Article - MOVE 2025 - World Dance Day Online Festival

MOVE 2025 - World Dance Day Online Festival
- Michelle Jueney
e-mail: move.iwdd@gmail.com

May 7, 2025

Recap: International Dance Day was founded in 1982 by the International Theatre Institute (ITI) to celebrate the birth anniversary of the creator of Modern Ballet, dancer Jean-Georges Noverre (1727-1810) on the 29th April every year.

MOVE World Dance Day Online Festival

Every year a message from an outstanding choreographer or dancer is circulated throughout the world on their website and a selected individual or a few dancers or groups are invited to perform in a private, exclusive event on Dance Day. The headquarters of the dance committee is now based in Shanghai, China.

The International Dance Council (CID), an umbrella organization within UNESCO is also active in the support of dance and promotes World Dance Day through its president Alkis Raftis who delivers a message himself every year. World Dance Day is encouraged to be celebrated by everyone. They are also the people that made the impossible for me to visit the Vaganova Ballet School in Saint Petersburg, Russia when I was there to give workshops at the Boris Eifman Dance Company and performances in another hall during the 36th World Dance Congress held at Saint Petersburg and they were also the ones that introduced me to Isadora Duncan dancers of direct lineage which created and contributed the extensive video and full dance repertoire of Isadora Duncan. You can watch this anytime in the link above.

Many Dance Day celebrations are celebrated individually, closed door, within groups, schools, states, communities, countries, specific dance genres and mostly retained within one's own circles.

MOVE World Dance Day Festival, albeit online, is the brainchild of a small Malaysian dancer who was nominated to become a member of International Dance Council (CID) back in 2013, and is the only Dance Day celebration that seeks and has created a Legacy Archive 'League of Legends' and is open to all professional, top and emerging dancers, choreographers and directors in the world and through this online festival that finally took realization during the pandemic what I couldn't do physically in my country, this festival has opened the doors to everyone and opened doors to creative explorations in film and extended creative fields that make up the dance world, connecting almost every creative industry making this discovery and learning experience one of the most exciting journeys of a creative life.

The theme and message of MOVE World Dance Day Online Festival has always been the same. The festival is not only to celebrate Dance Day but to emphasize the importance of the Arts and our voices regardless of boundary, ability, age, school or discipline. With a shared passion and spirit, unspoken understanding of a vision and wider message and meaning of this unfunded festival, all the participants have united to share for this meaningful cause.

This year has been special as all years but to hear more thoughts and opinions of senior dancers on the 3 questions asked, for me was like a light bulb to wake up the mind, refreshing, so correct and sometimes we are so deep in dance that we forget the simple fundamentals. To listen and converse is what invigorates the mind and spirit. I hope more will share their wisdom on this platform, which I endeavour.

To kick off this year 2025, it was a dream and a privilege to not only have a world legend in dance, Syed Pasha Sallauddin, the 1st dancer to establish the largest dance company and of also a majority of dancers of different abilities and college in the world of dancers with different abilities, to invent and modify the wheelchair for dance and a National Awardee by the President of India in 2007 by Pratibha Patil, but to have recorded an in person interview via Zoom was for me priceless. Do note that I addressed Mr. Syed Pasha Sallauddin as Padma Shri in the video and interview because I thought he was but he corrected me and unfortunately I cannot edit the video anymore. I met Syed Pasha Sallauddin almost 15 years ago after my solo and group performances at International Odissi Festival, Odisha India with Sutra Dance Theatre under the Artistic Director Ramli Ibrahim.

Syed Sallaudin Pasha

Lee Lee Lan is Malaysia's 1st Lady of Ballet and this was a live filmed interview and short documentary of a newly filmed video with her son, Larry Lee, the Principal of Federal Academy of Ballet who has been supportive and gracious, honest and kind and a dream to have done this film shoot for this platform including an archival video of Lee Lee Lan that was previously played at my dance production 'She Moves Me', an all-women's dance production in 2016 where Lee Lee Lan attended herself in person in honour of the Legacy homage. I finished my Classical Ballet training from The Federal Academy of Ballet where I did my Imperial Society of Teachers of Dancing (ISTD) & Royal Academy of Dance (RAD) certifications where I was awarded the Honours Award for Intermediate Ballet at that time.

Lee Lee Lan, Malaysia's First Ballet Lady

When Ballet Nights hosted an intimate event at The British International School, Malaysia, legend of The Royal Ballet, Mara Galeazzi came down to perform 'Safe from Sleep' and during the talk after, Maria Sacha Khan, Ballet Nights’ Director of Artistic Development in South East Asia announced the choreographer was Marco Pelle. Curious, I searched for Marco Pelle naturally and wrote to him immediately after watching the same dance on his Instagram post and he responded. Marco Pelle is one of the choreographers for Ryan Murphy's 2 time Golden Globe series ' Pose'. A resident choreographer for New York Theatre Ballet and project based choreographer for the historical legendary Ballet company Theatro alla Scala. Marco Pelle shares his thoughts with us as well on a self-recorded video. This year just kept getting better.

'Safe from Sleep' by Marco Pelle

The first participant to literally give me everything was legendary historical folk dance institution National Folk Dance Ensemble of Croatia (LADO). They first gave me the comprehensive list of heritage folk dances of Croatia in a beautifully, professionally filmed video and then the descriptions, history of each music and dance heritage and the rest I searched and they checked. They were so easy to communicate with and this video is the second of its kind on the platform to record comprehensive repertoires.

LADO The National Folklore Ensemble of Croatia

Jordan James Bridge is one of the kindest, softest souls and that includes his unbelievably flexible body and strong technique who was previously with renowned dancer and choreographer Wayne McGregor and his dance company that has gone on to win awards and establish his own work and his latest performance is with the support of Wayne McGregor to celebrate International Dance Day in London to premiere his new work. This beautifully, artistically high end film was directed by Rick Guest and the high calibre dancers and artistic choreography is not to be missed.

Séance, The Holding On & The Letting Go by Jordan James Bridge

Herve Koubi and his partner again were of the gentlest souls. This festival gravitates and attracts kindred spirits all over the world. No words to express the beauty of it all. By this time, the gratitude was flowing. Herve Koubi was also one of the first few to join immediately. His dance company has elevated hip hop with contemporary dance to theatre experience and is touring. We hope they make it full round the globe. It’s fresh, highly skilled and succeeds in presenting hip hop in a theatre world of prestige.

A short film documentary of 'Sol Invictus' by Hervé Koubi

To jazz it up and switch moods, the videos from STEPS on Broadway, New York were so addictive and feverish by their resident choreographers and teachers of Fosse and Chicago memories, it's hard to come by some of the old style classics and John Leggio dances and teaches it. This is the shortest glimpse but absolutely hits home run and replayed millions of times.

Classic Jazz presented by John Leggio (Broadway)

I met Spring in London when she encouraged me to hold a dance workshop which she and her dancer friend from Laban attended my Odissi Indian Classical Dance Intensive at Danceworks where when I arrived, Barbara Kane, the senior Isadora Duncan dancer had organized a dance workshop at her dance group last Summer and I got to meet her live in person! Spring Xiao is a Master’s Degree graduate in Choreography from Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, London and currently focuses her creations on social anxiety. We chose to show this piece because of the message and the creativity of the jacket using Chinese and Contemporary Dance. Watch till the end where Spring just breaks free and I love the fact for this idea, we don't care about perfectly pointed toes etc. That's the whole idea though Spring is a very highly skilled dancer in not only Chinese Classical Dance, but Locking, Hip Hop, Breaking and Contemporary Dance.

Spring Xiao Cong Fang presents 'Time for Spring'

Kathryn Chew is a Malaysian choreographer, dancer and one of the teachers at Federal Academy of Ballet as well as a Chinese Contemporary dancer. Her dance film was directed by me and filmed by her school mate, a wonderful videographer. I just knew how to film it when I watched the piece at the year end concert and the dancers and Kathryn were all in to do this. It was incredible really. It was filmed at Fonteyn Theatre at Federal Academy of Ballet with the support of Larry Lee who came back at night to close up after we had wrapped up.

Kathryn Chew presents 'Adrift' (Contemporary Dance)

I met Wang Jiang Gang on Facebook without us both realizing we've been connected for a while and I attempted last year but he was too busy only to realize who he was and his lineage. Fate, destiny, luck. Wang Jiang Gang's teacher is the creator of Kun Dance. Yeah, KunQu Opera is hundreds of years old but Kun Dance itself presented without the singing and usual Opera presentations is by his Master JiaQin Ma, formerly the Dean of Dance College of Nanjing University of the Arts. Unfortunately, Madam Ma was too busy and the Legacy video could not be made from my million curious questions. Wang Jiang Gang is based in both Korea & China. His piece is a newly choreographed work not old traditional dance pieces. We will need Madam Ma for that.

'Brush & Ink' by Wang Jiang Gang

Lastly, though not the last to submit, as the grand spot and finale went to Mr. Syed Pasha Sallauddin that made it in his busy touring schedule though I asked last year and I thanked the million stars up above when we spoke on the phone and scheduled the date. Mateusz Adamczyk is from Poland and I wanted to show his extensive work and film as he delved with the current issue of AI. He designed his costume, his mom made it, he directed and choreographed everything and his work is part of a bigger creation he is working on. Mateusz Adamczyk is also an IT engineer and works in pedagogy. The project was developed as part of a creative scholarship from the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.

'MoveGenius_UX' by Mateusz Adamczyk

Oh, I forgot myself. I will be performing in an experimental way of filming which I've always wanted to film dance, where the camera follows you which I personally like, one of the oldest classics of Guru Deba Prasad Das, Lakyia Sindura which is another gem we all learned at Sutra Dance Theatre. When Master Ramli signed his book I got 'The Heart of Sutra', he wrote, 'I hope Odissi will reveal to you a whole new world' and I can attest it has, the wonders of India no one will ever experience or know about but I think it is through dance and only dance and the travels it has brought me that I have discovered, experienced the world like no other because only dance can bring you around the World in full technicolour and adventure and learnings beyond your imagination and reveal it does, the varied nature of all the wonderful people but oh my the glorious, memories of the World through DANCE!

'Lakyia Sindura Mangala Caranam' by Michelle Jueney

The joy and gratitude is overflowing. The tiredness is not from the festival but from coping with daily life. Donations, financial contributions, patronage, please direct them directly to the creators. I am using my own teaching money to fund my own filming and to run this festival and the struggle is real. Lastly, please watch, Like, Share & Subscribe. We have made it to 5 years where dancers from all over the world join hands to do this. It's hard to believe the evolution of this project, the Legacy archive has launched and this project has been the greatest discovery and learnings in every possible way.

I thank all of you, every single one of you for your support. No words to express.

Michelle Jueney is an award-winning dancer and an arts practitioner for 40 years and counting and has made it her life. She is an artistic director, dancer, choreographer, curator, educator, designer and writer. Michelle endeavours to promote the Arts and will forever be in the blissful state of dance.

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