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Modern Dance
A contemporary dance event open to everyone for a joyful and energetic late afternoon dedicated to movement. In just a few minutes, the audience discovers choreographies created by international artists and becomes a performer in its own right. Combining learning and celebration, this participatory format breaks down the barriers between stage and audience, fostering interaction, sharing, and the discovery of contemporary dance through direct experience.
All dates
MODERN BALL
A contemporary dance event open to everyone for a joyful and energetic late afternoon dedicated to movement. In just a few minutes, the audience discovers choreographies created by international artists and becomes a performer in its own right. Combining learning and celebration, this participatory format breaks down the barriers between stage and audience, fostering interaction, sharing, and the discovery of contemporary dance through direct experience.
Le Bal Moderne is a participatory dance concept created in 1993 by Michel Reilhac in Paris, with the aim of making contemporary dance accessible to everyone, regardless of their skill level. Based on quick learning and shared enjoyment, this format involves teaching short choreographies—lasting about three minutes—created by guest choreographers and accessible to all. During a session, the audience learns these sequences together and performs them in a festive atmosphere.
Having been presented in several countries, the Bal Moderne came to Culturgest in 2005, where it has been held numerous times. Of particular note is the 2018–2019 anniversary edition, organized as part of Culturgest’s 25th-anniversary celebrations.
For this adaptation, the choreographies are created by young choreographers from Portugal’s contemporary dance scene, whose work emphasizes collaboration and audience participation. Designed to be intuitively learned, they transform the audience into active performers, breaking down the boundaries between stage and auditorium. Between transmission and practice, a space for collective experimentation is created, where encounter, listening, and the synchronization of bodies give rise to an ephemeral community. It is a shared choreographic experience that combines artistic mediation, contemporary creation, and active participation.
© Bruno Simao
© Bruno Simao
Hugo Cabral Mendes
Hugo Cabral Mendes, born in 1999, holds a degree in dance from the Projeto Quorum program at the Academia Quorum Ballet. He is currently pursuing a master’s degree in choreographic creation and professional practices at the Escola Superior de Dança de Lisboa.
Since 2018, he has worked as a performer with Raimund Hoghe, Aldara Bizarro, Diana Niepce, Daniel Matos, Adriana Sá Couto, Rodrigo Teixeira, Miguel Moreira, and Marco Martins, among others.
As a creator in the performing arts, his show for young audiences, *A Maior Flor do Mundo* (“The Greatest Flower in the World”), co-created with dancer Inês Gomes, has been on tour since the celebrations marking the centennial of José Saramago’s birth in 2022.
As a solo artist, he made his debut in 2023 with *O SER INUMANO* at the Cumplicidades Festival (Lisbon), and that same year created *O Campo das Cebolas* in Serpa, at Musibéria. He was also one of the choreographers for Bal Moderne Culturgest Lisboa, contributing two choreographies to this community project.
At the invitation of The Gate in Marvila, he will present the installation *Cartas para a Nuvem* (“Letters to the Cloud”) in 2024. That same year, he will present the solo performance *Cartas de um Bailarino para a Nuvem* (“Letters from a Dancer to the Cloud”) in Catalonia, at L’Obrador de Deltebre.
He is currently touring with his latest production, *This Is Only About Dance* or *Cartas para a Nuvem*, which premiered in March 2026 at the Teatro-Cine in Torres Vedras, concluding the *Cartas para a Nuvem* trilogy that began in 2024.
As a performer, he premiered artist Fernando Troya’s new work, A PELO, in September 2025 at the Amsterdam Fringe Festival.
Hugo’s work explores the concept of living in a state of falling, the relationship to pain and the ground, as well as a reexamination of the male body through reflections on brotherhood, equity, and freedom.
Joana Franco
Joana Franco holds a bachelor’s degree in dance (2019) and a master’s degree in choreographic creation and professional practices (2023), both from the Escola Superior de Dança. Her practice explores the field of expanded choreography, focusing on the intersection between the graphic and the choreographic.
In this context, Kaput! (2023–2024) stands out as a project conceived as a choreographic prototype, presented in the form of a lecture-performance and a “choreo-graphic” laboratory at the Centro Cultural de Alfena, Casa Cheia, Galeria Zé dos Bois, and Espaço Cultural das Mercês.
In addition to her artistic work, she undertakes graphic design and web development projects for the cultural sector.
Throughout her career, she has collaborated with various institutions and artists, including Lara Maia, Joaquim Leal, Francisco Miguel, Coletivo TETO, Culturgest, Estúdios Victor Córdon, and the Plano Nacional das Artes. She has also worked in communications for projects by Biloba, Duarte Ventura, Estela Alexandre, DINÂMIA’CET-Iscte, and the SocioDigital Lab for Public Policy.
Marta Jardim
Marta Jardim (Portalegre, 1995) is a dancer and choreographer. She develops her work both as a creator and performer in multidisciplinary projects that blend contemporary dance, theater, music, and film. Her artistic practice uses contemporary dance as a starting point to explore themes that invite critical reflection on society and the building of a more just world.
She holds a degree in dance from the Escola Superior de Dança and participated in programme at TEAK – Theatre Academy of Helsinki, as well as in programme FOR programme at Companhia Olga Roriz. She also began her artistic journey in music, having earned a Grade 8 certification in classical saxophone. In 2018, she completed internships with LINGA Compagnie in Lausanne (FLOW) and the Companhia Olga Roriz (Autópsia).
Her works include *TravessiaS*, presented at the CCB’s Petit Auditorium (2020), and *VITAL_Solo à morte de um carregador* (2022), a reflection on the impact of virtual life on mental health. In 2023, she joined the programme Compositores programme at Estúdios Victor Córdon.
As a performer, she has collaborated with choreographers such as Madalena Vitorino, Olga Roriz, Filipa Francisco, Marina Nabais, and Jérôme Bel, among others, as well as with theater and film artists such as Júlia Buisel, Francisco Manso, Rui Simões, Ricardo Cabaça, and Fátima Reis.
© Bruno Simao
Practical information
Address
Cascais Marina
Accessibility
Dates and times
Thursday, June 25, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Safety
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION
EXPERIENCES On board
Immersive exhibition Presents
Created with the exceptional collaboration of the Musée du Louvre, this exhibition highlights female figures in Mediterranean civilisation, thanks to the digitisation and modeling of part of the Louvre's collections. A two-stage experience: an introductory film to provide context, followed by an immersive experience in a 16-meter-long tunnel covered by 120 m2 of LED screens.
A sound journey through the Mediterranean
An immersive sound experience designed by Ircam, inviting the public to explore the richness and diversity of the Mediterranean through headphones equipped with spatialized sound.
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© Elisa Von Brockdorff
The artists
Frequently asked questions
Yes, the boat is freely accessible on site. However, you can pre-book your time online on our website.
For reasons of safety and preservation of the boat, high heels and stilettos may not be worn on the boat.
The museum boat is open to all free of charge. To find out on which quay it will be moored, or to pre-book your slot, consult the page dedicated to your town.
Appropriate facilities have been set up on the Festival site for the reception and access of people with reduced mobility. The boat is equipped with a 1m-wide ramp, accessible to people with reduced mobility, but may require the accompaniment of a third party due to its gradient of over 6%. Access to the aft deck and immersive exhibition is possible. However, the upper deck is not accessible. Please inform us in advance of any special accessibility requirements, so that we can make the necessary arrangements.