Dance
DANCING TO CONNECT –
BRIDGE FOR THE FUTURE
was a creative dance project with students and teaching faculty from France and Germany that commemorates the 80th year anniversary of the end of the Second World War and the solidarity between the two warring lands of the time.
The Blue House, a living museum, as well as a memory and educational site for the history of the Jews of the Upper Rhine region, invited the internationally renowned dance group Battery Dance from New York to lead teaching staff and students in workshops where history became an embodied experience. The workshops took place around the 80th anniversary of the surrender of Nazi Germany and the liberation of the occupied and annexed regions.
Battery Dance’s worldwide recognized “Dancing to Connect“ (DtC) methods offered the young participants an opportunity to tap into their creative abilities and to reflect together on the complex shared history of Baden and Alsace, as well as the significance of this history today. These methods allowed the young participants to grapple with historical experiences beyond words and history books.
On the 17th and 18th of May 2025, the choreography that emerged was presented alongside a performance with the professional dancers from Battery Dance on the Art’Rhena stage. The Franco-German cultural center lies on an island on the Rhine between France and Germany and offered a special location for the public performance.
A joyful procession over the Franco-German bridge took place in connection with the performance on the 18th of May. The high point was the celebratory celebratory dedication of the Bridge after the murdered Alsatian resistance fighter, Julius (Jules) Leber. The ceremony was led by countless officials from France and Germany.
The project brought young people from Germany and France together and showed presented how dance can act as a shared language and foster memory, movement, and understanding across borders.
Dance Workshops
Young people from age 14 up from different schools participated on the workshops. Dance experience was not required. The workshops were led in English in the schools.
Participating Schools
GERMANY
Breisach
Julius-Leber-School
Hugo-Höfler-Middle School
Martin-Schongauer-High School
Freiburg
Walter-Eucken-High School und Business School I
FRANCE
Fessenheim
Collège Félix Eboué
Project Outline
Dance workshops: 12th-16th May 2025, in the schools (4/5 hours per day)
Rehearsal and Group Meeting (German and French participants): 17th May 2025
Performance in Art’Rhena:
17th May 2025, 7 pm
18th May 2025, 2 pm
In connection with the 4 pm joyful procession Open Air over the Breisach bridge with dedication cermony of the Julius Leber Bridge
Teacher Training
The Battery Dance Company offered teaching faculty and educators an introduction to the method “Dancing to Connect” (DtC), that they transfered to young people during the dance workshops in May 2025. Since its beginnings in Breisach and Freiburg in 2006, the worldwide recognized DtC methods have been adapted to more than 60 countries. The educational dance concept promotes inclusion, self confidence, team work, and critical thinking.
The educational training created a basis for the DtC concept to be individually implemented and further developed by schools and educational institutions across the region.
Introduction: 5 October 2024,
10 am – 2:30 pm
Continuation: 10 and 11 May 2025,
10 am – 3:30 pm
At the Franco-German Cultural Centre, Art’Rhena
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