Elixir Festival Takes Over Sadler's Wells In April

Elixir Festival will take over Sadler's Wells Theatre in Islington and Sadler's Wells East in Stratford for one week in April 2026 with a series of performances, films, and talks that challenge perceptions around dance and ageing. Works from iconic International Artists alongside performances from dancers drawn from local communities in north and east London help the Festival to ask: how do we express our changing bodies and minds as we grow and age?

Elixir Festival opens with the UK premiere of Kontakthof – Echoes of '78 (Sadler's Wells Theatre, 7-11 April), a Sadler's Wells, Pina Bausch Foundation and Tanztheater Wuppertal Pina Bausch production. This encounter with Bausch's seminal work by former company member Meryl Tankard reunites her with other members from the original cast and arrives in London following a sold-out international tour to Europe and Asia including being selected for the 62nd edition of Berliner Festispiele's prestigious Theatertreffen in 2025 – the first Pina Bausch production selected in 40 years.  

On Friday 10 April, a special Cinema Club screening in the Lilian Baylis Studio includes a talk with Meryl Tankard, a screening of Dancing Through Time, a film created by Sadler's Well's Digital Stage that looks at the creation of Kontakthof – Echoes of '78, and the UK premiere screening of Meryl Tankard's one-woman tour-de-force performance Two Feet. Meryl Tankard and members of the cast will be joined by Salomon Bausch, Founder and Director of the Pina Bausch Foundation, to discuss creating Kontakthof – Echoes of ‘78, their lives and careers including their work with Pina Bausch, and their thoughts around creativity and ageing on Sunday 12 April in the Martha Graham Studio, Sadler's Wells East. Kontakthof – Echoes of '78 cast member Beatrice Libonati will host a special movement workshop for over 60s in the Martha Graham Studio on Sunday 12 April. 
 
Following a virtuosic performance at the 2024 Elixir Festival, Canadian powerhouse Louise Lecavalier returns with a brand-new solo, danses vagabondes (Sadler's Wells East, 10-11 April) inspired by Italian physicist Carlo Rovelli's Écrits Vagabonds. 
Sadler's Wells resident Company of Elders is back with a double bill, including work by John-William Watson and Charlotta Öfverholm (Sadler's Wells East, 8 April). Across the week, Sadler's Wells will also host two experience workshops for anyone who would like to get a taste of the Company's work, one is specifically aimed at men and those identifying as male aged 60+.  
 
The Festival concludes at Sadler's Wells East on Sunday 12 April with a public performance of Pina Bausch's iconic Nelken Line at 1:45pm. Members of the cast of Kontakthof – Echoes of '78 will lead an intergenerational procession through Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and will be joined by the Company of Elders, Elders Fellows, National Youth Dance Company and Get Into Dance community groups. Get Into Dance Festival will take place across Sunday 12 April, sharing public performances from our many community partners, including Beaumont Community Centre, Hibiscus Steppaz, and Pembury Community Centre on The Dance Floor – Sadler's Wells' free public performance space at the heart of Sadler's Wells East.  
 
Kontakthof – Echoes of '78, Company of Elders – Double Bill, and danses vagabondes are already on sale. All other events will be bookable from Thursday 19 February 2026.

Joce Giles, Director of Learning & Engagement at Sadler's Wells, said: “The Elixir Festival has become an important part of Sadler's Wells's artistic programme since it was first launched in 2012, and the 2026 edition features an incredible range of performances and events. The productions of Pina Bausch/Meryl Tankard's Kontakthof – Echoes of ‘78 and Louise Lecavalier's danses vagabondes bring world-class performances to our stages and epitomise everything that the Elixir Festival is about.

This year is particularly special, as for the first time it will be a cross-venue festival across Sadler's Wells Theatre in Angel and Sadler's Wells East in Stratford. The opening of Sadler's Wells East enables our Company of Elders to present their work on a larger-scale for the first time and will also provide a hub for our community activity including a range of free classes in different dance styles, performances by local community groups on The Dance Floor, as well as an intergenerational recreation of Pina Bausch's Nelken Line."