A little self promotion.

Pardon me while I foray into a bit of self promotion. It is Nutcracker time of course, and American Repertory Ballet, of which I am a member, has a very nice version of the holiday production.

This blog is meant to be a resource for dancers. Self promotion is not exactly a resource. I suppose the value in this post is a piece of advice that my husband often mentions... "Your intentions will never be fulfilled if they remain a secret."

I love this internet/digital age. There is at times too much out there to sift through, but the ability to e-blast and digitally share marketing material is a fabulous revolution.

If you are in the New York/New Jersey area and would enjoy a bit of Nutcracker merriment drop me a line and I will let you know which shows I am cast as what. (I rotate Marie, Sugar Plum, Chinese and Mirliton/German- a little more self promotion!)

Also, I am becoming a huge advocate for spreading the word about keeping the arts alive. The failing economy is already affecting the stability of many arts organizations. Broadways ticket sales are down by thousands and it was recently announced that "Spring Awakening" and "Hairspray" will be closing early next year.

The best thing that we can do is to live the arts and share our experiences with everyone we know. Perhaps a little self promotion is all we have.

Career Transition....Professional Development?

First let me begin with a few questions: Is career transition a scary term? Is professional development available to performing artists? At what point do we begin thinking about the "what's next"?

Very few of us are so lucky to reinvent ourselves on the stage as many times as Baryshnikov or Gus Solomons Jr. But we don't have to leave the pursuit of dance as we mature or transition. Career Transition for Dancers is a great organization providing counseling, research tools and funding for professional dancers at any point in their career. The funding requires a minimum of seven years professional experience, but doesn't necessarily have to be a "career transition" it can also be for professional development.

I have many years left to dance, and last spring I received a grant of $2000 to assist with my interest in teaching Gyrotonic. The process was fairly simple and very informative as well. I recall a very humbling moment going through my contracts of years past and totaling my net income....well let's just say I have lived a rich life on very little money! Add that to the research that it takes as long to make a professional dancer as it does to make a doctor- an average of 20 years. When a dancer wants to pursue more education Career Transition for Dancers is a valuable resource.

Here's info on the grant that I received:

Caroline H. Newhouse Scholarship Fund
Remaining 2008 grant deadlines: Sep 3 & Nov 5

Provides $2,000 scholarships or grants to initiate an academic or retraining process or to help professional dancers with start-up money for a new business. Please note: Choreographing and teaching dance is not applicable for meeting eligibility requirements.

There is also a support group that meets in NYC:

"Midcareer Moves" is a dynamic support group led by Career Counselor, Anita Lands. This group helps dancers with professional, personal, emotional and psychological transitions and provides them with action steps and resources to move ahead.

The group meets monthly on Wednesdays from 6:00-8:00pm at

165 West 46th Street, Suite 701. New members are always welcome.

Next meeting: Wednesday, July 23
RSVP to groups@careertransition.org

I suppose that in essence we are always transitioning. Although we devote our lives to dancing, transitioning in reference to our careers should be part of how we evolve, not something to fear.

Figures hot off the press.

I received a publication today from Dance USA that was a compilation of dialogues at Jacobs's Pillow. While the material is primarily geared to presenting organizations, there is some very valuable information for the artists. Whether a creator or an interpretor of dance, knowing the audiences' and presenters' interests can be helpful.

And what does a presenting organization mean to a dancer? If you are a member of a small company, it can be the impetus for creating a new work or performing opportunity. For a larger company that already has an existing season, it can mean another week of work or another performance. Usually it involves traveling or touring.

Here are a couple of budget charts from the publication "Presenting Dance" by Mindy Levine.

Small company figures:

And of course larger company figures:


My husband- a retired dancer- has a great phrase about the economics of dance. He speaks about dance performance as being an experience "produced and consumed at the same moment." It is a wonderfully poetic image, but one that presents difficulty in raising funds to support the creation of dance.

And what does this mean to a dancer? To me, it is inspiration that every performance needs to be better because it truly only exists once. Additionally, knowing the economics (to some degree) creates that opportunity for me to be an ambassador of my art and for the company in which I dance. To speak knowledgeably to donors and audience members about the need for support keeps my job vital.

We are the face of dance.

Another interesting set of figures- although not hot off the press!

As of September 2006, there are 76 dance companies in America with operating budgets of $1 million or more.
- 58 of these are ballet companies.
- 18 of these are modern/contemporary companies.
- 35 of these are currently members of Dance/USA.