Creativity

Creativity inspires change. Dance/USA values our nation’s creative capacity and artistry to imagine and build a world we have never encountered and deeply desire.

Over the past three years, Dance/USA has invested deeply in centering the artistic voices of dancers and choreographers who have been marginalized and systemically excluded in our community through our Dance/USA Fellowships to Artists and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) Female Choreographers in Ballet Initiative These two regranting programs celebrate the diverse viewpoints of artists from across the nation, embrace the transformative power of movement-based practices, and amplify the meaningful work of these creatives.

Dance/USA Fellowships to Artists

2023 marked the conclusion of the second round of the Dance/USA Fellowships to Artists program. Funded by the Doris Duke Foundation, this national dance fellowship program provided unrestricted support to 30 individual dance and movement based artists with sustained practices in art for social change. These include community-building and culture-bearing practices, healing and storytelling practices, activism and representational justice practices, and more.

During the Fellowship period, Dance/USA supported the creation of Fellow-led initiatives in a manner that was emergent and collaborative. Fellows designed dream spaces and spaces of healing and rest. They planned moments of connection and discussion. They offered each other mini-residencies, created collaborative projects, received professional consultations, and more. While Fellows were not required to participate in this programming, Dance/USA compensated them for time spent on these activities and covered programming costs.

Dance/USA Artist Fellow Demographics

• 90%+ BIPOC artists

• 20% Consider themselves Disabled artists

• 13% Identify as transgender/ gender non-conforming/ non-binary artists

BIPOC Female Choreographers in Ballet Initiative

Dance/USA celebrated the conclusion of the BIPOC Female Choreographers Initiative with the premieres of six new works by five choreographers throughout the first half of the year. This important initiative, supported by the Virginia B. Toulmin Foundation, aims to address inequities in ballet and amplify the BIPOC female choreographer’s voice.

Dance/USA disbursed re-granted funds to five ballet companies from across the country to commission work by BIPOC female choreographers. Nearly 6,450 people attended the 18 performances presented throughout the nation.

Sidra BellNashville BalletLucinda Bedford & WhispersFebruary 10–12, 2023

Sidra BellNevada Ballet TheatreIntimacy with StrangersFebruary 18–19, 2023

Natrea BlakeOrlando BalletBreakthroughMarch 23–26, 2023

Caili QuanSacramento BalletLove me anywayMay 19–21, 2023

Stephanie MartinezSacramento BalletAll the Bright PlacesMay 19–21, 2023

Rena ButlerOklahoma City Ballet…It PoursJune 23–25, 2023

It's important as we take on this work that we consider the multitude of voices we could highlight. The more opportunities we have to lift up these voices, the better programs like this will be in the long-term... for dance/ballet as a whole. This is especially true for voices that perhaps are not as well-known — voices that are different from what others in dance are doing.

— Paul Vasterling, Artistic Director Emeritus Nashville Ballet, Nashville, TN