Reflections by Xiaoxuan Zhong Participating in the first-ever Ceilidh Plus was a vibrant and enriching experience that included traditional Scottish Ceilidh dancing, Chinese square dancing and American line dancing. From the moment I stepped onto the dance floor, I felt an energetic and enthusiastic atmosphere. The lively Ceilidh music set the tone for the event, … Continued

Review by Vassia Bouchagiar – Walker There is a sense of intrigued expectation as we wait for the performance of Futuristic Folktales to start. To everyone’s surprise director Charlotte Mclean, along with her two performers Orrow Bell and Seke Chimutengwende, take to the stage in full bright white light in order to introduce themselves and … Continued

How do we encourage collaboration and exchange across all traditional dance forms practised in Scotland? The short answer is that we, at Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland, offer support through three major routes – festivals, productions and residencies. Let’s zoom in on the range of residencies as one of these support routes we initiate, champion … Continued

The Primary Ingredient of Trad Dance the World Over is the abridged version of an article by Dr Wendy Timmons, Convenor of Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland and Senior Lecturer at University of Edinburgh, originally published in Volkstanz Magazine – the major publication of the Folk Dance Society of Germany (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Volkstanz). Collectively, … Continued

Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland is delighted to shine a spotlight on the achievements of women in traditional dance as part of the 10th anniversary of Harpies, Fechters and Quines Festival running 3–9 June 2023 at Edinburgh Central Library. * We curated two unique events as part of the festival programme, entitled Feisty Trad Dance … Continued

What would happen if there was only one leaf left on our planet? What would be the fate of the last remaining leaf? How fragile is our life compared to the power of nature? These are just some of the questions at the heart of Yuxi Jiang’s new choreography entitled The Last Leaf on Earth. … Continued

  Having sown the seeds and sequins of Pomegranates 2023 festival this spring – our second annual festival of international traditional dance, we are excited to share some of the facts and figures with you. We welcomed 74 artists to our stages, screens and dance floors – all from 30 diverse backgrounds, including Ukraine and … Continued

Review by Wangxiu Cheng Did you know that Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland commissions and publishes reviews of trad dance events across Scotland and beyond? Following Meditarraneo, Cosmic Dance and Auld Lang Syne, this is the fourth review by our student-in-residence Wangxiu Cheng – an award-winning graduate of the prestigious Beijing Dance Academy. Wangxiu is … Continued

As our culture continues to diversify, so do the definitions of traditional dance, hip hop and Scottishness, especially in times of uncertainty, displacement and migration. It was at Pomegranates 2022 – the inaugural international trad dance festival initiated and curated by Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland – that we embarked on the mission of exploring … Continued

We are pleased to introduce Gabriel Schmitz – one of the newly commissioned artists-in-residence at our Pomegranates 2023 festival. Born in 1970 in Dortmund, Schmitz is a visual artist who after graduating from Edinburgh College of Art, settled in Barcelona where he has lived and worked since the mid 1990s. In response to our curatorial … Continued