The InterDance Fest is the largest

contemporary Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from approximately 1945 to the present. Contemporary history is either a subset of the late modern period, or it is o ...

dance festival Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...

Southeastern Europe Southeast Europe or Southeastern Europe (SEE) is a geographical subregion of Europe, consisting primarily of the Balkans. Sovereign states and territories that are included in the region are Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia (al ...

. It is held in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

. The festival was established in 2010 by the Aster Dance Club in cooperation with the Berlin Dance Institute, the

World DanceSport Federation The World DanceSport Federation (WDSF), formerly the International DanceSport Federation (IDSF), is the international governing body A governing body is a group of people that has the authority to exercise governance over an organization or p ...

and the MTV Dance Europe television network. It is open to contestants from the ages of 6 to 50, but also showcases non-competitive performers above the age of 50. It consists of competitive and non-competitive programmes that include Hip Hop,

Jazz Dance Jazz dance is a performance dance and style that arose in the United States in the mid 20th century. Jazz dance may allude to vernacular jazz about to Broadway or dramatic jazz. The two types expand on African American vernacular styles of dance ...

Street dance Street dance is an umbrella term for a large number of social dance styles such as: breakdancing, popping, locking, house dance, waacking etc. Social dance styles have many accompanying steps and foundations, created organically from a culture, ...

Disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

Breakdancing Breakdancing, also called breaking or b-boying/b-girling, is an athletic style of street dance originating from the African American and Puerto Rican communities in the United States. While diverse in the amount of variation available in ...

West Coast Swing West Coast Swing is a partner dance with roots in the Lindy Hop. It is characterized by an elastic look that results from its extension-compression technique of partner connection and is danced primarily in a slotted area on the dance floor. The ...

Electric Boogie "Electric Boogie" (also known as the "Electric Slide") is a dance song written and originally recorded in 1976 with Bunny Wailer. History It is strongly associated with the "Electric Slide" line dance and has since become a celebratory staple. Th ...

Salsa Salsa most often refers to: * Salsa (Mexican cuisine), a variety of sauces used as condiments * Salsa music, a popular style of Latin American music * Salsa (dance), a Latin dance associated with Salsa music Salsa or SALSA may also refer to: A ...

Argentine tango Argentine tango is a musical genre and accompanying social dance originating at the end of the 19th century in the suburbs of Buenos Aires. It typically has a or rhythmic time signature, and two or three parts repeating in patterns such as AB ...

Mambo Mambo most often refers to: *Mambo (music), a Cuban musical form *Mambo (dance), a dance corresponding to mambo music Mambo may also refer to: Music *Mambo section, a section in arrangements of some types of Afro-Caribbean music, particular ...

Cha-cha-cha Cha cha cha may refer to: * ''Cha-cha-chá'' (music), a style of Cuban dance music * Cha-cha-cha (dance), a Latin American dance accompanying the music Film and television * ''Cha Cha Cha'' (film), a 2013 Italian crime film * ''Cha Cha Cha'' ...

, Majorette performances,

Cheerleading Cheerleading is an activity in which the participants (called cheerleaders) cheer for their team as a form of encouragement. It can range from chanting slogans to intense physical activity. It can be performed to motivate sports teams, to ente ...

Zumba Zumba is a fitness program that involves cardio and Latin-inspired dance. It was founded by Colombian dancer and choreographer Beto Pérez in 2001, and by 2012, it had 110,000 locations and 12 million people taking classes weekly. Zumba is a ...

Belly Dance Belly dance (Egyptian Arabic: رقص بلدي, translated: Dance of the Country/Folk Dance, romanized: Raks/Raas Baladi) is a dance that originates in Egypt. It features movements of the hips and torso. It has evolved to take many different f ...

and others. The festival also hosts the European Salsa Championships. The 2017 edition hosted over 4,000 performers representing 84 international dance clubs from 46 different countries.

History

The Aster Dance Club was founded in 1986 in Sarajevo, then part of

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yug ...

and was named after American dancer, choreographer and actor,

Fred Astaire Fred Astaire (born Frederick Austerlitz; May 10, 1899 – June 22, 1987) was an American dancer, choreographer, actor, and singer. He is often called the greatest dancer in Hollywood film history. Astaire's career in stage, film, and tele ...

. It was originally part of the Slobodan Princip "Seljo" Student Cultural Club. The club was a founding member of the Bosnian Dance Federation, but ceased to exist in 2000. In 2014 the club was reestablished by former members. That same year it founded the festival in cooperation with the acclaimed Berlin Dance Institute, the

and MTV Dance Europe. In 2017, the organizers signed a cooperation agreement with the

2019 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival The 2019 European Youth Olympic Winter Festival ( bs, Evropski zimski olimpijski festival mladih 2019) was held in Sarajevo & Istočno Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina from 10 to 15 February 2019. The event had initially been planned to be held ...

Format

The festival is organized in April and lasts for three days. Its format is 19 competitive and 7 non-competitive dance programmes that are held for the first two days of the festival and represent contemporary dance styles from four different continents. The third day, organized in cooperation with the

International Dance Organization The International Dance Organization (IDO) is an official, independent, politically neutral, non-profit, world dance and dance sport federation, registered in Slagelse, Denmark, for Performing Arts, Street Dance/Urban and Couple Dances. Members ...

, is reserved for programmes that fall under performing arts:

tap dance Tap dance is a form of dance characterized by using the sounds of tap shoes striking the floor as a form of percussion. Two major variations on tap dance exist: rhythm (jazz) tap and Broadway tap. Broadway tap focuses on dance; it is widely perfo ...

musical theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

contemporary ballet Contemporary ballet is a genre of dance that incorporates elements of classical ballet and modern dance. It employs classical ballet technique and in many cases classical pointe technique as well, but allows greater range of movement of the u ...

lyrical dance Lyrical dance is a dance style that embodies various aspects of ballet, jazz, acrobatics, and modern dance. The style combines ballet technique with the freedom and musicality of jazz and contemporary. According to Jennifer Fisher, lyrical dance is ...

and

concert dance Concert dance (also known as performance dance or theatre dance in the United Kingdom) is dance performed for an audience. It is frequently performed in a theatre setting, though this is not a requirement, and it is usually choreographed and p ...

. Numerous panels of international judges decide on the winner of each competitive programme.

References

{{Reflist

External links

Official website
Recurring events established in 2010 April events Tourist attractions in Sarajevo Annual events in Bosnia and Herzegovina Dance festivals Contemporary dance Festivals in Sarajevo