A FESTIVAL celebrating different types of dance will be held next month in Oxford.

Dancin’ Oxford, a dance organisation in Oxford, will be hosting an annual summer festival that will see dance companies showcase their best dances across the county.

It will kick-off on July 6-8 with Dance Scholarship Oxford’s (DANSOX) three-day 'exploration' dance at the Jacqueline Du Pre Music Building at St Hilda’s College, Oxford with Alastair Macaulay, former Chief Dance Critic at the New York Times.

Lectures and seminars will take place over the three days on dance history and theory with leading dance scholars and lecture demonstrations on technical and choreographic practice led by Susie Crow and Jennifer Jackson, formerly of the Royal Ballet.

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Cowley Road Carnival will host the annual Global Dance Stage on July 7 at the Asian Cultural Centre on Manzil Way, where a variety of dances will be performed, from street dance to Bollywood to African to tribal belly dance.

Twenty dance groups will take to the stage from 12.30pm to 4pm.

Following Dancin’ Oxford’s spring festival in Westgate Centre this year, a free summer dance extravaganza - Dancin’ in the Square - will be held at Leiden Square in the Westgate Centre on Saturday, July 13.

Festival favourites, Company Chameleon, Messy Jam Dance Co and Step2Dance will perform alongside Mickael Marso Riviere X MDK and T-Break – a playful, humorous and dynamic break-dance celebration of cultural diversity.

Oxford Infuse Dance’s Bodyguards will also perform and people can join in and get fit while dancing at a mass Zumba party led by Zumba instructor, George Martini.

The event is not ticketed, so anyone can come along whenever they like.

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Performances will also take place in Banbury in Castle Quay Shopping Centre from July 20-21 where dancers will use non-traditional dance elements from augmented reality whilst blurring the lines between watching and being part of the performance.

Back in Oxford a screening of Flux, created by Anna Watkins in collaboration with sound artist Nicholas O’Brien and filmmaker Nicola Josse, will be held during the same weekend.

Claire Thompson, founder of Dancin’ Oxford said: “Dancin’ Oxford is once again pushing the boundaries not just in dance but also in location. We like to keep things fresh and this summer festival certainly has several new elements to enjoy, whether you are a dance aficionado or simply dance curious.”

Dancin' Oxford aims to improve the vibrant cultural ecology in the city and raise the profile and visibility of dance while further establishing Oxford as a recognized hub for vibrant dance activity.

It also provides opportunities for people to actively engage in high quality dance, through a performance programme that allows people to participate in activities all year round.

The group has partnerships with key organisations in Oxfordshire such as Pegasus Theatre, Oxford Playhouse, North Wall Arts Centre, Cornerstone Arts Centre, Oxford City Council and Westgate Shopping Centre.

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It has been able to contribute to the city's dance society with the support of Arts Council England and Oxford City Council.

All events are free to attend and open to all ages apart from DANSOX where tickets must be bought in advance via Eventbrite at a cost of £15 for the day or £30 for three days.