DDF News — 20 Aug 2026
Dance In Autumn | What’s On Across Ireland in 2026
From Dublin to Limerick, Meath, Tipperary, Galway and Belfast, Ireland’s dance scene is busy this autumn.
As the evenings get shorter, the dance calendar gets fuller. From new works and festivals to touring performances, artist residencies and opportunities to experience dance outside the theatre, there’s plenty happening across the island this autumn.
We’ve pulled together some of the dance events and performances to look out for from September through to October.
DANCE IN SEPTEMBER
Meath Move Gathering: 5 September | Solstice Arts Centre, Navan, Co. Meath
Autumn kicks off with Meath Move Gathering, a day-long celebration of dance for all ages and abilities at Solstice Arts Centre in Navan. The programme includes workshops, family activities, outdoor performance and an evening double bill featuring Migration and The Shake.
A great one to watch if you’re interested in how dance can connect artists, communities and audiences outside the traditional theatre setting.
Dublin Fringe Festival: 5–20 September | Dublin
Dublin Fringe Festival returns across the city from 5–20 September. While the festival spans theatre, live art, music, performance and more, dance and physical performance are a big part of the programme, making Fringe one to browse if you’re looking for something experimental, new or hard to categorise.
There’s far too much to list here, so consider this your reminder to go explore the full Fringe programme.
Racket: 11 September | Dance Limerick
Dance Limerick opens its autumn season with Racket, a new ensemble work by Magdalena Hylak. Following her work-in-development presentation at Dublin Dance Festival earlier this year, Racket expands Hylak's ongoing exploration of the relationship between movement and sound into her first ensemble work.
The work features an international cast including Isabella Oberländer, Siobhán Ní Dhuinnín and Ashley Chen, alongside composer Lionel Kasparian and dramaturg Eva Martinez.
Bench #7: 18 September | Culture Night | Dublin
On Culture Night, Simone O’Toole and CoisCéim bring Bench #7 to Dublin. The free outdoor performance is part of a wider programme of dance and movement taking place across the city.
No booking needed, just turn up and watch.
Dublin Theatre Festival: 24 September–11 October | Dublin
Dublin Theatre Festival takes over venues across the city from late September into October. And while it’s a theatre festival, dance and movement are firmly part of the programme this year.
Look out in particular for Florentina Holzinger’s TANZ, as well as Philip Connaughton’s Rebellious Hope and other works that blur the boundaries between theatre, dance and performance.
Again, rather than trying to list everything, we recommend exploring the full festival programme, there’s plenty to discover.
DANCE IN OCTOBER
Tipperary Dance Festival: 7–16 October | Thurles, Co. Tipperary
One of Ireland’s longest-running dance festivals returns to Thurles in October. Tipperary Dance Festival brings together performances, artist development, workshops, conversations and international exchange, with its Pro-sessions running from 7–10 October.
An Immigrant’s Story: October | Touring Ireland
Wanjiru Kamuyu’s work continues its Irish tour with An Immigrant’s Story, travelling to Dance Limerick on 8 October, Tipperary Dance on 10 October, and Dance Cork Firkin Crane on 15–16 October.
The work explores migration, identity and belonging through dance and spoken word, making its journey across Ireland particularly fitting within the country’s regional dance network.
Baboró International Arts Festival for Children: 9–18 October | Galway
Over in Galway, Baboró returns this October with its annual international festival for children and families. While not exclusively a dance festival, its programme spans theatre, dance, puppetry, circus, visual art, literature and more.
Belfast International Arts Festival: 14 October–8 November | Belfast
This yea's Belfast International Arts Festival brings more than 200 events across theatre, dance, music, visual arts, literature and immersive work.
For dance fans, one highlight to look out for is Nōs by Luail – Ireland’s National Dance Company, which closes the festival’s Theatre & Dance strand with work by Akram Khan, Liz Roche and Oona Doherty.
Country OK: 17–18 October | Dance Limerick
Siobhán Ní Dhuinnín’s Country OK brings contemporary dance into conversation with the social dance traditions of country music, dance halls and community gatherings.
DANCE IN NOVEMBER
New Movements: September–December | DanceHouse, Dublin
If you want to see dance before it becomes a finished production, Dance Ireland’s New Movements series offers a chance to see work at its earliest stages.
The Autumn/Winter Residency artists share works-in-progress at DanceHouse throughout the season, with presentations by Aneta Dortová, LA Feeney, Annekatrin Kiesel, Subhashini Goda, Maryam Madani and Sarah Blanc between September and December. The events are free, with booking required.
Keep an eye on DDF’s Instagram for more
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