UNDER/GROUND
Danses au centre
ballroom Scene Rennes • BOUZID AIT ATMANE • ELAMINE MAECHA • ENGRENAGE[S] • HABIBITCH • INÈS MAURICIO • COLLECTIF OFFENSE • KARIM KH • LES RATZ • LINDA HAYFORD • MACKENZY BERGILE • MOUNIA NASSANGAR • MWENDWA MARCHAND • NADIA GABRIELI KALATI • OUMRATA KONAN • OUSMANE SY • PARADOX-SAL · PRIMITIF • RAPHAËL STORA • SAÏDO LEHLOUH • SANDRINE LESCOURANT • SUZANNE DEGENNARO • W*ACK À RENNES
The 2026 Edition
DANSES AU CENTRE
Hip hop, funk, house, waacking, dancehall and voguing were not born in dance studios. They emerged within communities where dance was first and foremost an act of existence and resistance—carrying diasporic memories, colonial legacies, queer identities, lived experiences of violence, and fiercely claimed joy.
UNDER/GROUND is dedicated to these dance forms. Led by the FAIR-E collective / CCN de Rennes et de Bretagne in partnership with the TNB and 19 partner venues and organisations, the event bringing together 24 artistic teams for more than 45 events that transform personal experience into collective strength, and the stage into a space for celebration, remembrance, and affirmation.
Performances, talks, workshops, premieres, parties and training sessions: each offers a way of creating together differently, while affirming that the dance forms long pushed to the margins are already at the centre—on their own terms, in a space that is full, legitimate and entirely theirs.
PERFORMANCES
Bodies that have invented everything. From these languages of resistance and self-affirmation has emerged a contemporary dance scene that is both distinctive and richly diverse—a vitality reflected throughout this programme. Sixteen performances, including six new creations, to discover on stage.
Interférence(s)
A programme where artistic works, places and voices come together. Performances, carte blanches and conversations create opportunities to explore the tensions, resonances and solidarities that connect different stories. Open to everyone, and free of charge.
Featurings
Battles, parties and jams created in collaboration with the people who keep Rennes’ dance scene alive every day. The collectives at the heart of the city’s hip hop, funk, whacking and ballroom communities take the lead in six events, from the dance floor to the cypher.
Cinema
A documentary film series that makes viewing an experience in itself. Those who dance, those who film, those who watch: different ways of seeing, framing and sensing bodies in motion. Each screening is followed by a discussion with the artists featured in the programme.
Participate
Dance battles and parties
Two battles: one dedicated entirely to locking at the CCN, the other entirely to whacking at Salle de la Cité. A celestial kiki ball at Le MeM. A jam where kids can jump into the cypher whenever they feel ready. A battle designed to help newcomers step into the scene with confidence. And an opening night where DJs, dancers and live energy come together as one. Whether you’re here to watch, get down, compete, or simply catch the vibe, there’s a place for you.
Open/ground
Professional Days · 13–16 October
Self-taught artists operate with their own logics. Institutions with their own habits. Four days dedicated to working through that gap: encounters, round tables, shared tools, and a day focused on dancers’ health, at the CCN and Hôtel Pasteur.
Open to arts professionals and anyone concerned by these issues. Free, registration required.
• Process • Tools • Talks •
Workshops and trainings
Watching others practise. Trying without having to justify oneself. Digging into a form, a history, a gesture, until something resonates.
Throughout the event, open-access training sessions and workshops with artists from the programme offer two ways of learning and deepening one’s practice.
• Workshops • Trainings •
Explore the programme
Meet the artists
W*ack à Rennes
Suzanne Degennaro
Sandrine Lescourant
Saido Lehlouh
Raphaël Stora
Primitif
Paradox-sal
Ousmane Sy
W*ack à Rennes
Suzanne Degennaro
Sandrine Lescourant
Saido Lehlouh
Raphaël Stora
Primitif
Paradox-sal
Ousmane Sy
Oumrata Konan
Nadia Gabrieli Kalati
Mwendwa Marchand
Mounia Nassangar
Mackenzy Bergile
Linda Hayford
Les Ratz
Karim KH
Jenny Victoire
Inès Mauricio
Habibitch
Engrenage[s]
Elamine Maecha
Daphné Demaison
Bouzid Ait Atmane
Ballroom Scene Rennes
UNDERGROUND.BZH
+45 events · 16 performances (including 6 new creations) · 3 carte blanche projects · 4 crossovers · 1 participatory performance · 6 Feat. (battles, parties & club formats) · 9 Interference(s) · 1 international research residency · 4 professional days · 1 film series · workshops & training sessions
And more to discover as the website unfolds.
In partnership with TNB — National Theatre of Brittany · Guillaume Régnier Hospital Centre · Clair Obscur · Rennes Conservatory · Marmaille Festival / Lillico · Hôtel Pasteur · La Criée, Centre for Contemporary Art · National Choreographic Centre (CND) · Le MeM · Le Triangle, City of Dance · Théâtre de Poche · Les Ateliers du Vent · Rennes Public Libraries · Lycée Bréquigny · Maintenant Festival · L’Autre Lieu Media Library – Le Rheu · Museum of Fine Arts of Rennes · Théâtre de l’Aire Libre – le joli collectif · Le Tambour – Cultural Department, Rennes 2 University