da:ns focus – Connect Asia Now (CAN)

Happening from 15 to 18 October 2026, da:ns focus – Connect Asia Now (CAN) weekend is a spotlight on contemporary dance works by or in collaboration with Asian artists. This annual gathering focuses on distinct voices and creative impulses of contemporary performance from the region and reflects the times we live in.

Key performance #1: Sounding Light by Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan

Led by artistic director Cheng Tsung-lung, Sounding Light is a stunning tapestry of movement, inspired by the sounds, shapes and fluidity of nature. Widely recognised as one of Asia’s most significant contemporary dance companies, Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan holds a distinguished place in the region’s dance landscape as the first professional contemporary dance company in the Chinese-speaking world.

Main photo of Cloud Gate Dance Theatre of Taiwan by Liu Chen-hsiang

Key performance #2: Still Lives: Singapore by Daniel Kok and Luke George

In their collaboration spanning over a decade, the artists have used rope as a medium of communication between bodies. In Still Lives: Singapore, audiences witness the duration, tactile transformation of binding cultural icons and objects that hold significance within the local context. For this Singapore edition, they will work with RUDRA, Singapore’s pioneering Vedic metal band, whose journey ran alongside the nation’s rapid economic and cultural transformation since the 1990s. The performance is an embodied experience, and through imagination and careful attunement to detail, audiences become increasingly aware of subtle physical sensations and emotional responses that unfold before them.

Key performance #3: BATU by Ayu Permata Sari and Hasyimah Harith

Marking the first collaboration between the 2 artists, BATU is a project that began as part of Esplanade’s Contemporary Performing Arts Research Residency in 2024 and is also the first work from the residency that Esplanade is commissioning. Batu is a traditional kitchen mortar used in Malay households to prepare condiments such as sambal. Audiences are invited to engage their senses fully, allowing memories, associations and personal histories to surface.

Free programmes

The Connect Asia Now (CAN) weekend also includes free programmes open to the public. Details available at the respective websites.

• Everybody Dance Now: Tai Chi Dao Yin – Beginner-friendly free dance session
• Perspectives on Practice: Conversation with Tang Fu Kuen and aRco Renz (free by registration)
• Rethinking Representation: Contemporary Art and the Question of Identity by Melati Suryodarmo (free by registration)
• da:ns LAB 2026 – Mentorship programme showcase (free by registration, as part of VECTOR#7)
• VECTOR#7: Past The Breaking Point – Presented by Dance Nucleus In Collaboration with Esplanade – Theatres on the Bay this is an annual exhibition of contemporary performance and time-based art, featuring 2 performances, as well the studio presentations of da:ns LAB 2026 participants. Open to 18 years and above.

Tickets

Refer to this page for ticket details about da:ns focus – Connect Asia Now (CAN). Concessions are available for Esplanade&Me members, students, NSFs, seniors and PWDs. Both Still Lives and BATU are eligible for SG Culture Pass credits

Age restrictions apply:

• Still Lives – from 16 years
• BATU – from 18 years