Beirut vibrates to uncertain rhythms, oscillating between tragedies and hopeful beginnings. These vibrations run through our streets, crack our walls, strengthen our souls, and affect our bodies. At every vibration, we respond: inhale, exhale, move, and dance. 

Beirut Choreography Encounters is a contemporary dance festival that invites you to move with the rhythms of Beirut, filling the city with art and movement. A diverse group of artists will create lasting vibrations by sharing their work and performances throughout the city’s streets.

Across three days — 31 October, 1 and 2 November 2025 — artists from Lebanon, Syria, Greece, Spain, Japan, and the USA will share performances, conduct workshops, and participate in panel discussions. 

Sunday 2 November 2025 

11:00 AM Open Discussion Sobhiye

We invite you to an open conversation in the form of a friendly morning gathering — a family-style breakfast where artists and cultural practitioners come together to share ideas and experiences, and to reflect on the continuity of artistic creation today.
How can we sustain our creative energy amid political, social, and economic challenges? Can contemporary art and performance still spark transformation and invite collective reflection?

Workshops 

12:30 PM - 1:45 PM, Meaning in Times of Massive Data, with Jimmy Bechara

This workshop explores the process of human perception and how we construct meaning of
ourselves and the world around us. Participants will use perception as a creative tool to foster
connection, communication, and collaboration across different scales and groupings. The
session emphasizes embodied awareness, experiential learning, and collective reflection.

2:00PM - 3:00 PM, Dabke Fusion, with Bassam Abou Diab.  

A contemporary dance workshop inspired by the vibrant folk dance of the Levant region,
specifically focusing on the Lebanese dabke from the Bekaa plains.
It explores the concepts of weight and lightness in movement, emphasizing strength, softness, angles, and curves through elements like jumping, bouncing, and shaking

3:00 PM - 4:00 PM, The Rhythm Lab, with Andy Khouloussy 

A hands-on workshop where dancers will learn rhythm fundamentals and embody them through movement. Through practical exercises and interactive, collaborative experiments, participants will:

- Develop a solid understanding of basic rhythm theory
- Apply core rhythmic patterns and timing
- Explore movement–sound connection
- Integrate rhythm in body and group exercises

A structured, engaging experience to feel, understand, and express rhythm confidently, while sensing how rhythm flows through life.

📞 For registration: WhatsApp or call +961 3 554 498.

Performances and Work-in-Progress

7:00PM 

360°, by Manatsu Tanaka. 

360° arises from the attempt to use the dance to take body intuition to the extreme,
a characteristic feature of all traditional dances. Due to my Colombian roots, I have
decided to put the focus on the folk dances of that country, deciding for the first
time to bring my contemporary perspective closer to a more personal investigation.

Coordinates of Belonging, by Dina Hamida. 

Coordinates of Belonging is a dance performance choreographed and performed by Dina Hamida, a Syrian dancer living in the diaspora. The work maps personal history and explores where belonging can exist even when land, home, and language have been fractured. Rather than following a linear narrative, it weaves overlapping stories and gestures into a living map: dances for places that no longer exist, for people who can no longer return, and for movements that carry cultural memory.

💃 Closing Celebration – Dabke & Live Music
End the night with dance, rhythm, and joy! Everyone is invited to join the Dabke and celebrate with live music.

 🎟️Tickets All performances are free and open to everyone.

💖 Donations: We deeply appreciate your support through our sliding scale system: $10–$100