To see, to hear, to dance: Vivat John Dowland! | Historical Dance Ball

The Historical Dance Ball - a firm favourite with Wittenberg locals and their guests - returns to the Wittenberg Renaissance Music Festival in 2026, and this year it fits the festival motto "Renaissance Kisses Tango" perfectly. Two dance masters will guide the evening with their usual charm and flair: Mareike Greb and Mark Frenzel lead four shared dance rounds together.

Live music is at the heart of the Wittenberg ball, played by specialists in historical dance repertoire: The Playfords are back again this year. All participants bring their own perspective on the festival motto, with a deep bow to John Dowland, whose 400th death anniversary fell in February. The dances are shaped around this theme while leaving plenty of room for the sheer pleasure of movement - and for the delight of dancing to Dowland's music.

On the subject of dancing: for any musician working with a historical ensemble, watching the dancers' feet is essential to understanding the character of each dance and expressing it musically. The Playfords formed 25 years ago as a dance band and have been gathering inspiration ever since - including at the Wittenberg Renaissance Dance Ball every year. Dancers, in turn, discover year after year and verse after verse just how many-sided these dances can feel when The Playfords tirelessly affect and improvise: a constant interplay of surprises.

This year brings an extra dimension as The Playfords weave in the rhythmic colours and patterns of tango. Renaissance dances and Argentine tango actually share certain qualities - among them the dissociation between an upright torso and elegant legs, or in other words, the independence of the two from each other. Both styles, Renaissance and tango, are essentially built on variations of a single step.