Australian Dance Summit finds a sector at a crossroads

In the thick of RISING festival activity, and alongside the inaugural Australian Dance Biennale unfolding across Melbourne/Naarm, a rare and timely gathering took place. The Australian Dance Biennale Summit brought together artists, presenters, producers and advocates in a packed Flinders Street Station Ballroom – a sign, perhaps, of a sector eager to reflect, recalibrate and reconnect.

Rather than celebration alone, the 2026 Australian Dance Biennale Summit was framed by an awareness of gaps, particularly around representation and inclusion, and the work still required to meaningfully address them.