Southern California's largest ethnic dance festival returns to La Jolla on Jan. 7 with the opening of the 12th annual Nations of San Diego International Dance Festival at UC San Diego.

The event, which will be presented over two weekends, will feature more than 250 dancers representing a dozen nations.

For its first seven years, the dance festival was presented as a collaboration between the San Diego Dance Alliance and the San Diego Repertory Theatre. In 2001, the Dance Alliance went solo to produce the show on its own at the Spreckels Theatre in San Diego. Then in 2002, the festival moved to the Mandeville Auditorium at UCSD.

Kendall Klug, executive director of the Dance Alliance, said he expects about 4,200 to 4,500 people to attend the festival during the two weekends, of which 1,200 to 1,500 will be elementary school students from San Diego County.

Bringing in a family audience is a big part of the festival's education and outreach program, so a special "family day" $12 ticket price is being offered for Sunday matinees, Klug said.

This year's 14 dance troupes represent cultures from all over the world, though Klug said this year's lineup has more Asian dance troupes than in past years and fewer European troupes. Among the cultures represented are China, the Philippines, India, Mexico, Spain, Argentina, Peru, Polynesia, New Zealand, Latin America and the Middle East. Four of the companies performing this year are new. They are Afro-Peru Dance Company (Peru), Gypsy Duende (the Middle East), Mendiola & Co. (New Zealand) and Heatwave Salsa Dancers (Latin America).

Klug said this is the last year the festival will be held at UCSD. Next year, the festival will move to the renovated North Park Theatre (which will reopen in October), and one weekend of the festival will be presented in North County.