Beyond Production and Touring grants, NDP participates in a variety of
projects intended to cultivate and strengthen the global dance community.
The following details the scope of NDP’s work.
Regional Dance Development Initiative (RDDI) Through RDDI, NDP
engages local partners to develop and implement regional dance projects,
each oriented around a Regional Dance Center (a community in which there is
a concentration of dance activity), drawing from a larger surrounding
geographic area. RDDI projects consist of a 10-day residency focused on
providing creative space for choreographers and dancers to share and show
work. Additionally, the artists work with mentors to improve presentation of
their work so that their vision is best represented and the work is accessible
to multiple communities. Improved stagecraft, better marketing and
contextual materials, and critical discourse strategies are all goals of the
residency. The Pacific Northwest region was the first to pilot the RDDI in
August 2004 in Seattle, WA. The second pilot initiative took place in the San
Francisco Bay Area community in February 2006, and the third in Portland,
OR in May 2006. After the initial pilot stage, the RDDI project continued by
offering a Dance Lab for the New England region held at Connecticut College,
CT in July/August 2007 and followed by regional exchanges throughout New
England in 2008. NDP continues to collaborate with other regions of the U.S.
to create RDDI programs where there is need and regional funding interest.
RDDI Dance Exchange Series for New England
The New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) is proud to announce a series of seven dance exchanges. These first-ever exchanges are the next steps in the Regional Dance Development Initiative for the New England region as part of NEFA's National Dance Project.
The seven dance exchanges (outlined below) are planned for the coming months in locations throughout New England. The one- to two-day events are free of cost, and are designed to bring together diverse players including local dance artists, educators, presenters, funders, advocates, and audiences to engage in dialogue around topics of significance in the field of dance. Each exchange will include performances by regional dance artists, facilitated discussions, as well as opportunities for community building, professional development, and networking.
The events will generally take place between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. with some optional evening activities. Lunch will be provided. Limited travel and accommodation assistance is available for those with demonstrated need. Detailed invitations (with RSVP required) for each event will follow in the coming weeks and months.
For more information, please contact:
Julia Marx
NDP Program Coordinator
jmarx@nefa.org
[617] 951-0010 ext. 521
March 9-10, 2008
Lewiston, ME: Franco-American Cultural Center/Bates College
Context and Collaboration
*exploring strategies to contextualize work to broaden audiences and deepen impact
*thinking outside the box about ways to leverage regional artists through the support systems for national artists Click here for more information on this event.
March 18-19, 2008
Southern NH/ VT: Marlboro College, Brattleboro VT
Developing a College/ High School Circuit
*making use of facilities for bartered exchange
*developing the potential for interdisciplinary work for regional artists within academic settings Click here for more information on this event.
March 31 - April 1, 2008
Western MA: MASS MoCA, North Adams
Non Traditional Spaces for Dance
Using MASS MoCA's multi-disciplinary space as a catalyst for discussion, topics of site-specific dance and dance designed to be viewed in contexts apart from the proscenium stage will be explored Click here for more information on this event.
April 13, 2008
Providence, RI: Perishable Theater
Presenting Native American Dance
*engaging Native American dance artists in dialogue with presenters and dance artists of other forms around opportunities and contexts for regional Native dance artists to present work Click here for more information on this event.
May 13, 2008
Northern VT & NH: St. Johnsbury Academy, St. Johnsbury, VT
Dance in the Rural Setting
*presented in cooperation with Extending the Dance Map: A Northern New England Rural Dance Initiative
*focus on how to encourage performance opportunities for regional artists in rural areas Click here for more information on this event.
June 2-3, 2008
Eastern MA: Summer Stages/Concord Academy
Commissioning and Touring
* Developing a circuit in the region to provide long term residencies for the commissioning of new work by regional artists
* Engaging strategies to provide peer to peer feedback for regional artists during the creative process
June 24-25, 2008
New Haven, CT: Festival of Arts and Ideas, ACES Theater
Alternative Formats for Presenting/ Presenting in the Virtual World
*specific focus on the growing use of technology in the work of regional artists, the potential and challenges of these hybrid forms of dance and technology
RDDI Labs:
New England
New England’s RDDI (also called the New England Dance Lab) took place at Connecticut College in New London, Connecticut, from July 27 to August 4, 2007. Twelve artists selected from throughout New England and seven mentors worked over the course of the ten-day lab on the articulation of their work and how to build relationships with presenters. Thirty-two presenters attended the final two days for an artist/presenter exchange. A series of regional artist/presenter exchanges will follow in each state in New England in 2008. View artist bios and contact info.
Seattle – Pacific Northwest
The Pacific Northwest pilot project was the first 10-day dance lab for regional artists. Directed by San San Wong with additional coordination by Michele Steinwald, the planning involved an advisory committee of regional presenters, artists and managers. The Seattle lab was held in December 2004 and involved 11 selected artists from the region. View artist bios and contact info.
San Francisco Bay Area (SFBA)
The SFBA pilot project 10-day dance lab focused on culturally specific dance artists in the SFBA. The project was led by coordinator San San Wong and advisor Rob Bailis of ODC Theatre with an advisory committee of regional presenters, artists and managers. The SFBA lab was held in February 2006 and involved 11 selected artists. View artist bios and contacts info. View artist bios and contact info
Portland – Pacific Northwest
The Portland pilot project was launched in September 2005 with a meeting of alumni from the Seattle Lab as an introduction to Portland area artists, presenters and managers. Under the coordination of Erin Boberg Doughton with advisor Eloise Damrosch from Regional Arts Advisory Council (RAAC) an advisory panel was formed of regional artists, presenters and managers. The Portland lab was held in June 2006 and involved 10 selected artists from Seattle, Portland, Ashland, Idaho, and Montana. View artist bios and contact info.
For more information on the Labs in Seattle, SFBA, and Portland, click here.
NDP initiatives are made possible by support from the National Endowment for the Arts, Western States Arts Federation (WESTAF), the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, the San Francisco Foundation, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, the Fund for Folk Culture, the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Altria group and Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINC). Additional and essential funding is also being provided by the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and the Ford Foundation.
Center for Creative Research (CCR) Envisioned as an innovative
partnership with institutions of higher education, CCR places established
choreographers in residence at a university or college as members of a
research-oriented academic community. Through CCR, artists conduct
choreographic and movement research working with other faculty members
and students, bringing benefits to both artists and institutions and
encouraging nontraditional, cross-department collaboration. Guided by a
group of 11 “founding fellow” choreographers/directors, CCR is intended to
reinvigorate the interdisciplinary connection on campus between the arts and
sciences and broaden the ambitions of the well-known short term residency
model. CCR is a multi-year pilot project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon
Foundation.
Contemporary Art Centers (CAC) CAC is a network of
performing arts curators at contemporary art centers from around the country whose goal is to build connections between performing artists and
contemporary art centers, and to help these centers collaborate with their
peer organizations to maintain a high level of programming in a time of scarce resources. With initial support from Altria Group, five artists' projects
were selected to create work plans with CAC presenter partners. An additional
four artist projects were selected in 2008 with funding from the Andy Warhol
Foundation for the Visual Arts. Download the NEFA CAC Evaluation form here.
The CCR & CAC Pilots are being managed through a partnership with Leveraging Investments in Creativity (LINC).
National Dance Presenters' Leadership Forum at Jacob’s Pillow
The National Dance Presenters' Leadership Forum is a professional development program for dance presenters. Developed out of a partnership between NEFA, Jacob’s Pillow, the Association of Performing Arts Presenters (APAP), and Dance/USA, the Forum brings together representatives from presenting organizations across the nation to focus on the curatorial and practical dimensions of dance presenting. NEFA currently supports the Forum by providing travel support to New England presenters who are interested in attending. For general information about the Forum, and to download application form visit www.artpresenters.org or www.danceusa.org
White Oak Convenings
Initiated as a vehicle to strengthen the dance field through communication
between colleagues and cooperative strategizing, The White Oak Convenings
are periodic gatherings of a varied and representative group of stakeholders,
practitioners, and activists in the dance field. Held at the White Oak
Plantation in Yulee, Florida, these meetings - structured as forums -
focus on the future of dance in the United States. Participants identify
current challenges in dance creation, presentation, and touring, discuss
organizational and resource development, and exchange ideas on how to
promote and support the growth of dance as an art form.
Artists, artist managers, agents, funders, service organization representatives,
and presenters - nearly 30 in total - attend each convening. The first,
held in October 1999, concentrated on needs assessment and strategy recommendations.
The group ascertained dance field needs, pinpointed which needs were and
were not being met, and discussed how deficiencies should be addressed
by recommending specific courses of action. Building on findings from
the first convening, the second, held in December 2002, considered the
roles of individual organizations and how they might work together in
developing opportunities for dance creation and presentation.
The Howard Gilman Foundation and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation
generously supported the 1999 White Oak Convening. The 2002 White Oak
Convening was generously supported by the Howard Gilman Foundation, and
the Hewlett Foundation, with additional support provided by the Doris
Duke Charitable Foundation, and Arts Midwest.
2002 White Oak Report PDF