New York City, NY–Dance/NYC is pleased to announce the Disability. Dance. Artistry. Fund (DDA Fund), made possible by the generous support of the Ford Foundation. The DDA Fund’s purpose is to generate dance making and performance by and with disabled artists. This activity is intended to advance artistic innovation and excellence, and, by extension, further disability rights.

The DDA Fund leverages Dance/NYC’s capacity as a regrantor and extends the organization’s work to advance a cultural ecosystem that expressly and equitably includes disabled artists. It responds directly to two recent research reports, Discovering Disability: Data & NYC Dance (2015) and Disability. Dance. Artistry. (2016), and a seminal conference presented as part of ADA25NYC, in partnership with the New York City Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities.

“The Ford Foundation is pleased to partner with Dance/NYC to advance equity and inclusion in the dance sector,” said Darren Walker, President of the Ford Foundation. “Dance and the arts have the tremendous power to inspire audiences and to transform hearts and minds. We hope the Disability. Dance. Artistry Fund will create more opportunities for artists engaged in integrated dance to share their passion with the world.” 

“With the Disability. Dance. Artistry. Fund, Dance/NYC puts disability front and center as a positive artistic and generative force,” offered Lane Harwell, Executive Director of Dance/NYC. “It aims to advance the creative and progressive potential of professional dance.”

In early September, Dance/NYC will issue an open Request for Proposals (RFP), inviting self-identified integrated dance companies to submit applications for grants of $30,000-$15,000 to support production costs for integrated dance performance(s) in the metropolitan New York City area from January 2017 through March 2018. The RFP will be available on Dance/NYC’s website at Dance.NYC.

The deadline for application submission is October 25, 2016 at 6 p.m. EST

Applicants must be dance makers which are either 501 (c)(3) organizations or fiscally sponsored projects and able to demonstrate at least two years of integrated dance activity that includes public performance. New, fiscally sponsored projects created for the purpose of applying to the DDA Fund are ineligible, as are projects for organizations for which integrated dance is a new activity. Grants will not be considered for applications from individual artists, educational institutions, presenters, or service organizations. The fund will not support programs with primarily therapeutic or educational goals. Additional information about eligibility and application requirements will be available in early September.

About Dance/NYC: Dance/NYC’s mission is to promote the knowledge, appreciation, practice, and performance of dance in the metropolitan New York City area. It embeds values of equity and inclusion into all aspects of the organization. It works in alliance with Dance/USA, the national service organization for professional dance.

Visit Dance.NYC/DDA for details on Dance/NYC’s Disability. Dance. Artistry initiative.

Request for Proposals were issued on September 8, 2016, you can find more details by visiting Dance.NYC/DDAFund.