2026 Australian Dance Week: Calendar
Ausdance ACT’s Australian Dance Week opens on International Dance Day and has grown into the biggest offering in Australia!
Our calendar is chockers with over 20 invitations to dance all over the ACT and region. Young, old, mixed ability, professional, pre-professional and anyone who loves to dance or has always wanted to try.
There are workshops and classes along with performances for those who like to watch and dance on the inside. Ballet, contemporary, folk, hip-hop, dance fit, inclusive dance, dance for wellbeing, improvised dance....
​
Let's DANCE, Canberra!
​​
Dance with Victorian State Ballet!
Ausdance ACT is delighted to host two Masterclasses with Victorian State Ballet's Michael Scott-Kahans and Grace Kefford during the Canberra Theatre Centre season of ALADDIN.
​
The workshops (junior and senior) will consist of classical ballet barre and centre work. There will be a short Q&A session and photo opportunities at the end of the workshops.
​
Friday 24th April - on stage of The Playhouse, Canberra Theatre Centre
​
Bursary assistance available, apply here​​
​
JUNIOR SOLD OUT, PLACES AVAILABLE IN SENIOR MASTERCLASS
DJILBA, A Moment in Time: Australian Dance Week
‘Djilba: A Moment in Time’ is a solo performance by dancer–choreographer Floeur Alder with sculptor–writer Virginia Ward. Created on Menang Noongar Country in south-west Western Australia, the work celebrates Djilba, the Noongar season of transition, emergence and growth.
​
“Floeur has family dancing roots deep in the ACT and magical Mirramu on the bank of Lake George, is the perfect setting for Djilba’s dance in nature aesthetic” — Dr Cathy Adamek, Ausdance ACT (2026)
​
Presented by Ausdance ACT for Australian Dance Week with the support of Mirramu Creative Arts Centre and Australian Dance Party. Produced by Kiri Morcombe.
​
Saturday 2nd May, 3pm Mirramu Arts Centre, Bungendore
Floeur Alder Floorebarre & Contemporary Workshop: Australian Dance Week
Expand your movement horizons this Australian Dance Week. Enjoy a warm and welcoming class where you’ll explore new ways of moving and develop flexibility at your own pace.
​
The session features the rare Floorebarre technique — a floor-based blend of yoga and classical ballet that builds strength, flexibility, and rotation. With an international lineage, Floorebarre is taught exclusively in Australia by Floeur, one of only a handful of practitioners worldwide.
Followed by an accessible contemporary technique class and creative elements drawn from Djilba.
​
Open to participants aged ten years and over with some dance or yoga experience, this workshop supports injury recovery and enhances everyday mobility.
​
Sunday 3rd May 10.30am Gorman Arts Centre
POINTE Dancing on a Knife's Edge: Australian Dance Week
Dancer Floeur Lucette Alder, daughter of ballet luminaries Lucette Aldous and Alan Alder survives a brutal attack. While physical wounds heal, trauma stirs turbulent past memories, sparking a deeply personal quest to find her place in the dance world.
​
Critics describe the 2025 documentary as a "poetic and unflinching portrait" of dancer Floeur Alder's resilience Dance Australia labeled it a "landmark moment" with "striking visual beauty," while FilmInk praised its depiction of dance as "both vulnerability and armour".
​
Q&A following the screening with Floeur Alder moderated by Dr Cathy Adamek joined by a panel of experts from the ACT. The session will both provide insight into the film as well as explore the power of dance and healing.
​
A documentary by Dawn Jackson, presented by Ausdance ACT for 2026 Australian Dance Week in collaboration with the National Film and Sound Archive.
​
Sunday 3rd May 2pm Arc Cinema, NFSA
Ausdance ACT Networking Morning Tea: Australian Dance Week
Inclusion is easier than you think - don't turn away students, thinking you need specialist training or a separate class. ACT’s popular networking morning tea returns for Australian Dance Week, featuring special guest speaker Shannon Kolak, Chief Executive Officer of ACT Down Syndrome & Intellectual Disability.
​
Inclusion can look different from one studio to another—there is no single “right” way to welcome dancers with disability. Shannon will explore what inclusion in dance means, giving practical advice to studios and teachers.
​
Dance studios, teachers, independent artists, administrators, Ausdance members—everyone is invited to join this open discussion.
​
Wednesday 6th May, 10.30am Gorman Arts Centre
This event is free to attend though RSVPs are essential for catering purposes to act@ausdance.org.au