Festival Dates:
July 21-27, 2025
Battle Lake, Minnesota
About the Festival
The DanceBARN Festival is an annual event that brings professional dancers, choreographers, and dance educators together for one week of dancing, creating, relaxing, and performing in the heart of the lakes.
Apply
2025 APPLICATIONS ARE CLOSED.
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Cost
How do we calculate the cost to attend?
All registration costs go toward space rental, organizing fees, lodging, and community events in addition to the grant funding and donations that make the festival possible.
The goal is to have a sense of community during the festival. Everyone attending contributes to the week. Cooking, cleaning, setup, takedown, guerrilla marketing. It takes a village.
Have questions? Let us know.
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MAKER
$250
Subsidized rate for teachers and choreographers.
Includes all classes and events.
MOVER
$300
Includes all classes and events.
LODGING
$250
(In addition to registration)
Gets you a shared cabin at the lake and dinner every night!
Check out The Hideaway at Xanadu Island!
There are many Airbnb's and resorts in our area, but they book up QUICKLY. If you would like to find your own lodging, we suggest doing so soon after hearing of acceptance.
FUNDING
We are excited to announce that DanceBARN is able to offer assistance
to a limited number of festival-goers thanks to generous
donations from the Will J Reid Foundation and Mary Pettit, Keller Williams! Please stay tuned for further information about making a financial assistance request.
Other Funding Support Resources:
2025 Festival Theme
Collaborative Dance Film
The DanceBARN Festival usually finds its theme the summer before over morning coffee, rehearsals and late night fire chats. During the 2024 Festival, we screened 16 dance films that were all created during the previous 9 years of Festivals and Dancebarn residencies. As we sat under the stars downtown Battle Lake, we realized we hadn't created a film for a few years.
Every year, we choose to celebrate one aspect of our community. This year, we are excited to create a collaborative dance film that honors the history of one of the most iconic cabins in Battle Lake, The 7 C’s. Originally built in downtown Battle Lake in 1929, the cabin was later moved to its current location on the shores of Battle Lake in 1950. The home has witnessed 6 generations growing up, weddings, funerals, countless parties (with countless gin and tonics), and 10 Dancebarn Festivals. We look forward to creating something that celebrates the legacy of this historic landmark while exploring the changing and challenging narratives around what it means to enjoy the lake throughout the decades.
A Collective Experience
The DanceBARN Festival can't happen without you. Our directors curate a diverse week of classes, screenings, performances, recreational and community events. Choreographers are selected to produce work during the week-long festivities.
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Share Dance with our Community
Battle Lake, Minnesota is a resorting community nestled in "the heart of the lakes" that thrives off of summer tourism. The town is supportive of the arts and always ready to learn from the dancers attending the festival. We would love you to share your passion for dance with our town!
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Connect and Relax at the Lake
Not only do you get to spend an entire week dancing and creating with incredible teachers and choreographers, but you also enjoy communal meals, great conversation, and afternoons at the lake.
We are so excited to be partnering with The Hideaway at Xanadu Island for lodging!
The DanceBARN Festival is made possible by generous donations, sponsorships and grants including:
