Introduction: Special issue on T(r)anzkultur

Choreographing Diaspora in a Transnational Landscape

Abstract

In recent years, the performing arts have increasingly explored questions of migration, identity, power and belonging. Dance, with its embodied language and capacity for multisensory expression, plays a unique role in these conversations. This special issue is derived from the fruitful discussions and stimulating intellectual inquiries at T(r)anzkultur: Choreographing Diaspora in a Transnational Landscape, which was the Summer School organized by members of the Section for Transcultural Studies at Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf (HHU) from July 24 to July 27, 2024. This four-day event brought together participants from diverse artistic and academic disciplines to examine how dance functions as a dynamic, evolving medium of encounter, transformation, and resonance across cultural and geographic boundaries.