Leap Dance Festival returns to Liverpool in 2025

Following the success of its 2024 edition, the team behind Leap Dance Festival are gearing up for another spectacular celebration of dance in Liverpool City Region, set to take place in April and May 2025.

As the city’s leading dance event, Leap Dance Festival showcases the work of local artists, community groups, and young performers, providing a dynamic platform for dance in all its forms.

In 2024, Leap captivated audiences with 781 performers delivering 165 individual performances across 15 days in venues and public spaces throughout Liverpool, attracting more than 37,000 spectators.

For 2025, the team plan to spread activity across Liverpool City Region, continuing to focus on youth, communities and professional artists from our local area, whilst bringing the best artists and companies from across North West England to perform in the city.

Paul Doyle, Director of Leap Dance Festival, said:

“We are super proud of what we achieved in 2024 and are committed to ensuring dance has a place in the cultural calendar of our region. We want to deliver a festival for the people of Liverpool City Region that is ambitious, dynamic and celebrates our part of the world in a unique manner.

“What we can achieve next year relies heavily on the support of our followers and their generous donations.”

Leap Dance Festival’s Crowdfunder runs until 7th November 2024 and there are great rewards available, including:

• Pre-sale tickets to the Liverpool Dance Prize (a competition for emerging dance artists)
• Pre-sale tickets to Leap’s opening night, featuring burlesque and cabaret acts
• A full festival pass, guaranteeing a seat at every ticketed show

Since Leap 2024, many of the artists that we worked with have gone on to develop their work further. Our Liverpool Dance Prize participant Tiegan Doyle has taken her work Midsommar to Edinburgh Fringe, where her cast won a Best Young Cast award.

Tiegan, who is currently training with Avant Garde Dance as part of their AG2 company, said: 

“Leap helped me to feel more confident in my ability to create. Since Leap my initial 15 minute piece developed into a full show for the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. The feedback I received as a part of the Liverpool Dance Prize helped to guide the development process and improve the work.”

Since debuting the initial stage of her new work Woman | Women at Leap 2024, Rowena Gander has received funding from Arts Council England to develop her work into a full length performance which will be touring venues across the region in November.

Rowena said:

“The credibility of performing at Leap has given other artists trust in me as a leader and creator. I am working with a new performer in each of my touring venues. Leap also helped me connect with other artists.”

During Leap 2024 we premiered new work from Stephanie Greer featuring some larger than life seagulls. Seagull Lake is a charmingly comic take on Swan Lake featuring some litter picking seagulls. You may have seen the seagulls taking to the streets during Leap, Cunard’s Queen Anne launch and at Royal Albert Dock’s Last Day’s of Summer event. Of her commission for Leap 2024.

Stephanie said: 

“Not only did it help in the creation of the piece but also provided a fantastic live showcase and an opportunity to create a trailer and promo images which have really helped sell the work to other venues and organisations.”

Support Leap Dance Festival: Donate before Thursday 7 November: https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/leap-dance-festival-2025

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