Autonomy to Dance

Nomad Dance Institute (NDI) was launched as a research programme of the Balkan dance network Nomad Dance Academy (NDA) by 28 participants at the founding meeting that took place between 23 and 27 September 2013 at the Museum of Contemporary Art Metelkova in Ljubljana. After coordinating the contemporary dance education programme, NDA, which was organized from 2008 to 2010 in Bulgaria and the countries of the former SFR Yugoslavia, we, the NDA members realised we needed some time to think about how to go about developing the network and its activities further. In February 2011, the working group with a mission, consisting of Aleksandra Janeva Imfeld, Dejan Srhoj, Dejan Damjanovski and Rok Vevar, met in Zagreb and after a series of discussions and debates concluded that the Institute’s programme should be focusing on production of knowledges in all its potential formats (from performance creation to theoretical reflection), which could be later on developed through different presentational and existing educational formats of NDA partners across the region. Up until 2013, there were several more meetings of the expanded group aimed at reflecting and preparing the inaugural meeting of the NDI in Ljubljana