Dance, Music, and Performing Arts of the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and Islamic Southeast Asia (MENACASEA) and The Institute of Ismaili Studies (IIS) invite you to the Fourth Symposium on Dance, Music, and Performing Arts of the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and Islamic Southeast Asia.
Exploring music, dance and spirituality in Muslim contexts
Few areas of dance research and writing have been as underrepresented or misunderstood in scholarly literature as the dance and music traditions of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), Central Asia (CA), and Islamic Southeast Asia (SEA), whether in historical or contemporary contexts of performance.
This year’s international conference, jointly sponsored by The Institute of Ismaili Studies in London and MENACASEA, is dedicated to exploring the link between dance, movement, music, and spirituality in Muslim contexts. The conference aims to encourage an interdisciplinary approach to understanding the connection between dance, music, and spiritual practices, as well as how such practices inspire artists to create powerful theatrical works and choreographies that bring joy, comfort, healing, and spiritual meaning to participants and audiences alike.
Musical and embodied traditions across Muslim societies
For millions of individuals who identify as Muslims, music and movement play a central role in religious and spiritual life. Practices such as Alevi worship (cem) in Türkiye, funeral rites in Tajikistan and Iranian Luristan, zār rituals across Egypt and the Persian Gulf, taʿaziyya religious theatre in Iran, the zurkhāneh martial arts practices throughout the Persianate world, and diverse Sufi practices throughout the Islamic world vividly demonstrate the significance of music and dance among Muslims of various denominations. These practices rely on rhythmic, patterned movement, dance, and music for participants to attain spiritual elevation and fulfillment. Musical performances, including folk dance and song, family-based musical traditions, and solo improvised dance practices also serve as vital means of expressing identity and belonging.
While dance often follows musical rhythm, movement can also be patterned or non-patterned, raising important questions about the interrelationship between spirituality and music, dance, and movement. This also opens a larger question: when is patterned movement dance, and when is it something else, non-dance patterned movement?
Such questions have long been debated by scholars and practitioners seeking to understand how humans’ express devotion, love, and emotion through embodied and musical means that are deeply personal yet capable of evoking diverse emotional responses across audiences and contexts. For over a millennium, Muslim intellectuals have reflected on the power of music, theorizing its nature and its role in strengthening faith. Classical Islamic philosophical writings on music continue to inform contemporary scholarly discussions about its ethical, spiritual, and social dimensions, including its contribution to harmony and peace.
The conference aims to encourage critical exchanges on theories of dance, movement, music, and spirituality, as well as their practical applications across MENACASEA regions and diasporic contexts. While papers on other topics related to performance in the MENACASEA region will be considered, priority will be given to submissions that directly engage with the conference theme.
Participation and submission information
This three-day hybrid conference will be held at the Institute of Ismaili Studies in London on 28-30 October 2026. In addition to experts in the field, we encourage the participation of Ph.D. candidates, early-career scholars, and artists. The conference will be recorded and made available to participants.
A volume of the selected papers of this conference will be published. Authors wishing to be considered for publication, must bring a completed draft of the proposed chapter to the conference. Oral presentation will be 20 minutes in length (about 3000 words). Written papers should be 6,000- 10,000 words.
For more information and to participate, please submit your abstract (250 words) and a short bio using the form below.
Important dates
- Abstract submission deadline – 1 May 2026
- Notification of acceptance – 1 June 2026
- Conference dates – 28–30 October 2026, Aga KhanA title granted by the Shah of Persia to the then Ismaili Imam in 1818 and inherited by each of his successors to the Imamate. Centre, London
