Jun — 19:30 |
We Dance Together
Elisa Zuppini — De.sy.re. (Decentralized Systems of Relation) #2
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Community
Workshop
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| For everybody |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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Mon 8 Jun — 19:30 |
We Dance Together
Elisa Zuppini — De.sy.re. (Decentralized Systems of Relation) #2
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Community
Workshop
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| For everybody |
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| Space for Dance Art — Amsterdam NL |
Register ↗
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