Coeur de la ville de Bruxelles
On August 14, the Brussels Dance Festival kicks off with a bang, with a festive and colorful opening night at Place de la Bourse!
On the program: an explosive mix of both dance and music performances, promising to make the heart of Brussels vibrate, featuring:
-2Mad
-Lovelace
-Junior Ballet Project
-CRC
-Krisy & Lejeune Club
-Heliosphere
Get ready for a spectacular evening filled with contemporary energy, poetic flights, and enchanting rhythms!
To launch Brussels Dance Festival in unforgettable style, the sky over Place de la Bourse will become our stage. An extraordinary performance will be presented here:
Heliosphere.
This aerial spectacular, conceived as dance halfway between heaven and earth, blends acrobatics, flowing movements and music in gravity-defying choreography.
An airborne dancer attached to a helium balloon soars through the sky, spinning, gliding and descending to almost touch the audience before rising again with ease. He explores the space gracefully accompanied by a haunting soundtrack.
The movements look spontaneous but have been meticulously planned: a ground team controls the sphere — speed, direction, height — to make every action meaningful and every sight magical.
The dancer becomes a floating dot, a fleeting figure between the buildings, a presence crossing the sky and stealing all the attention.
This debut performance alone captures the spirit of the festival: a celebration of poetry in motion, elevation and interaction.
Heliosphere is an invitation to look up, dream big and focus on the beauty of the here and now.
Le Junior Ballet Project (JBP) de la compagnie Opinion Public est un programme intensif destiné aux danseurs de 17 à 25 ans. Conçu comme un véritable tremplin vers la vie professionnelle, il immerge les participants dans un environnement de travail comparable à celui d’une compagnie, leur offrant les compétences techniques, artistiques et humaines nécessaires pour évoluer en tant qu’interprètes.
Fondé en septembre 2024 par la directrice artistique de la compagnie, Sidonie Fossé, ce cursus de deux ans propose une formation quotidienne, du lundi au vendredi : cours rigoureux de danse classique, danse contemporaine, partnering, floorwork, acrobatie et improvisation, ainsi que d’autres disciplines complémentaires favorisant polyvalence, créativité et maturité artistique.
Tout au long de l’année, les danseurs participent également à des représentations, leur donnant l’occasion régulière de monter sur scène et d’appliquer ce qu’ils ont appris devant un public.
Jeune artiste bruxelloise, Lovelace appartient à la nouvelle scène pop alternative. C’est dans son labo-chambre qu’elle produit ses morceaux. Tissant un univers sombre unique où s’entrechoquent des sons robotiques, doux et saturés.
Son univers est un vrai cocktail sonore faisant écho à Billie Eilish, 070 Shake et Babysolo33. Lovelace souffre depuis petite d’une véritable addiction à l’existence, ce qui la pousse à adopter un comportement jovial quelque peu excessif.
Malheureusement, son amour pour la vie se heurte sans cesse à l’absurdité de ce monde. Un peu d’auto-dérision, beaucoup de love et de mélancolie forment sa recette parfaite pour survivre en plein milieu de ce chaos.
Après “La Pluie (Acte I)” en 2023, puis “Pleurez! (Acte II)” l’année suivante, il dévoile cette fois-ci un format plus court mais crucial pour son évolution artistique : “L’Entracte”. Ce projet 5 titres réalisé par Armand Tournier s’inscrit comme un interlude à part entière dans son parcours, laissant présager l’arrivée d’un Acte III.
Loin d’être une simple pause, L’Entracte marque une étape importante dans le parcours du rappeur belge. CRC y explore ses relations personnelles avec une profondeur et une sincérité inédites dans son œuvre.
Musicalement, il mêle habilement rap, chanson française, R&B et influences afro, affirmant ainsi sa capacité à traverser et fusionner les genres. Après avoir marqué les scènes de Dour, du Grünt Festival et rempli à deux reprises l’Ancienne Belgique fin 2024, CRC prépare désormais l’arrivée de l’Acte III. L’entracte en est la passerelle : une expérience sonore intime et essentielle dans le paysage actuel du rap francophone.
The Junior Ballet Project (JBP) from the company Opinion Public is an intensive programme for dancers aged 17 to 25. Designed as a practical career platform, it immerses participants in a company-like working environment, developing the technical, artistic and interpersonal skills they need to grow as performers.
Launched by the company’s artistic director Sidonie Fossé in September 2024, the two-year programme provides daily training from Monday to Friday: a demanding syllabus of classical dance, contemporary dance, partnering, floorwork, acrobatics and improvisation, as well as other complementary disciplines emphasizing versatility, creativity and artistic maturity.
Throughout the year, the dancers also join performances, giving them regular opportunities to go on stage and apply what they have learnt before an audience.
A young Brussels-based artist, Lovelace is part of the new alternative pop scene. She creates her unique sound in her bedroom-cum-studio, weaving a dark thread of soft, robotic and distorted sounds.
Her work is a true audio cocktail in the style of Billie Eilish, 070 Shake and Babysolo33. Lovelace has long been a lover of life, which makes her overly cheerful sometimes. Unfortunately, that love constantly clashes with the absurdity of this world. A little self-deprecation, lots of love and much melancholy are her formula for surviving the chaos.
Following La Pluie (Act I) in 2023 then Pleurez! (Act II) a year later, CRC is releasing a shorter but crucial format for his artistic evolution: L’Entracte. This five-track project produced by Armand Tournier presents as a true intermission, hinting at a future Act III.
Much more than an interval, L’Entracte marks an important step in the Belgian rapper’s journey. Here CRC explores his personal relationships with new depth and sincerity in his work.
Musically, he skilfully combines rap, chanson française, R&B and afro influences, confirming his ability to cross and fuse genres. After gracing the stages of the Dour and Grünt Festivals and twice filling the Ancienne Belgium concert hall in late 2024, CRC is now preparing for Act III. L’Entracte is the bridge: an intimate and essential auditory experience in today’s French-language rap landscape.
After six years away from the stage, Puggy return more inspired than ever! Their EP Radio Kitchen and a series of sold-out, unforgettable shows at Ancienne Belgique confirmed that their spark remains intact. The trio is now preparing a new tour, with key dates at the Olympia in Paris and Forest National in autumn 2025.
In the meantime, Puggy welcome the return of brighter days with On My Mind, a radiant single with an irresistible groove – a true breath of fresh air in today’s heavy news cycle. Recorded in Brussels at the Radio Kitchen studio, the track reflects the band’s creative independence, carving their path far from constraints and codes.
In the age of streaming and algorithms, Puggy continue to champion free, diverse music – a unique sound that crosses genres and brings audiences together.
Malika Benjelloun, an Italo-Moroccan dancer and choreographer, stands out for her boundless energy and distinctive teaching style. She rose to fame with the Star Academy in 2023 and, at just 19, began teaching at the Rick Odums International Jazz Dance Centre in Paris, where her classes quickly became sold out.
As a Nike ambassador, she joined a global Masterclass tour, won the Battle Nike Woman Europe, and led her group to the World Champion title in 2009 in Phoenix (USA).
She has choreographed for numerous artists and TV shows, and has also collaborated with prestigious names such as Franco Dragone and the Cirque du Soleil.
The Belgian artist Henri PFR has been captivating fans and tastemakers worldwide with his unique blend of dance-pop and melodic creativity. A classically trained composer, producer, DJ and pianist, he first broke through in 2013 with the viral La Belle Musique Mixtape: Summer Memories.
Since then, he has released a steady flow of hits, now signed with Warner Music France, with his latest singles enjoying global radio airplay.
Backed by a loyal fanbase and represented exclusively by One World Artists (Tomorrowland’s agency). Henri PFR continues his unstoppable rise with new music and projects on the horizon.
Rino Yoshimoto
From Tokyo to New York, via Europe, Japanese violinist Rino Yoshimoto captivates audiences with her virtuosity and intensity on stage. Winner of numerous international competitions, she commands a wide repertoire, performed with exceptional musicality and deep sensitivity. Her passionate playing, combined with the unique sound of the Muntz Stradivarius (1736), on loan from the Nippon Music Foundation, promises a rare and unforgettable musical experience.
Ksenia Ovsyanick
Russian-born star Ksenia Ovsyanick has performed on some of the world’s most prestigious stages: Opéra national de Paris, Royal Opera House, Bolshoi Theatre, Royal Albert Hall… A former soloist with the English National Ballet, she joined Staatsballett Berlin in 2016 as a Principal Dancer. Recipient of the Benois de la Danse Prize and the Premio Eccellenza della Danza, she now continues her career as a freelance Principal, invited to perform on leading stages worldwide.
Christine and the Queens is a boundary-pushing French artist, an innovator and a visionary. A shape-shifting performer with a deep passion for music, theatre and dance, each release is a testament to his devotion to the art form and a lesson in raw honesty.
After leaving an indelible mark at the Paris Olympic Games closing ceremony, Christine and the Queens teamed up with disco legend Cerrone to unveil their first joint manifesto track “Catching Feelings”, accompanied by a thrilling self-directed music video. An emotional firework beneath the strobe lights of the dancefloor.
Known for genre-defying music and ever-evolving personas, Christine and the Queens has received honors from GLAAD, the BRIT Awards, Q Awards and Attitude, and consistently features on best-of-the-decade lists. But above all: go see him live. It’s unforgettable.
