PERPETUUM MOBILE FESTIVAL
EDITION 2025
For its fourth edition, the Perpetuum Mobile is articulating its programming around the theme of human ecology understood as the constellation of relationships that we weave with ourselves, others and the environment.
While our society seems to inevitably be heading towards the illusory horizon of speed, quantitative progress and dematerialization, the Perpetuum Mobile invites you to dedicate a week to the quality of experience, to encounters and to the celebration of the present. Being there, taking the time and space, getting moving both in body and mind, reconnecting with yourself, with others and with the world, listening, giving the best of yourself, respecting yourself, forgetting yourself, getting involved, moving forward, sharing, contemplating, vibrating, cultivating, living together and in the present, this is what the Perpetuum Mobile invites you to do through its range of artistic proposals, its workshops and moments of reflection as well as through the atmosphere, the spirit and the very ecology of the festival.
This 2025 edition is therefore both a celebration and a laboratory exploring how dance, as a practice, a performing art and a reflective field, can contribute to making us happier, to creating social bonds, to questioning ourselves as individuals and communities, to giving substance to ideas that have the audacity to hope and, therefore, to sow the seeds of a better future in terms of human ecology.
The Perpetuum Mobile was founded in August 2018 by Maya Balam Meyong (dancer, creator, and educator from New York · Luxembourg · Brussels), Marie-Laure Lesage (dancer and educator from Antwerp), and Fanny Wattier (architect and artist from Antwerp). Now under the artistic direction of Maya Balam Meyong, the festival benefits from the talents, energy, and vision of a remarkable Belgian and international team working to prepare a meaningful and unforgettable 2025 edition for you.
As a young international festival, Perpetuum Mobile aims to honor dance and, through it, the arts that share a special connection with movement. Movement of the body, sound, matter, image, and thought—this dynamic inherent in all forms of life immediately resonated with us, making the utopia of perpetual motion the cornerstone, horizon, and breath of the festival.
During the festival, from dawn to dusk, it is through and thanks to dance that we bring this ideal to life. As the art of movement par excellence, dance will be showcased to see, do, and think about. It will also be put into perspective in light of a plurality of views and disciplines such as music, fine arts, theater, and philosophy.
Perpetuum Mobile is thus a dance festival situated at the crossroads of multiple approaches and practices. Its original, circular, and generous program offers the public a bold itinerary between evening dance performances and daytime classes as part of the intensive workshop. This ensemble will be complemented by an exhibition, a musette ball, a DJ set, two cinema nights, a round table, and special moments of exchange with the artists.
Our artistic choices are guided by a desire for excellence and accessibility. Thus, whether renowned figures or emerging talents, the artists invited to perform at the festival showcase remarkable work of rare poetry and quality, which we believe deserves greater recognition in Belgium. The excellence we advocate is one that unites: we ensure that the program is accessible to a diverse audience (age, abilities, language, culture) as well as to all budgets by providing a large number of free activities and, if necessary, reduced rates or even scholarships so that anyone wishing to participate in the festival is welcome.
This artistic, cultural, and social commitment goes hand in hand with an environmental commitment, as the festival team emphasizes that our actions are part of a responsible and sustainable approach.
Finally, the "Perpetuum Mobile" adventure aims to be collective, as it places a central focus on sharing experiences and their intersubjective dimension. We hope it will serve as a happy and fertile ground for exchanges between individuals, generations, communities, and backgrounds.