Friday May 22nd 2026
Drift (credit: Madeline Squire)
Written by Glasgow View Reporter, Liam Eunson
Today, the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland announced details of a new dance triple bill, celebrating a wealth of traditional dance styles from across the Commonwealth.
The triple bill, called Common Ground after the main commissioned piece, will take place as part of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games Festival (23 May to 9 August). It includes two world premieres and involves an ensemble of over 25 dancers and choreographers – most with Commonwealth heritage. The show runs for one night only on 25 June at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow.
The main commissioned piece, Common Ground, fuses contemporary traditional dance performed by nine hand-picked Scotland-based dancers, accompanied live by Scottish musician Lucy Allan. Co-choreographed by dance artists Nicholas Shoesmith and Sotirios Panagoulias, the work celebrates the Commonwealth dance cultures each dancer embodies. Asking, what happens when these diverse embodiments meet? And, through the universal need for movement, where can we find common ground?
The triple bill also includes a solo by the virtuoso percussive dancer Nic Gareiss – one of Dance Magazine’s ‘25 to Watch’ and Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland artist-in-residence 2018-19 – who blends footwork, speaking and song, sharing step dance rhythms from the Appalachian mountains, as well as from the Scottish Highlands, Ireland’s Sliabh Luachra (Rushy Mountain) region and St. George’s Hill, in England.
Rounding out the programme is Drift – a thought-provoking piece on ocean overfishing, choreographed by the 2014-25 Scottish Ballet First Artist Madeline Squire and performed by over 15 dancers undertaking their MSc Dance Science and Education at the University of Edinburgh. Drift reminds us that the 25 Commonwealth Small Island Developing States face sea-level rises and the subsequent loss of dance cultures and traditions.
The work showcased in this triple bill carries memory, joy and resilience from across the Commonwealth and is being presented as part of the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland’s fifth Pomegranates Festival which celebrates Scottish traditional dance, alongside world traditional dance practised by New Scots and cultural migrant communities across Scotland.
This triple bill (Common Ground, Nic Gareiss and Drift) will be performed for one night only on 25 June 2026at the Citizens Theatre, Glasgow. Details of other events taking place across Glasgow, as part of the fifth Pomegranates Festival of world traditional dance accompanying Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games, are to be announced.
Wendy Timmons and Iliyana Nedkova, Curators and Producers of Pomegranates Festival said: “We’re taking Pomegranates on the road from Edinburgh for the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games – and we’re starting with a bang. Common Ground is everything we love about Pomegranates: virtuoso artists, deep cultural connections and dance that speaks directly to the world we live in. Mountains, oceans and the shared steps that unite us. Come celebrate the Pomegranates Festival’s fifth birthday with us and help us send this love letter to the Commonwealth’s dance traditions, past and present. One night, three world‑class acts and a stage full of joy. No chance to blink – you might miss a heel‑click, a toe-tap or a wave of dancers.”
Curated, commissioned and produced by the Traditional Dance Forum of Scotland, Common Ground triple bill is funded by Glasgow 2026 Festival Fund through a consortium of Glasgow Life, Glasgow City Council, sportscotland and Glasgow Commonwealth Games 2026. Additional support from the Dance Research Scotland (DaReS) network, Moray House School of Education and Sport, University of Edinburgh, The Work Room, Theiya Arts and Andrew Coleman.
For tickets and more information visit https://www.tdfs.org/pomegranates/
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