Executive Summary the Advance Project

Making Changes FACILITATING THE TRANSITION OF DANCERS TO POST-PERFORMANCE CAREERS BY WILLIAM J. BAUMOL JOAN JEFFRI DAVID THROSBY Executive Summary Making Changes FACILITATING THE TRANSITION OF DANCERS TO POST-PERFORMANCE CAREERS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY BY WILLIAM J. BAUMOL, JOAN JEFFRI AND DAVID THROSBY WITH SUBSTANTIAL ASSISTANCE FROM SUE ANNE BATEY BLACKMAN, VIRGINIA HOLLISTER, ANNEMARIE SCHOEPFER AND LAUREN TEHAN RESEARCH DIRECTOR Joan Jeffri ADVANCE BOARD, SUPPORT & CREDITS ADVISORY BOARD ADVANCE BOARD William J. Baumol Philippe Braunschweig, Co-Chairman and David Throsby Harvey Lichtenstein, Co-Chairman Paul Bronkhorst Deborah Bull RESEARCH TEAM AND STAFF Michael Byars William J. Baumol, New York University and Princeton Alexander J. Dubé University Andrew Holland Joan Jeffri, Teachers College, Columbia University Kevin McKenzie David Throsby, Macquarie University Garry Neil Sue Anne Batey Blackman, Princeton University Annemarie Parekh Cheryl Carnahan, Consultant Stephen Pier Virginia Hollister, Macquarie University Linda Yates Annemarie Schoepfer, Teachers College, Columbia University ADVANCE PROJECT SUPPORTERS Lauren Tehan, Teachers College, Columbia University AEA Consulting Altria Group, Inc RESEARCH PARTNERS (SURVEY) Andrew W Mellon Foundation Joan Jeffri, Teachers College, Columbia University, U.S. Arts International Adrian Schriel, Tanz Ensemble Cathy Sharp, Switzerland Bank Juliius Baer David Throsby, Macquarie University, Australia Career Transition for Dancers (U.S.) Caroline H Newhouse DATA PARTNERS (COUNTRY PROFILES) Consul General of Switzerland Paul Bronkhorst, Dutch Retraining Program for Professional Dancer’s Career Development (U.K.) Dancers and International Organization for the Transition Dance Magazine of Professional Dancers, Netherlands Dancer Transition Resource Center (Canada) Keiko Fukui, Geidankyo, Japan Dance USA Pia Hartmann, Hartmann Nagel Art & Consulting, Germany Doris Duke Charitable Foundation Joan Jeffri, Teachers College, Columbia University, U.S. Dutch Retraining Program for Professional Dancers Claire McCaughey, The Canada Council for the Arts, Ernst C. Stiefel Foundation Canada Howard Gilman Foundation Pierre-Michel Menger, Centre National de la Recherche International Organization for the Transition of Professional Scientifique, France Dancers (IOTPD) Gabriela Medina, La Manga Dance Company, Mexico Monaco Dance Forum Annemarie Parekh, Pro Helvetia, Arts Council of Nathan Cummings Foundation Switzerland, Switzerland National Endowment for the Arts Andrew Princz, ontheglobe.com, Hungary The Rudolf Nureyev Foundation Annemarie Schoepfer, Teachers College, Columbia Princess Grace of Monaco Foundation University, U.S. Pro Helvetia, Arts Council of Switzerland Adrian Schriel, Tanz Ensemble Cathy Sharp, Switzerland Reed Foundation Jeanette Siddall, Arts Council England, U.K. Rolex Corporation Joysanne Sidimus, Dancer Transition Resource Centre, Sage Cowles Canada Swiss Federal Office of Culture Lauren Tehan, Teachers College, Columbia University, U.S. UNESCO David Throsby, Macquarie University, Australia Published by The aDvANCE Project. New York, NY. 2004 MANAGEMENT AND FUNDRAISING Adrian Ellis, AEA Consulting Copyright © Trustees of Teachers College Columbia Jeanne Bouhey, AEA Consulting University in the City of New York / Research Center for Libby McNeece, AEA Consulting Arts and Culture, 2004. www.aeaconsulting.com The aDvANCE Project logo and book designs: Lost In Brooklyn Studio www.lostinbrooklyn.com SPECIAL THANKS Special thanks to all of the current and former dancers and professionals in the dance field who care about transition and without whom this report would not have been possible. PREAMBLE We are pleased to present the results of what we believe to be the first study of its kind, a coordinated inquiry into the career transition of professional dancers in different countries. In total, eleven countries were included in this study. Sample surveys were undertaken in three countries to provide insights into the challenges of career change as seen from the viewpoint of the individual dancer, and country profiles were written in eight additional countries to illustrate further the global environment of dance. In addition, the four existing career transition centers con- tributed substantially to the Summary Statement by pro- viding illuminating information derived from their data. WHY THIS REPORT? There is an urgent need for measures to ameliorate the problems of transition faced by all professional dancers. Summary Only four countries—Canada, the Netherlands, the United Kingdom (U.K.), and the United States (U.S.)— are fortunate enough to have formal transition centers or Statement other transition measures in place, and these programs have made significant progress in helping many dancers in these countries deal with the challenges of career change. But more generally, it remains a fact that deter- mining what should be done is hampered by a lack of understanding of the problem, inadequate data, and the absence of an objective basis for systematic analysis of alternative strategies. At the initiative of the International Organization for the Transition of Professional Dancers (IOTPD), an international organization based in Switzerland, the present study has been undertaken by an international research team to assess the extent and nature of the challenges of the transition process, to gath- er factual evidence to test various propositions about the THE CHALLENGES OF TRANSITION effects of transition on the individual dancer, and to sug- gest ways in which the problems of transition may be Dance is a career that entails an extraordinarily high level addressed by dance companies, service organizations, of passion, commitment, extensive periods of training, public agencies, and dancers themselves. However, fuller and a professional life that is relatively brief, since many understanding of the issue and its scope requires recogni- dancers have to retire in their early thirties and some even tion of the fact that the problems of transition can differ earlier. Yet in most countries, dancers are among the most from one country to another. This report therefore explic- poorly paid of artists, despite their great contribution to itly adopts an international point of view in analyzing the the cultural life of society, and inadequate recognition problem and in making recommendations. often compounds their morale problems. For professional dancers reaching the end of their performing careers, this WHAT IS A DANCER? confluence of factors creates economic, psychological, and educational difficulties for which they are often ill- This study is concerned with professional dancers. It is equipped and which are likely to have a profound effect well known that the definition of “professional” in the arts on the rest of their lives. Having lived in a relatively is somewhat problematic, because a simple income test inward-looking and intensely focused world, they find that may be appropriate in most other professions cannot themselves suddenly cast out from the stimulus and sup- readily be applied to artists. Rather, we consider profes- port that the dance world provided. Our research indi- sionalism to derive from a combination of factors includ- cates that the skills and experience that professional ing a dancer’s training, career commitment, standard of dancers accumulate during their dancing years, including work, income and time allocation, and we acknowledge self-discipline, team work and stamina, are significant that precise definitions of professional status differ among and transferable resources that are in danger of being countries. wasted as their active dancing careers come to an end. Thus, inadequacy of career transition support not only In regard to dance forms, we distinguish among dancers creates significant challenges for individual dancers, but working in five broad categories: (1) classical/ballet, (2) also imposes a social cost in the form of wasted human modern/contemporary dance, (3) organized indigenous or capital. folk dance, (4) musical theater or commercial dance, and (5) “other,” a catch-all category that encompasses The aDvANCE Project PG 1 (4) A series of three sample surveys of current and former SUMMARY dancers, undertaken in Australia, Switzerland, and the U.S. The results of these surveys provide invaluable dancers working in cinema, television, and other indus- insights into the challenges of career change as seen from tries (such as revues, fashion shows, cruise ships and cor- the perspective of the individual dancer in these coun- porate events), as well as less-organized forms of dance. tries. In all five of these categories, it is common to find individual dancers whose work spans more than one of the fields THE DANCE INDUSTRY WORLDWIDE at a given time or at different stages in their careers. Our individual national portraits comprising the country We adopt the conventional usage of the term “transition” profiles are made up of information on the broadly defined in this study to describe the career stage during which a dance industry in each country, including data on educa- dancer stops actively performing (often gradually) for rea- tional and training systems; public and private funding; sons of age, health, injury, or some other cause, and numbers of employed and unemployed professional moves to a new activity, whatever that may be. We use dancers; numbers of dance companies and institutions the terms “current” and “former” dancers to distinguish involved

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