Leap Off Page

Leap Off Page is an international interdisciplinary festival that combines literature and contemporary dance. Dancers and writers from across Europe are brought together to create a new hybrid art form and show that words can leap across borders and mediums.
Literature conveys information verbally, while dance relies on kinetic modes of expression. Yet, both art forms share a mutual aim – communication. Why do we dance? Why do we write? Dancing and literature share the same primary and artistic generator, that is communication. We began dancing as a way of expressing ourselves, of telling stories through (e)motion. We began writing for the same reasons, so we could learn from the past and communicate in the present. Leap Off Page aims to trace back those primary models that link the two art forms by encouraging communication and the exchange of ideas. Thus, the literary text can leap off the page into a new free-flowing form, shaped through motion. The first edition of the festival took place in Veliko Tarnovo, on 1-5 November at the performance art theatre TAM.

During the festival, the Leap Off Page participants are divided into creative teams and given the task to create a literary text that would “leap” off the page in the form of dance choreography. On 5 November, at 19:30 at TAM, the audience watched the collaborative projects (text and dance) of five teams: Antonia Atanasova (Bulgaria) and Zornitsa Stoyanova, Ervina Halili (Kosovo)and Yanitsa Atanasova, Ivan Šopov (North Macedonia) and Daniel Denev, Kinga Tóth (Hungary) and dance duo Violeta Vitanova and Stanislav Genadiev, Sofie Verraest (Belgium)and Tsveta Doycheva.

Part of the festival’s program were also two workshops, open for everyone eager to unleash their creative potential. Antonia Atanasova’s atelier “Awakening the Writer Within: Creative Writing for Uncovering the Writer’s Arsenal and Potential” took place on 2 and 3 November from 18:30 to 21:30 at TAM and included interactive exercises, tasks and techniques. The workshop was suitable for people who want to write, regardless of their previous experience. Those who were curious to learn more about the movement and contents of their body were welcome to join “Poetic Body: Dance Atelier for Thinking People” that was led by choreographer Zornitsa Stoyanova on 4 November from 18:00 to 21:00, also at TAM. The workshop consisted of many compositional exercises and was suitable for everyone, regardless of their physical abilities. Both workshops were held in Bulgarian and English.

All events part of the Leap Off Page program have free admission, however due to the limited places, registration in advance is required:
Leap Off Page FestivalAwakening the Writer Within: Creative Writing for Uncovering the Writer’s Arsenal and Potential
Poetic Body: Dance Atelier for Thinking People
The first edition of the international interdisciplinary festival Leap Off Page was organized by Elizabeth Kostova Foundation with the financial support of the Bulgarian Ministry of Culture and Veliko Tarnovo Municipality, in collaboration with performance art theatre TAM and Dragoshinov winery. The event was part of the cultural calendar of Veliko Tarnovo Municipality.