staibdance’s (MC)2 Multi-cultural Dance Festival is a biennial festival curated by George Staib & staibdance. The festival unites Atlanta based culturally rooted dance organizations under one roof for a week of classes, performances and community conversations.
The most recent festival took place in August 2026. Stay tuned for details about the upcoming (MC)2 festival.
THE STORY
THE STORY
The heart hungers for a home, well, mine does.
Inside the unspoken understanding among family members, the smell of that dish cooking and those particular instruments playing those particular chords resides the usher to our pasts and our current sense of belonging. You know it when you feel it, and you delight in the fact that you can’t describe it.
I came to know the pertinence of this sensation the more distant “my people” became. It's a longing that I forget exists until I am among the elements of my culture. When it’s stirred, it is all consuming - as though I want the world to know about this most precious and private DNA.
Sometimes I feel the need to quiet the otherworldliness of my history, and other times feel compelled to use it as a shield, my motive for being. All the while, whether dormant or active, the sensations of home can take on their full glory in the blink of an eye.
While you may never understand the embodied hand gestures, the odd grunts nor the oddball logic that moves an idea around my brain, you will always be welcome at any table I set.
This is (MC)2.
It is an opportunity to witness and celebrate otherworldliness in its pristine and gritty glory.
It is an opportunity for varied cultures to temporarily build their unique and beautiful homes on the same street.
It is a chance to join hands, sit at the table and bathe in the intimate and personal stories that define many people from many places.
Join hands with us,
George Staib
2026 Festival Participants
“It was an amazing experience. Being able to see so many different cultures showcase dancing talent was much more than I expected. This should be done more often. We had a fantastic time.”
-2026 Festival Attendee
“That was the best thing I have experienced in a long time. What a beautiful night of togetherness! I loved the variety in all the dances.”
-2026 Festival Attendee
“The Multi-cultural Dance Festival was absolutely enthralling! We truly enjoyed all the different dance forms presented—it was an amazing sensory feast!”
-2026 Festival Attendee
Our 2026 (MC)2 Festival was presented by Roswell Cultural Arts Center and in partnership with Tolbert Yilmaz School of Dance / Roswell Dance Theatre.
2026 Festival Sponsors:
2026 Grant & Foundation Support:
Funding for this program is provided in part by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners and The Foster G. McGaw Educational Foundation.