Luail – Ireland’s National Dance Company and the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance at the University of Limerick, invite applications from dance artists to the Activating Archive Residency, in partnership with the National Dance Archive of Ireland, the Irish Traditional Music Archive (@itmadublin) and Our Steps Project.
Where: Dublin, County Dublin
When: Residency: November-December 2026
Deadline for applications: Wednesday 9th September 2026 by 5pm GMT.
With the Irish World Academy, Luail has created a fully supported, multi-faceted residency opportunity for a dance artist to spend time immersed in three significant archives of Irish music and dance across three locations. The selected dance artist will be encouraged to engage with the materials for their own research purposes, or to work on developing a response – either choreographically or through further artistic documentation.
The residency includes:
* Two weeks of supported access to the National Dance Archive of Ireland in Limerick, as well as rehearsal space at the Irish World Academy.
* One week supported access to the Irish Traditional Music Archive (ITMA).
* Supported online access to Our Steps, Our Story: An Irish Dance Legacy Archive, courtesy of Our Steps and the Jerome Robbins Dance Division of the New York Public Library.
* Artist’s fees, travel, accommodation and per diems in Limerick and Dublin if needed, all provided.
How to apply:
Please submit one pdf containing the following documents:
– A recent CV (no more than two pages).
– An artist’s statement (no more than one page).
– At least one but no more than three video links to relevant work or a recent sample of notation (no more than 10 pages). Large files should be sent via Google Drive or Dropbox.
– A short proposal (no more than one page), to include why you are interested in this residency. Consider the following in your answer:
– What interests you about the archival context of this residency and the three archives.
– Networking opportunities that you would seek while in Dublin and Limerick if desired.
– Any further information the panel should know about your intentions for the residency.
– Details of any potential performance or public engagement activities proposed during your residency, if appropriate (not compulsory).
All applications will be assessed by a panel and the selected artist will be notified on or by Friday 25th September.
Contact details:
Please send applications via email – written document, video or voice note, by 5pm GMT on Wednesday 9th September 2026 to miranda.driscoll@luail.ie with the subject heading The Activating Archive Residency 2026.
For further information, please visit https://luail.ie/opportunity/activating-archive-residency-2026/
For more RESIDENCIES, please visit https://dancingopportunities.com/category/residencies/
