When dance travels across borders, it is shaped not only by artists but also by the frameworks through which it is presented, contextualised and understood. Curating in Context brings together artists, curators and cultural leaders to explore how dance is programmed across different geographies, and whose perspectives inform those choices.
The discussion will be facilitated by Isabel Moura Mendes, Senior Relationship Manager for Theatre and Dance at the British Council, who will be joined by Senegalese cultural administrator Ndèye Mané Touré, Dutch-Ghanaian artist and curator Richard Kofi, Mozambican curator, artistic director and cultural producer Quito Abrão Tembe, and Dance Umbrella Festival 2026 Guest Curator Anthea Lewis.
Drawing on conversations from an international think tank convened at the African Biennale earlier this year, the discussion considers both the realities of today’s dance ecology and the possibilities for more reciprocal, context-responsive approaches to international exchange.
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Isabel Moura Mendes
Creative and Cultural Manager
Isabel Moura Mendes (she/her)
Creative and Cultural Manager
London (UK)
Isabel is a Portuguese-Cape Verdean multilingual creative and cultural manager with specialism across performing arts and film.
Her practice has been centred around international cultural relations and the promotion of artistic exchange as well as film curation, with a focus on African cinema and documentary. Isabel is one of the co-directors of Jali Collective, who launched Jali Film Weekender – a new film festival in Edinburgh celebrating Black, African and diaspora stories, in 2025. She serves on the Advisory Group for IberoDocs Film Festival, and Project X. Isabel is currently Senior Relationship Manager, Theatre & Dance, at British Council; and leads on the Edinburgh International Delegate Programme (IPAD), connecting programmers directly with UK artists and performing companies to bolster their global touring potential.
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Anthea Lewis
Creative Practitioner, Curator & Producer
Credit Miguel Altunaga Jr
Anthea Lewis (she/her)
Creative Practitioner, Curator & Producer
London (UK)
Previous Dance Umbrella credits: SystemsLAB Debate: Shifting Ground – Reset / Reconnect / Reinvigorate (2019, online); Panel Discussion: Out of the System – Tick Box / Break Glass / Look Pretty (2019, Young Vic)
Anthea Lewis is a multidisciplinary creative practitioner, curator and producer, and the founder of Blulilli Projects.
With a background in contemporary dance and physical theatre, she brings over 20 years of experience as a performer, alongside an established career in producing and curating interdisciplinary work.
Her practice centres on amplifying underrepresented voices and exploring themes of identity, embodiment and inclusion. She is the founder and curator of UnTamed, a platform supporting female choreographers, and has curated a range of projects that foreground experimental and socially engaged performance.
Anthea has worked with leading organisations including Dance Umbrella, Tate Modern, FACT, The Blue Coat, The Young Vic, Tramway, BOM (Birmingham Open Media) and Bernie Grant Arts Centre. She was the guest curator for Dance In Vancouver Festival 2024, contributing to the artistic direction of one of British Columbia’s leading international dance platforms.
Alongside her curatorial and producing work, she is a choreographer, movement director and educator, committed to creating inclusive, process-led spaces for artistic development.
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Ndèye Mané Touré
Cultural Administrator
Ndèye Mané Touré (she/her)
Cultural Administrator
Dakar, Senegal
Ndèye Mané Touré holds a Masters in Business Administration at the African Institute of Management (I.A.M Dakar), she works in the administration and production of various cultural projects, including dance, music, visual arts, and cinema.
With more than fifteen years of experience, Mané is at the head of Makeda Production, a company under Senegalese law, specialising in the design and production of artistic projects and in the organisation of events.
Mané initiated in 2023 the Bideew Festival which is a constellation of disciplines around astronomy, art, gastronomy, science and technology in rural areas. She was one of the nine curators selected for the 2026 edition of the Theater Der Welt in Chemnitz, Germany.
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Quito Abrão Tembe
Curator, Artistic Director & Cultural Producer
Quito Abrão Tembe (he/him)
Curator, Artistic Director & Cultural Producer
Quito Abrão Tembe is a Mozambican curator, artistic director and cultural producer.
He is the founder of KINANI – International Platform for Contemporary Dance, artistic committee Danse Em Afrique, associate curator of Wiener Festwochen and the Biennale de Lyon – FORUM. His practice strengthens Global South networks through international collaboration and contemporary African performing arts.
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Richard Kofi
Artist & Curator
Richard Kofi (he/him)
Artist & Curator
Richard Kofi (b. 1988, Wageningen) is a Dutch-Ghanaian artist and curator working at the intersection of speculative futures and decolonial heritage practices.
His multidisciplinary approach weaves together drawing, collage, video, performance, and public ritual to explore the layered entanglements between past, present, and future. Kofi is the founding director of The Museum of Black Futures, a nomadic and community-based museum platform that challenges conventional notions of ownership, restitution, and cultural stewardship. Kofi also works as a performing arts programmer at the International Theater Amsterdam. Central to his work is a belief in art as a collective tool for collective reimagining and cultivating community-led futures.
Presented by Dance Umbrella
Supported by British Council
Credits +
Supported by British Council, as part of Diversifying Curatorial Stewardship (DCS), Dance Umbrella’s major multi‑year initiative (2026–2028) designed to transform curatorial leadership within the UK and international dance ecology
Venue & Access +
Venue
Screening Room
South Building Somerset House
Strand, London WC2R 1LA
The Screening Room is located in the South Building of Somerset House (mid-basement level), accessed via the Victoria Embankment entrance. On the day, the event will be sign-posted and there will be Dance Umbrella volunteers to help you find the space.
Access information
There is step free access to the South Building via the Embankment Entrance.
If you have any access questions or requirements you wish to discuss prior to your visit, please contact Somerset House Visitor Services at [email protected]. For more information about access, please click here.
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