International Dance Day 2027 is on Thursday

About International Dance Day

International Dance Day asks people to notice how central dance is to cultures everywhere, and to get moving themselves. Dance schools, companies and community groups use it for open classes, free performances and workshops, and many invite people who have never danced before. The organizers describe its purpose as celebrating dance as a shared language that crosses political, cultural and ethnic lines and brings people together.

The day was founded in 1982 by the Dance Committee of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), a performing arts organization set up in 1948 on the initiative of UNESCO's first Director-General, Julian Huxley, and the writer J.B. Priestley. The date is the birthday of Jean-Georges Noverre, the French dancer and ballet master born on April 29, 1727, whom ITI credits as the creator of modern ballet. His Letters on Dancing and Ballets argued that ballet should tell a story through expressive movement rather than serve as decoration.

Each year ITI's Executive Council, working with its Dance Committee and the World Dance Alliance, invites a well-known choreographer or dancer to write an International Dance Day message, which is translated and shared worldwide. The first message was published in 1982, and the Canadian choreographer Crystal Pite wrote the message for 2026. ITI, which has around 80 national centers, also organizes World Theatre Day in March.

Sources: International Theatre Institute: International Dance Day, International Theatre Institute: About ITI. How we check dates.

How to mark International Dance Day

• Take a beginner class in a style you have never tried, such as tango, hip-hop, flamenco or ballet.
• See a live performance by a local dance company, school or student group.
• Read this year's International Dance Day message from ITI and discuss it with a class or dance group.
• Learn a traditional dance from your family's heritage and teach the steps to someone else.
• Put on a few favorite songs at home and dance through them, alone or with your household.

International Dance Day dates