Sydnie Mosley reflects on "Power, Privilege, & Perception"

If you read my post discussing the Power, Privilege, & Perception: Voices on Race and Dance session of the 2015 Dance/NYC Symposium, you will remember that I made reference to panelist Sydnie Mosley (Artistic Director, Sydnie L. Mosley Dances and co-chair of Dance/NYC's Junior Committee). Mosley has written a series of three blog posts that detail her experience of preparing for and sitting on the final panel of that session, Making Change, Artist Voices. With cogent analysis, Mosley shows how an opportunity for open discussion of race and non-equity in dance got lost along with any chance of meaningful networking and follow-up action.

Read More to Say: Reflections on the 2015 Dance/NYC Symposium:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Healthcare for New York City's dance community

The William F. Ryan Community Health Network invites the dance community to register for services including primary and preventive care, routine dental, mental health, OB/GYN, and eye/vision services. Click here for its letter to the field.

Founded upon former congressman William F. Ryan's belief that "health care is a right, not a privilege," the William F. Ryan Community Health Network is a family of not-for-profit, federally qualified health centers, which delivers medical care to diverse and underserved communities. The William F. Ryan Community Health Network is: dedicated to its patients, culturally sensitive, community-oriented, and linguistically diverse. Its goal is to ensure that everyone receives the most comprehensive care possible. www.ryancenter.org

Contact:

Maria A. Lugo
Director of Operations
William F. Ryan Community Health Center
110 West 97 Street
N.Y. N.Y. 10025
212-316-8361 (Office)
212-932-8323 (Fax)
maria.lugo@ryancenter.org

The need for healthcare options in dance is demonstrated by recent Dance/NYC research. For instance, the Dance/NYC Junior Committee's Dance Workforce Census: Earnings Among Individuals, 21-35, shows that only 55% of full-time danceworkers, and 3.6% of part-time dance workers receive health insurance benefits.

The Ryan Community Health Network's new initiative is one response to this identified need and grows out of field discussions initiated by Charles Reinhart and including dance artists and managers, Dance/NYC, Dance/NYC Junior Committee's Healthcare Subcommittee, Career Transitions for Dancers, Elsie Management, The Field, Fractured Atlas, Harkness Center for Dance Injuries, Lower Manhattan Cultural Council, New York Live Arts, and Pentacle. For more on dancer health and to learn about Dance/USA's Taskforce on Dancer Health, see Dance/USA's resources.

Read the Dance Workforce Census report

Read the Dance/NYC Junior Committee report that everyone's talking about!

Dance Workforce Census: Earnings Among Individuals, Ages 21-35

The value of this study is its presentation of the first concrete research relating to the untenable economic plight of young dancers, choreographers and administrators working within the dance field in New York City. While no answers are posed, the need to find answers is made evident. If the passion, discipline and creativity of these individuals is not to be wasted, it must be allowed to flourish in a way that confirms that dance is, indeed, a respected profession — a place where achievement is recognized by the ability to earn a living wage, with appropriate health insurance benefits and a modicum of financial stability.

         –Beverly D’Anne

To download a pdf of the highlights or the full report, click here.

Tough economic realities for dancers

Dancers on poverty line
by Miriam Kreinin Souccar, Crain's New York Business.com, February 27, 2012

Dance/NYC Junior Committee, thank you!

I was honored to be the guest speaker at Tuesday evening's meeting of the Dance/NYC Junior Committee and to meet a roomful of sharp and passionate advocates for dance and its community. I'm inspired by their work and reminded to do everything in my power to keep my energy up and focused on positive steps.

And thank you, Sidnie Mosley, for posting this lovely account of my segment of the meeting!

On Writing Dance
by Sidnie Mosley, Dance/NYC Junior Committee

Here's more about Sidnie from her own blog, Love Stutter.

Dance/NYC Junior Committee on Facebook and Twitter

Dance counts. Let's document it.

Want to get involved in a Dance Workforce Census to document how New York City dance professionals (21-35 years of age) are surviving?

The aim is to count every individual 21-35 years of age who works in any capacity to support professional dance in New York City, including but not limited to:

agents
choreographers/creative artists
consultants
critics
dance therapists
designers
educators
managers and all administrators
performing artists
physical therapists
production staff
publicists
technicians

The Committee's intention is to generate conversation among the communities and individuals that participate and to publish results that will serve as a tool for informed decision-making, on the part of peers, colleagues and employers, and all advocates for dance.

INTERESTED? To get involved with this initiative, please contact Julia Kelly, External Relations Manager, at jcommresearch@dancenyc.org. Click here for more information.

Town hall meet for dance artists tonight

The Dance/NYC Junior Committee invites all dance artists to
Navigating the Terrain: Obstacles and Solutions for Today’s Dance Artists in New York.

Wednesday, April 13
6:30-8:30pm

Con Edison
Edison Room, 19th Floor
4 Irving Place, Manhattan
(near Union Square: directions)

In an effort to address concerns and offer solutions for today's dance artists living and creating in New York City, Sarah Maxfield facilitates a Town Hall coordinated by the Dance/NYC Junior Committee. Specifically geared towards choreographers and dancers, this Town Hall will function as a series of discussions to address issues surrounding the
development of a sustainable lifestyle as a dance artist in our current climate.

Topics to plan for, among many others are: making work and developing it beyond a single performance; cultivating a long-term practice of research; addressing the changes in funding models and priorities; maturing as an artist; how existing and emerging spaces can effectively support communities and artists; and shifting between opportunities to create, develop, show and tour work.

This is a forum to gather and voice shared concerns, using the group knowledge and experience as a resource to identify obstacles and discuss solutions that address collective issues. This discussion will focus on the choreographic and performance aspects of navigating the terrain, but all self-identified dance community participants are strongly encouraged to attend.

This event will continue at Forum (127 4th Ave, between 12th and 13th Street) for more conversation and networking.

For more info and to register, please click here.

The Dance/NYC Junior Committee (known formerly as the Youth Advisory Committee) is a New York-based community of contemporaries working as dance artists, educators and administrators. We serve as a liaison for our demographic (ages 19-30) in the wider dance community, provide a forum for dialogue among a diversity of perspectives in our field, foster professional development in our constituency, and generate ideas that will serve our common goals and those of Dance/NYC.