After evaluation by the advisory committee of the General Secretariat of Contemporary Culture of the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the institution of the International Kalamata Dance Cup (dance festival) – 5th Edition, is under the auspices & financing of the Ministry of Culture & Sports for the year 2023. The 5th Festival of Dance Competitions for the Kalamata International Dance Cup will be held on November 4 & 5, 2023 at the Municipal event space of Kalamata ‘Tenta’. The organizer, the Cultural Association of Kalamata Dance Challenge and the Organizing Committee of the 5th Kalamata Dance Cup are especially happy for another year that the Multi-Thematic International Dance Festival of Kalamata which is organized every year in the autumn period in the city of Kalamata attracting a wide audience of all ages has been officially recognized from the Greek and global community of dance & dancesport.

The ‘5th Kalamata Dance Cup’ was certainly not evaluated as a simple dance festival, but as an overall multi-thematic event that has multiple benefits for our country and our culture, as well as for Greece and its image abroad, as is an important partnership in solidarity.

The 5th Kalamata Dance Cup Festival is divided into 3 parts, dance performances (art – cultural part) and dance competitions (sports). At the same time, it is framed by several parallel multi-thematic activities for young and old, participants, attendants, citizens, spectators and visitors. In its entirety, it briefly includes:

1) Welcome event of foreign countries 2) Opening ceremony 3) Competition part (competition with noble rivals) 4) Cultural program of dance performances 5) Ceremony (Gala Evening) with music and dance tributes for our art-loving spectators, 6) Group dance seminars & Supervised Practice Night 7) Closing Ceremony 8) Talk Show – Children’s program 9) Tasting tables with characteristic Messinian products 10) Guided tours – mini escapes in the city but also in the wider area of Messinia, 11) photo exhibition from the material collected the previous year.

CULTURAL PART (ART)

The important part of the festival includes a series of group dance-drama performances by artists who use their body language to capture contemporary social issues, pose questions to the public, convey historical messages and for this year we strongly highlight the history and culture of the city of Kalamata and the wider region of Messinia. It includes many thematic sections (evening, musical tributes, competitive performances, dance performances of a social & historical nature, Gala opening ceremony, educational zone, interactive seminars. It is addressed to all artistic dance bodies in Greece and abroad, from all social groups and ages with an emphasis on to children and teenagers.It attracts over 1500 dance lovers to Messinia every year, offering cultural & touristic development in the Peloponnese Region, highlighting our modern Greek Culture through synergies with other nations.

Performances by amateur or professional artistic groups will best capture the thematic projects that were inspired, established and directed in detail by our Association’s Board and the Organizing Committee of the 5th KDC for the year 2023 after continuous consultation. This part of our festival will have specific invited artistic groups (mainly from our country), and is considered the most important part of our festival that includes several presentations & thematic sections. It will be shown again this year in all the media in the region by press release, in a radio spot, in interviews on local and regional channels, News Releases, Press Conferences, as well as live Streaming by our communication channels, etc.

The selected dance groups will unfold their talent on contemporary issues, raising concerns but also conveying optimistic timeless messages to the public, highlighting Kalamata as a city of Art and culture with a rich history. In a beautiful atmospheric environment, specially designed, with quality music, all dance lovers for the year 2023, from children to adults and seniors, as well as vulnerable groups of artists will offer rich spectacles to citizens and visitors, in an artistic audience looking for the variety and diversity of the renowned dance competitions – festivals abroad.

We hope the local community will embrace this institution and help in the effort to realize the festival. This high-quality artistic event in our city combines art, sports, education while at the same time offering warm hospitality in the beautiful seaside Messinian capital, rich in cultural activity, the “city of dance”!

With over 5,000 visitors over the four years and many participating countries, the Kalamata Dance Cup is the largest dance competition festival in the Peloponnese as well as a leading cultural event for the whole of Messinia. The festival is co-organized with the Municipality of Kalamata, supported by the Chamber of Messinia and this year it is held under the auspices of the Hellenic Tourism Organization.

For 2023, KDC raises the bar even further, presenting original ideas, contemporary social phenomena, international dance performances and many exclusivities (new challenges).

Thank you to the Ministry of Culture & Sports!

5th Kalamata Dance Cup
4 & 5 November 2023
Kalamata