THE DIFFERENT LEVELS OF RESIDENCY HOSTING

1. Partnership LABS

With the aim of strengthening support for choreographic creation, LE PATIO has initiated a collaboration with three cultural organisations who, like us, are committed to the development, production and dissemination of contemporary dance.

The Théâtre de Liège, the Centre Culturel d’Engis and Compagnie Irène K / Festival Danse en Ville have responded favourably to this initiative. This dynamic aims to support artists at different stages of their careers by offering them a broader and complementary working framework.

From the 2026–2027 season, each of these partners will put forward an artist to be hosted in residence at PATIO, and will then continue supporting them in a second phase. Depending on the specific nature of each organisation, this support may take various forms: providing work spaces, support for lighting design, artistic mentoring or inclusion in a programme.

This partnership is intended to be long-term and renewed each season. It is based on pooling our resources, skills and networks in order to offer artists a working framework that enables them to bring their project to fruition.

1. LABS for artists selected through our call for projects

Many dancer-performers feel, at various points in their careers, the need to develop their own artistic language. This evolution reflects a desire to take an authorial approach, to voice a singular perspective and to explore, through choreographic creation, a more personal expression of their practice.

This desire can emerge at various times: towards the end of a career, as part of a professional transition, or right from the start, after completing training or during early stage experiences.

Aware of these challenges, each quarter, alongside hosting artists through its partnerships, PATIO dedicates a place to choreographers from diverse backgrounds, aesthetics and career paths, selected through a call for projects circulated nationally and internationally, with the aim of encouraging diversity in choreographic writing and fostering the renewal of contemporary art forms.

The call for projects for the 2026-27 season closed on 1 July 2026.

Aim of the labs: to foster choreographic research and the development of the artistic approach.

Dates: 15 days (can be split into modules of at least 3 consecutive days), to be agreed based on the project and the availability of the dance studios

Eligible applicants: professional choreographic artists

Selection process: applications are selected by a gender-balanced artistic committee of dance professionals set up by LE PATIO. The labs are open to the whole dance community, in a spirit of social mix, representation, inclusion and diversity.

Priority areas:

• The labs must focus on choreographic research;
• If the artist is from outside the city of Liège, a cover letter explaining their wish to work in Liège is required; accommodation costs are not covered.