ALaLa Dance Fest, an international ethnic dance festival presenting contemporary performance rooted in cultural traditions. This year’s theme, “Spirit & Ritual,” explores the relationship between belief, spirituality, ritual and the body through performances, movement workshops and exhibition.

Across cultures, belief and ritual have long been part of how communities live, gather and express their relationship with the seen and unseen. Ritual can therefore be considered one of humanity’s earliest forms of performance. ALaLa Dance Fest 2026 brings together artists from Japan, India and Thailand, inviting each artist to reinterpret their own cultural roots through contemporary performance and discover the shared human experiences that connect us across borders.

Tattoo Movement explores the body as a living archive, where tattoos become symbols of memory, identity, ancestry, spirituality, and transformation. Across many cultures, tattooing is more than decoration; it is a language of belonging, protection, rites of passage, and personal history.

The festival invited artists from different cultural backgrounds to investigate how these embodied traditions can be translated into contemporary performance. Through dance, physical theatre, workshops, and exhibitions, Tattoo Movement celebrated the dialogue between heritage and innovation, encouraging audiences to reflect on the marks we inherit, the identities we construct, and the stories carried by the body.

An exhibition exploring traditional tattoo practices across Lanna and Southeast Asia, presenting tattoo culture as an expression of identity, belief, ritual, and living heritage.

The exhibition complemented the performance program by providing historical, visual, and cultural contexts for tattoo traditions.

Roots & Heritage explored the ways cultural identity is carried through movement, ritual, and collective memory. Bringing together artists from Thailand, Indonesia, and Côte d’Ivoire, the inaugural edition celebrated dance as a living cultural practice one that evolves across generations while remaining deeply connected to place and community.

The festival encouraged audiences to experience heritage not as something fixed in the past, but as a dynamic source of creativity that continues to inspire contemporary performance and intercultural dialogue.

Presented by Tomorrow.Lab

An exhibition accompanying the festival, exploring cultural narratives through movement and visual installation.