Kuopio Dance Festival launches the search for a new Artistic Director

Kuopio Dance Festival is looking for a new artistic director to follow Kenneth Kvarnström for the 2027-2028 seasons.

The position offers a unique opportunity to take part in developing a significant and long-standing Nordic dance festival.

The Artistic Director is responsible for the festival’s artistic vision and the coordination of its main programme: selecting works and artists, shaping programme entities, and developing the festival’s artistic content in collaboration with the rest of the organisation.

Kuopio Dance Festival is one of largest and the oldest dance festival in the Nordic countries – every year, the event attracts around 35,000 visitors to Kuopio. The week-long festival, held in June, is renowned for its high-quality and diverse programme. The event features a wide range of dance performances by both international and Finnish top companies, an extensive free programme, courses, camps, seminars, and plenty of other dance-related activities for dance enthusiasts of all ages and levels.

Previous Artistic Directors of the festival include Riku Lehtopolku, Jorma Uotinen, Alpo Pakarinen, Jukka O. Miettinen, and Doris Laine.

In the photo: Artistic Director Kenneth Kvarnström. Photographer: Niko Puumalainen