Biennale College Danza 2026

In his sixth year as Director of Biennale Danza, Wayne McGregor will be leading the Biennale College – Dance. This unique training programme is designed to equip 16 young dancers with new skills, knowledge and abilities in their chosen career path; nurtured by inspiring world-class teachers, coaches, choreographers and industry professionals. Through high quality technical, creative, improvisatory, performance and audience experiences the 2026 cohort will immerse themselves in an intensive three-month programme that will include:

In an introductory residency, McGregor and his team will concentrate on exploring evolved Physical Thinking through choreographic, performance and AI practices. This intensive program will enhance the group’s collaborative skills in preparation for creating work together, while also sharing techniques for generating dance material and composition.

In two new major commissions exclusively created for Biennale College, aligning with its aim to collaborate with the world's leading living dance artists, the 2026 cohort of dancers will work directly with two of the most influential dance innovators of the 20th and 21st centuries: Molissa Fenley and Maxine Doyle.

Molissa Fenley, an iconic figure in postmodern dance, founded Molissa Fenley and Company in 1977 and has since produced over 85 dance works throughout her acclaimed career. Maxine Doyle, director-choreographer for Punchdrunk, co-directed the multi-award-winning phenomenon Sleep No More (London, Boston, New York, Shanghai) and The Drowned Man. Both unique and boundary-pushing choreographers will be in residence in Venice, developing new work for the College.

In a special site-specific event (to be announced), Biennale College 2026 will also participate in a research and development performance laboratory led by McGregor, designed to share the process of creation and technological collaboration in a new form.    

Alongside this bespoke learning and study programme, there will be a specific pathway for 2 early career choreographers (aged 18 to less than 30).

With curated mentorship from McGregor, the selected choreographers will have the opportunity to explore and question their own dance practice, with a view to reaching further into their creative self. Encouraging a critical self-reflection and a broadening of artistic possibility the programme affords intensive time and space for choreographic/conceptual development through the practical making and sharing of new site-specific work for and with Biennale College dancers. As a career forward pathway, the initiative is designed to support and champion a new generation of choreographers through hands on experience and motivating challenge.

Vitally this will also include a focus on the ‘business of choreography’ from IP to contracts, getting commissions to working with collaborators - arming artists with the foundational livelihood skills to compose and execute their real-world working portfolio. Interfacing with the dancer pathway outlined above, including daily class, masterclasses, choreographer observer-ships, festival performances/talks and mini-residencies will be woven into each choreographer’s plan.

The project will take place from May 13^th to August 1^st 2026.

Selection
The selection is open to participants from all over the world. We are looking for early career  choreographers (+18 years) who have presented at least two original creations in public and who have a committed interest in developing their choreographic practice through participation in the programme.
Participants must not have reached the age of 30 by the application deadline.

Shortlisted applicants will be invited to an online interview.

The selection will be made at the complete discretion of the Director of the Dance Department of La Biennale di Venezia, Wayne McGregor.

Attendance for the whole programme is mandatory for participation in the project.
La Biennale di Venezia will organize and pay the following:

· Travel to/from Venice
· Accommodation in Venice (shared apartments)
· Working day lunches

for the selected choreographers

Each participant will receive € 2,000 gross for the conception of the new piece.

La Biennale di Venezia will cover production expenses for the new site-specific piece, to be presented in the frame of Biennale Danza 2026, for a maximum amount of € 10,000 each for the following:
· costume design and/or rental costs, technical set-up costs, and any other expenses necessary for the realisation of the project.

There are no fees for application.
Selected choreographers (only) will be required to pay a registration fee in the amount of €80.00 (VAT included, non-refundable) to be paid exclusively by credit card following the announcement of their acceptance, and no later than the date that will be specified in due time.

Please note applicants may ONLY apply for either the dancer project OR the choreographer project.
Applications for both projects will not be accepted.

Applicants must register filling the online form and submit the following material by the deadline of January 26^th 2026:

1. Recent CV in English (the video links indicated below must also be included in the CV)
2. Recent photo
3. Link to video of motivation in english (up to five minutes) expressing an interest in making site responsive work
4. Link to video of at least one recent choreographic work (showing whole work)

Registration form

In the case of co-creation/artistic duo, each applicant must fill out the application form with his/her personal details, but the same video of motivation in English.
Incomplete applications will be automatically excluded.

La Biennale di Venezia reserves the right in any case to modify, cancel or interrupt the initiative described above, in that the announcement or the selection do not constitute a binding contract for the same, nor do they entail the right to the reimbursement of any expense other than those specified above.
The integral acceptance of the conditions of the Biennale College Dance Call makes the application eligible.

INFO:
college-danza@labiennale.org