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Speaking Dance

@speakingdance_

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Nigeria’s first dance podcast + leading conference. Centering the knowledge, people & stories shaping dance.
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5th Conference | 29–31 October 2026

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

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3 years ago

On December 14th, 2023, all roads led to Ghana for @alkebulan_cypher. A week-long event that brought together dance enthusiasts, dance makers, poets, and community organizers from all corners of the globe.

During this event, we hosted the 2nd edition of the Speaking Dance panel discussion in collaboration with @steeze_afrika, highlighting some of the most notable figures in the African dance industry from both the continent and the diaspora.

The panel commenced with a captivating performance by @thedavidodiase, setting the stage for an insightful conversation featuring @Kayso, @eddielove_, @selasidogbatse, and @obiajuluozegbe, moderated by @phaith.ot.

The panel-themed “Harmony in Motion: collaboration across Borders”, explored the reimagined influence of African street dance on a global scale, personal experience, and strategies to foster inclusivity, and built bridges to enhance the African dance community.

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Speaking dance is curated by @phaith.ot and presented by @livewithbeghast, an initiative of @beghastfoundation.
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📹 Production company: @beghaststudio
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#livewithbeghast #speakingdance #panel #discussion #Ghana #nigeria #beghastfoundation taken in Ghana Accra by @speakingdance_

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3 years ago

The heart of Speaking Dance has always been simple: bring dancers, culture workers, Entrepreneurs, institutions, and policymakers into the same room, and let the real conversations happen.

This feedback from our guests and panelists says everything.
The need for policy, rights, structure, and sustainability in the dance industry is real, and this year’s theme, Rhythm, Rights, Revenue, hit that point clearly. This is how we strengthen the dance ecosystem in Nigeria and across Africa.

Thank you to everyone who showed up with honesty and curiosity.
We’re building something bigger than an event. We’re building a movement.

🎥 @film_bycidd @ways_of_alli

#speakingdance2025 #rhythmrightsrevenue #beghastfoundation #dance #abuja #nigeria taken in Abuja, Nigeria by @speakingdance_

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a year ago

INTERGENERATIONAL EXCHANGE: THEN, NOW & NEXT

What can one generation of dancers teach another? And what happens to dance knowledge when the connection between generations is broken?

Every generation inherits something from those who came before: techniques, histories, ways of teaching, creative approaches and understandings of dance. But each generation also questions, adapts, and creates something new. This conversation brings different generations of dance practitioners together to reflect on what has been passed down, what has changed, what is at risk of being lost, and what the next generation needs to carry forward.

How do we create stronger connections between the people who hold dance histories and those shaping its future? How can experience, memory and new ideas meet without one generation being overlooked?

At Speaking Dance 2026, we make room for these exchanges because the future of dance depends not only on what we create today, but also on what we learn from one another.

Click the link in the Bio @speakingdance_ to RSVP; it is free and compulsory.

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE.
📆:30th October 2026 | 9am - 5pm
📍: John Randle Center for Yoruba culture and history, Onikan Ikoyi, Lagos

Speaking Dance is a @beghastfoundation pan-African platform under the Cultural Preservation & Research Program (C.P.R.P), focused on strengthening the intellectual and structural foundation necessary for dance to thrive through critical discourse on dance practices across Africa.

#SpeakingDance2026 #TheDanceMustNotDie #IntergenerationalExchange #DanceKnowledge

#panelist

KING DAVINCI
Professional Dancer | Choreographer | Dance Teacher | Movement Artist

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY:

King Davinci, whose real name is Udoh David Anietie, is a Nigerian professional dancer, choreographer, dance teacher, and movement artist known for his expressive freestyle and signature Afrofusion style. His versatility spans Hip-Hop, Krump, Contemporary, Locking, traditional African dance, and other movement forms.

A Red Bull Dance Your Style Nigeria 2022 Champion, he represented Nigeria at the World Finals in 2022 and 2023. His achievements include wins at Nike Own the Floor Nigeria (2 taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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3 hours ago

We are honored to have Dr Funmi Adewole Elliot as the keynote speaker of the Speaking Dance Conference 2026 The Dance Must Not Die.

Dr Funmi Adewole Elliott is a performer, researcher, and dramaturge. A pioneer in developing the professional context for Dance of the African Diaspora in the UK, Funmi has a longstanding track record as an advocate of dance as a profession. She taught for eight years in Higher education before returning to the arts industry. Presently, she is an associate of the National Centre for Academic and Cultural Exchange and co-leads the organisation’s Independent Researchers Network and is an Honorary Fellow of the Centre for Dance Research at Coventry University. Funmi Adewole Elliott has a BA in Modern European Languages from the University of Ibadan, and a Master’s degree in Postcolonial Studies and a PhD in Dance Studies from institutions in England. She also holds a Professional Certificate in Education. Her contribution to the Dance of the African Diaspora was recognised with a One Dance UK Lifetime Achievement Award in 2019.

Join us at Speaking Dance 2026 as we work towards practical recommendations for the future of dance in Nigeria.

Click the link in the Bio @speakingdance_ to RSVP; it is free and compulsory.

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE.
📆:29th October 2026 | 9am - 5pm
📍: John Randle Center for Yoruba culture and history, Onikan Ikoyi, Lagos

Speaking Dance is a @beghastfoundation pan-African platform under the Cultural Preservation & Research Program (C.P.R.P), focused on strengthening the intellectual and structural foundation necessary for dance to thrive through critical discourse on dance practices across Africa.

#SpeakingDance2026 #TheDanceMustNotDie #DanceDocumentation #KnowledgeInfrastructure taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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2 days ago

#paneldiscussion

THE STATE OF DANCE RESEARCH IN NIGERIA

How much do we know about the dance practices shaping Nigeria today, and where does that knowledge live?

Across the country, dancers are creating, teaching, researching, and transforming dance. Yet, much of the knowledge generated through these practices remains undocumented, unpublished, or difficult to access.
This conversation brings together remarkable individuals working across dance practice, research and cultural development to examine the current state of dance research in Nigeria, the work already being done, and what is needed to strengthen it.

What are we researching? Who is producing this knowledge? Where can it be found, and how can it contribute to the future of dance?

Join us at Speaking Dance 2026 as we take a closer look at the state of dance research in Nigeria.

Click link in the Bio @speakingdance_ to RSVP, it is free and compulsory.

Panelist:
@a_thequeenmother @viviannwoji @yesidedosumulawal

Moderator: @phaith.ot

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE.
29-31 October 2026 | 9am - 5pm Daily
Venue: John Randle Center for Yoruba culture and history, Onikan Ikoyi, Lagos

Speaking Dance is a @beghastfoundation pan-African platform under the Cultural Preservation & Research Program (C.P.R.P), focused on strengthening the intellectual and structural foundation necessary for dance to thrive through critical discourse on dance practices across Africa.

#SpeakingDance2026 #TheDanceMustNotDie #Danceresearch #beghastfoundation

#Panelist

Dr. YESIDE DOSUNMU-LAWAL
Senior Lecturer, Lagos State University (LASU) Dance Scholar Choreographer Cultural Advocate

PROFESSIONAL BIOGRAPHY:

Dr. Yeside Dosunmu-Lawal is a leading voice in Nigerian Dance and Theatre, renowned for her ability to seamlessly blend scholarship with practice. As a Senior Lecturer at Lagos State University (LASU), she has distinguished herself for over two decades as both a prolific academic and an imaginative theatre practitioner.

Her scholarship spans traditional festivals, costumes, gender in theatre, and dance studies, with her publications and seminar presentations offering refreshing performative and theoretical insights. These contri taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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3 days ago

For the second time, Lagos will host the Speaking Dance Conference this October at @jrandlecentre, produced by @beghastfoundation.

If you’re part of the dance ecosystem: as a dancer, choreographer, director, dance filmmaker, researcher, scholar, archivist, promoter, manager, or community organizer, the Speaking Dance Conference is where you need to be. Join us as we build the infrastructure dance needs to thrive.

Register today through the link in @speakingdance_’s bio. Swipe through to learn more about SPEAKING DANCE.

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE
Building Infrastructure for Dance Research, Archive, and Knowledge Generation in Nigeria.

📅 29–31 October 2026
🕘 9am - 5pm Daily
📍 J Randle Center for Yoruba Culture and History

#SpeakingDance #TheDanceMustNotDie #5YearsOfSpeakingDance #DanceResearch #DanceKnowledge taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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5 days ago

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE. WILL YOU BE IN THE ROOM?

Registration for the 5th edition of Speaking Dance is officially open! 🇳🇬

What happens to the knowledge carried in our bodies, the histories behind our movements, and the stories that never make it into the archive?

This October, we’re bringing the dance community together at the @jrandlecentre to ask these questions, challenge what we know, and imagine what comes next.

Three days. Different perspectives. One shared question: How do we ensure dance knowledge lives beyond the moment?

Expect bold conversations, keynote addresses, film screenings, live performances, workshops, and a concert.

📅 29–31 October 2026
🕘 9am - 5pm Daily
🎟️ Registration is now open.

Don’t just hear about the conversations afterwards. Be part of them.

Register via the link in our bio @speakingdance_. RSVP is compulsory and free!

#speakingdance #thedancemustnotdie #5yearsofspeakingdance #beghastfoundation taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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6 days ago

EKO GOND QUARTERLY CONGRESS | LAST THURSDAY OF OCTOBER 2026

The EkoGOND Quarterly Congress returns on Thursday, 29th October 2026, for our final Congress of the year. This gathering brings together dancers, dance leaders, stakeholders and members of our various dance communities across Lagos for one last time this year, to reconnect as one big dance family, strengthen our bonds, celebrate our collective journey and shape the future of dance.

We will be talking everything, from progress reports, to opportunities, to plans for 2027, to a grant-writing workshop with James Notin from the Netherlands, and all the business with the various dance communities and more!

Date: Thursday, 29th October 2026
Time: 1:00 PM
Venue: J. Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History

Host: Speaking Dance Conference 2026

Great GOND!
We Dance to Live!
We Dance to Connect!

Attendance is compulsory for all dancers in Lagos. taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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8 days ago

Good conversations are shaped by the people who are willing to ask better questions.

As we prepare for the 5th edition of Speaking Dance, we are grateful to the thinkers, practitioners and cultural leaders who have joined us as part of our Advisory Circle.

They bring different experiences, disciplines and perspectives to the work, helping us question, refine and strengthen the conversations we are bringing into the room this year.

For a conference centred on building infrastructure for dance research, archive and Knowledge generation in Nigeria, having people who can challenge our thinking is as important as having people who take the stage.

We are grateful for their time, insight and belief in what Speaking Dance is building.

Meet our Advisory Circle.
@qudusonikeku @funmiadewoleelliott @yesidelawal @obiasika

THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE
Building Infrastructure for Dance Research, Archive, and Knowledge Generation in Nigeria.

📅 29–31 October 2026
📍 J Randle Center for Yoruba Culture and History

Flyers by @yemiosokoya

#SpeakingDance #TheDanceMustNotDie #5YearsOfSpeakingDance #DanceResearch #DanceKnowledge DanceInAfrica taken in John Randle Centre for Yorùbá Culture & History by @speakingdance_

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10 days ago

Why Should Young Dancers Care About Research? | A conversation with Faith Okoh @phaith.ot, Convener and Lead Curator, @speakingdance_

A dancer is not only a performer. Every time you train, create, teach, perform, experiment, or develop a movement, you are producing knowledge about your practice. But what happens when you don’t know the story behind what you are doing? When the people, methods, and experiences that shaped your practice are not documented? When the next generation has nothing to look back on?

For young dancers, research is not something that exists outside the studio. It is a way of understanding your own practice, your lineage, your choices, and the possibilities for where your work can go. Because if we don’t document what we are doing now, the dancers coming after us may have to start from the beginning.

And if we don’t build more knowledge around dance in Nigeria, we remain limited to the same narrow paths: battle, performance, and go home.

The dance must not die. And the people making the dance today have a role in determining what survives tomorrow.

Join us at Speaking Dance 2026, 29–31 October, at the John Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History, Lagos.

Watch the full conversation; link in bio.

Speaking Dance is produced by @beghastfoundation

Interviewed by @temi_ami
Filmed by @hendrix_7
Edited by @isaacayodele

#trending #dance #thedancemustnotdie #speakingdance beghastfoundation taken in Lagos, Nigeria by @speakingdance_

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11 days ago

We are honored to have @jrandlecentre as our anchor partner for Speaking Dance 2026.

This year marks five years of Speaking Dance, and we are grateful for believing in this vision at this important milestone and for standing with us as we continue to build a stronger future for dance in Nigeria and across Africa.

Thank you for holding space Speakimg Dance 2026.

📅 Speaking Dance 2026 | 29–31 October
THE DANCE MUST NOT DIE: Building infrastructure for dance research, archive, and knowledge generation in Nigeria.

Join us at the John Randle Centre for Yoruba Culture and History, Lagos.

Flyers by @yemiosokoya

#SpeakingDance #TheDanceMustNotDie #jrandlecenterforyorubaculture #beghastfoundation taken in Lagos, Nigeria by @speakingdance_

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13 days ago