Leicester Hosts LET'S DANCE INTERNATIONAL FRONTIERS Next Month

Let's Dance International Frontiers is the dynamic annual dance festival in Leicester which presents live performances by fast-rising and established dance artists from the UK and abroad. Most of this year's live shows will take place at Curve Leicester while street performances of dance, music, and poetry will take place at outdoor locations throughout the city.

There's something for everyone at LDIF! Live performances, a chance to meet the dancers and choreographers, opportunities to join a workshop or masterclass or a casual drink and chat at one of LDIF's popular networking events.

· OPENING NIGHT: April 29th
7pm Mercure Leicester Grand Hotel, Granby Pl, Leicester LE1 6ES
LDIF launches with 'Dance Inside the Music', a celebration of the kinship between dance and jazz music with specific reference to the traditions of hoofing - tap dance in its most percussive form - and contemporary movement.
A talented line-up join forces for a performance to remember:
* Soweto Kinch - multi-award winning British alto-saxophonist, composer, poet and MC is huge on the jazz and hip-hop scenes
* Annette Walker - dancer, actor, musician and leading exponent of a new generation of tap dancers
* Lee Payne - lindy hopper, tap dancer, actor and West End performer (Singin' In The Rain, Riverdance)
* Cameron McKinney - from Memphis, Tennessee, created Kizuna Dance to create works that celebrate Japanese culture. Cameron has spent more than 17 years studying the Japanese language
* Freddy Houndekindo - based in Stockholm, Sweden, Freddy is an interdisciplinary artist working in music, dance and performance.

· May 3rd
6.45pm Orton Square, Leicester Curve
Chad Taylor (UK) 'Close to my Dreams' (outdoors)
7.45pm Leicester Curve Studio
Niquelle La Touche (UK) 'Neg(ate)'
Marlon Simms (Jamaica) 'Introspection'
Pe No Mundo Dance Company (Brazil) 'Aquivo Negro/Black Archive'
Rose Aida Sall Sao (UK) 'Noir'
Blake Arts (UK) 'Melanin Migration Brothers in Arms: The Journey'

· May 4th
7.30pm Curve RR2 studio
Antoine Hunter (left) in 'The Silent Beat: A Haptic Conversation'
*haptics: the use of technology that stimulates the senses of touch and motion.
This piece investigates the way in which haptic technology is used to relay music in new ways and the practical applications this might have for Deaf dancers and choreographers.

· May 5th- 6th
7.45pm Leicester Curve Studio
Shamel Pitts|Tribe (USA) 'Black Hole' UK premiere
As the finale to LDIF23, Serendipity presents the UK premiere of BLACK HOLE: TRILOGY and TRIATHLON - a multidisciplinary performance choreographed by the award-winning movement artist Shamel Pitts, co-created and performed by his Brooklyn-based arts collective TRIBE.

Founder, CEO and Artistic Director of Serendipity Institute for Black Arts and Heritage, Pawlet Brookes MBE, (left) launched the first LDIF in 2011 to showcase high quality dance that celebrates diversity. Serendipity's mission is to centre perspectives from the African and African Caribbean Diaspora and present them as cultural experiences for all audiences. Since 2011 Serendipity has supported the work of 280 artists from over 46 countries.

"I'm really excited that audiences attending this year's LDIF will be able to access outstanding dance performers from the UK, USA, Brazil, Norway, Sweden, Jamaica and more at Curve, Leicester," says Pawlet.

"LDIF23 delegates will have a choice of workshops and masterclasses as we explore the history of dance techniques, ground-breaking technology and new ideas. Rising dance talent takes centre stage with Signatures and Black British Dance Platform: two initiatives that support UK and International Artists.

"In a very exciting development, we have struck a unique partnership with the legendary Howard University in Washington DC - the historically Black research university - who will be sending a group of fellows/students to come and join us for the festival.

"And this year we're stepping into the world of jazz with a live performance from the multi-award-winning British saxophonist Soweto Kinch and champion tap dancers Annette Walker and Lee Payne in a new piece, 'Dance Inside the Music' which will open the festival on 29 April. Let's dance!"

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