Now Next Dance/Leadership Institute

June 15-17

Dance Loft on 14

Washington, DC

Join Now Next Dance for our first annual Leadership Institute. This three-day professional development conference includes both Juried Workgroups and Open Classes. The program is designed to enhance the leadership development of professionals artists & educators by providing an opportunity to advance their strategic, creative, and practical skills. We welcome applications and registrations from dance artists working as independent artists, those across the non-profit field, and university or K12 faculty.  The three days are structured on the Now Next Dance framework, a physical, cognitive, and affective scaffolding of Action, Support, Curiosity, Challenge, and Resilience.

Apply

Open Classes

Over the three days, we will offer a series of classes open to all dance and dance-adjacent professionals. These classes may include:

  • Gaga Movement Language
  • Effective Proposals 
  • Artist Taxes 
  • International Touring & Education 
  • Be Present(ed)
  • Now Next Body 
  • The Legal Side
  • Curriculum Forward
  • Advocacy

Juried Workgroups

A select group of participants—chosen by blind review—will participate in Juried Workgroups. These curated roundtables will unite groups of 4-5 professionals who are working on related or complimentary projects or issues. Participants will have the opportunity to share their work, seek critical feedback, and provide feedback to one another.  Workgroups will meet for two hours each day and workgroup participants can participate in most open sessions as well. A Now Next Dance trainee will help document the process for each participant to support each workgroup.

To apply for the Juried Workgroups, please apply online by February 15, 2016.

To apply for the Leadership Institute, please register online.

Juried Workgroups

To apply, in 250 words, please propose a workgroup contribution including the following:

1.     Project

We conceptualize dance broadly and encourage you to consider proposing any of the following:

  • Creative research (choreographic or film)
  • Dance research (scholarly or popular)
  • Dance education programming
  • Curriculum/program design
  • Dance-adjacent products

2.     Problem

Your problem should be something you need an outside perspective on—not your research question or the problem that your work addresses. Think of it as both direct and expansive question-asking. Perhaps you are wondering about the efficacy or relevance of a particular research strategy. Perhaps you struggle with strategies to communicate the need for your project in a particular context.  Perhaps you are in an institution where you are alone in your creative worldview and you need strategies to feel connected beyond your workplace. Note that given the issues surrounding funding in our field, we are offering a funding strategies open workshop so please think beyond funding for your problem statement.

3.     Perspective

Your perspective indicates what you can share with the group. This can relate to your specific project or to your career and artistic relationships in general.

Evaluation

These proposals will undergo a blind-review process by members of the Now Next Dance Advisory Board and an invited group of readers. Please do not include: your name, the name of your institution, or the name of your particular project.  

Proposals will be evaluated with the following criteria:

  • Innovative Project
    • Is this project relevant to the field of dance?
    • Does this project bring new voice/perspective to the field?
    • Does this program advance the field either by deepening current lines of work or creating a new stream of dance studies?
  • Critical Problem
    • Could the proposed problem be addressed though mentoring and creative workshopping?
    • Does the problem seem to reflect a critical understanding of the project and its context in the field?
    • Is the problem relatable or relevant to other participants?
  • Perspective
    • Can the presenter share useful experiences with the group?
    • Are the successes and failures of this given project relevant to the group?
    • Does this presenter bring a body of knowledge that can be applied to other career trajectories?

If selected, participants will provide their workgroup with a work sample and a set of questions two weeks prior to the workshop. All workgroup participants will review the work and will come to Now Next Dance ready to discuss and engage with the material.