Annual international contemporary dance festival across London venues with live performances, talks and screenings, featuring works by Mamela Nyamza and Cie Omar Rajeh.
Dance Umbrella returns to London from 7 to 27 October, with performances spread across The Place, Sadler's Wells East, the Barbican, The Albany, CASA at Brixton House, Rich Mix, Cecil Sharp House and The Bhavan, plus a digital programme you can watch from home. It's the city's annual international dance festival, curated by Artistic Director and Co-CEO Freddie Opoku-Addaie, who describes dance as a meeting point for cultures, histories and communities across London. This year's edition brings together artists from South Africa, Brazil, Lebanon, Britain and the Netherlands.
The line-up is a wide one. Poliana Lima and Yinka Esi Graves bring A Place To Dance to The Place on 9 and 10 October, followed by Arno Schuitemaker's After After there on 21 October. Mamela Nyamza, who took home the 2026 Venice Biennale Silver Lion, performs THE HERD/LESS at Sadler's Wells East from 8 to 10 October. Lebanese choreographer Omar Rajeh brings Dance is Not for Us to the Barbican on 16 and 17 October, and his Spaces of Encounter to the Barbican Cinema on 18 October. Theatre-Rites and choreographer Miguel Altunaga take Eshu at the Crossroads to The Albany on 24 October, CASA at Brixton House on 25 October and The Place on 27 October. Other highlights include Touch the Floor, curated by Anthea Lewis, at Rich Mix on 24 October; not for glory at Cecil Sharp House on 13 and 14 October; and Artist Encounters: Anatomy of a Story at The Bhavan, with Akram Khan in conversation with Royal Ballet director Kevin O'Hare, English National Ballet principal Erina Takahashi and first soloist James Streeter. You'll also find The Odor of Elephants After the Rain by Cie Omar Rajeh & Maqamat, Miguel Ángel Rosales' Gurumbé: Afro-Andalusian Memories, and Victoria Marks and Margaret Williams with Candoco Dance Company in Outside In.
Every week we pick 🏆 the 5 best 🏆 things to do in London and send them to your inbox. Just one weekly email, no spam.
By submitting your email, you accept our Privacy Policy
Omar Rajeh's work was created in Beirut after the 2020 port explosion and commissioned by the Edinburgh International Festival. Alongside the live shows, there's a Digital Pass of dance films available until 30 November 2026. A limited number of £10 tickets are available for every show, supported by ARC Ratings, and the Digital Pass is £15 standard or £7 concession.
Date
16 October – 27 October
Location
The Place, Sadler's Wells, the Barbican
Price
Paid
Recommended Age
+14 years
