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Madison Folk Ball Festival 2026!
January 23 - January 24
Folk Ball 2026 is an international folk dance and music event at the University of Wisconsin in Madison, Wisconsin. This year we are holding the Folk Ball on January 23 – 24, 2026. It is the largest and liveliest public participation folk dance festival in the Midwest offering two evening-long dance parties featuring eight regional bands. Saturday workshops feature teachers: Lee Otterholt (Balkans & Beyond), Bob Walser (BalFolk), Mady Newfield (English Country) and others.
Come join in on all the fun with events on Friday and Saturday. There will be two full evening dance parties on Friday and Saturday featuring dancer favorites Orchestar Bez Ime, Sloboda, Szaszka, Yid Vicious, and more.
Dance workshops will be held Saturday morning and afternoon. Also on tap Saturday is a lunchtime culture session, an afternoon Balkan singing workshop, an afternoon Hungarian Táncház with Szaszka, and an early evening dinner option with live music.
The Folk Ball, now preparing for its thirty-sixth festival, is a major annual gathering in Madison of the many folk dance tribes of the Midwest and beyond. Saturday folk arts workshops and sessions are now offered throughout the day in the
Memorial Union. The festival centers on the 4th Floor Ballroom space where Lonya Nenashev of Red Square Audio provides sound engineering throughout the weekend. In the spirit of the Folk Arts, all festival events are structured for participation rather than performance or demonstration.
The Folk Ball’s central focus is on the Eastern European traditions which are so rarely offered a public venue but a variety of traditions are always represented.
In recent years around 500 people attend the Folk Ball events. The featured Saturday dance workshops attract about one hundred people. The dance parties draw as well from local ethnic music fans and from the university community. Out-of-town participants come from Milwaukee, Racine, Chicago, Twin Cities, Fox Valley, Winona, Marquette, Eau Claire, Omaha and beyond. Usually there are just under 500 people at the big party.
Jan.23 – 7:30pm-midnight until Jan.24 – 10:00am-midnight
Live music performers
Yid Vicious Klezmer
Orkestar Sloboda
Szarska
Izvor Orchestra
Orkestar Bez Ime and Special Guests: Chevren Traktor
For more information and to register
For further information on Folk Ball, contact Michael Kuharski at moc.gabliam@km
or visit the Folk Ball website and Facebook page.
Sponsored by: Wisconsin Folk Arts Association
Cost: Folk Ball events are offered free of charge, and everyone is welcome. Donations of any size are greatly appreciated!
Come one, come all – it’s a great event!
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