CoisCéim Dance Theatre Brings Dancehall Blues to Edinburgh Fringe

Image: Ros Kavanagh

CoisCéim Dance Theatre, Ireland’s renowned contemporary dance company (pronounced kush-came), is set to enchant audiences at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival with their critically acclaimed production, Dancehall Blues. 

Running from 12-24 August 2025 as part of Assembly @ DanceBase, this heart-racing duet promises to be a dance highlight of the festival.

Directed by visionary choreographer David Bolger, Dancehall Blues features two of Ireland’s most dynamic young dancers, Emily Kilkenny and Alex O’Neill, in a performance described as “expertly genius” by The Irish Times. 

Following its sold-out premiere at Dublin’s Fringe Festival in 2024, the production earned nominations for Best Production and Best Design, cementing its status as a must-see. Speaking ahead of the show CoisCéim Dance Theatre director, David

Bolger, invited audiences to come and be inspired:

“Audiences will find themselves in a surreal dancehall at dusk, a place where dreams and nightmares collide, within this dissolving sense of reality a giant disco ball drops to the floor, as we begin to realise this is a dancehall like no other! We are thrilled to bring DanceHall Blues to Edinburgh Fringe, the show is a heart-racing 50 minutes of electrifying dance that features two of Ireland’s finest dancers, I would encourage audiences to come and be inspired”.

CoisCéim Dance Theatre brings Dancehall Blues to Assembly @ DanceBase as part of Creative Ireland's Edinburgh Showcase, which promotes high-quality performances for international audiences.

Founded in January 1995, CoisCéim has been instrumental in advancing contemporary dance as an art form in Ireland, earning numerous accolades for its national and international touring productions. Previous Edinburgh Fringe shows include Body Language(2019), Missing (2014), and Swimming with My Mother (2011).

The company’s Artistic Director, David Bolger, received an Irish Times Theatre Award in 2022 and is a member of Aosdána, recognised for his outstanding contributions to Irish arts. His work has reached millions worldwide.

Dancehall Blues, by CoisCéim Dance Theatre will take place on 12-24 August 2025 as part of Assembly @ DanceBase. Shows are at 2.40pm each day. Tickets are priced from €13.50 and are available from the Assembly Festival website. 

★★★★       

"expertly ingenious... Bolger's dark odyssey.. packs a punch"  The Irish Times

                   “At moments it looks a little like heaven" The Arts Review

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