Every year the Executive Council of the International Theatre Institute (ITI), in collaboration with the ITI Dance Committee and World Dance Alliance, chooses an outstanding dance personality to write the message for the International Day of Dance, which has been celebrated on 29 April worldwide since 1982.
This day is intended to highlight the great importance of dance as an art form. The celebration also serves as a wake-up call for governments, politicians and institutions that have yet to recognise its value and realise its potential for economic growth.
The 2025 message has been written by dancer and choreographer Mikhail Baryshnikov (Latvia/USA):
“It’s often said that dance can express the unspeakable. Joy, grief, and despair become visible; embodied expressions of our shared fragility. In this, dance can awaken empathy, inspire kindness, and spark a desire to heal rather than harm. Especially now—as hundreds of thousands endure war, navigate political upheaval, and rise in protest against injustice—honest reflection is vital. It’s a heavy burden to place on the body, on dance, on art. Yet art is still the best way to give form to the unspoken, and we can begin by asking ourselves: Where is my truth? How do I honor myself and my community? Whom do I answer to?”
Mikhail Baryshnikov’s biography
https://www.international-dance-day.org/messageauthor.html
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