Dance/NYC State of the Organization Address & Winter Break 2025
Wednesday, December 10, 2025
Dance/NYC State of the Organization Address & Winter Break 2025
(FAQs after letter)
Dear Dance Community,
Each year takes us on its own roller coaster. As we reflect on 2025—its highs, its challenges, and everything in between—know that we are right there with you, taking stock of how far we’ve come and what we’ve learned along the way.
Leading Dance/NYC through this moment has been an honor. As we approach my transition in early Spring, the feeling is bittersweet. Still, I’m excited to welcome a new leadership team at a time when years of learning have crystallized into the guiding light of a new strategic plan and a thoughtfully designed structure for long-term stability. Dance/NYC is ready for this evolution—and all that comes next—and I’m genuinely optimistic about how it will ground and enrich the organization’s continued service to you, our field.
Many of you reading this have played a role in these massive processes and recent achievements. I hope you share my pride in all we have accomplished together. Our commitment to building a field where dance is protected, resourced, and shared requires our continued, collective effort, and we’re grateful for your partnership.
2025 reflections...
This year was brightened by milestones long in motion, from launching the Dance Workforce Resilience (DWR) Fund, to securing historic public investment in the arts through the Our New York City Dance campaign and support of a 72-member #OurNYCDance Action Crew.
It was also a defining year for coalition work. We amplified the advocacy and resources of partners including Americans for the Arts, Creatives Rebuild New York, Safety Net Coalition, Cultural Equity Coalition, NYC Arts in Education Roundtable, and New Yorkers for Culture & Arts. Community connection strengthened as more of you joined the Dance Workforce Directory on our DWR Hub and participated in Field-Wide Calls to learn and organize around shared priorities. Behind the scenes, Working Matters propelled our Wage and Working Standards Project forward, producing drafts of potential minimum rate, working, and equity standards for the field.
These efforts unfolded alongside our deep work with PENN Creative Strategy to finalize Dance/NYC’s strategic plan, which we proudly unveiled to you this fall.
2026 intentions...
We will enter 2026 with newfound clarity of purpose and new leadership poised to bring fresh energy and ideas to the helm. I’m grateful for the opportunity to soon pass the mic to Dance/NYC’s next Executive Director, who will share an introduction with the field in early 2026. Please stay tuned! Their appointment will be followed by a search for an inaugural Director of Programming & Operations.
The year ahead marks the first outlined in our strategic plan, Collective Motion: Dance/NYC’s 5-Year Commitment to the Field. Consistent with this plan and our refined mission statement, we’re embracing our role as a bridge between artists, funders, and policymakers to catalyze long-term systemic change. As Dance/NYC Board Chair, Reshma Patel recently affirmed: “We envision a sector where artists from historically disinvested communities can work sustainably and free from discrimination; where informed, connected dance workers shape education, policy, and public life; and where dance is recognized as essential to our culture.” This is the compass for our work going forward, which will focus on research, advocacy, regranting, and knowledge-sharing.
We’re particularly excited to advance the next phase of our Wage and Working Standards Project, building on insights from the State of NYC Dance 2023 Report and comparative research conducted by Working Matters. A collaborative process will bring folks like you into the fold, develop shared tools and models, and ultimately result in the publication of standards for sector-wide use. This project has the potential to translate equitable pay and fair working conditions from aspiration into actionable practice for artists, employers, funders, and presenters.
We also hope to expand the Dance Workforce Resilience (DWR) Fund beyond its current pilot, engaging renewed and new philanthropic partnerships so that more NYC-based, freelance dance workers can benefit. Meanwhile, the DWR Hub will continue to spotlight responsive resources, as the Our New York City Dance campaign drives both new and ongoing advocacy efforts, and our regranting programs carry onwards.
Let's connect...
We’re eager to continue this work alongside each of you. To care for our team and prepare for the season ahead, please note that Dance/NYC will be closed for winter break from Thursday, December 25 through Wednesday, December 31, 2025. This will be followed by an internal, focused work period from Thursday, January 1 through Friday, January 9, 2026, during which we will operate with limited external communications.
In the meantime, timely resources and answers to common questions are offered on our website.
Thank you for everything you contribute to the dance sector. Being in community with you is a gift, and I’m excited to continue learning, building, and moving forward together.
With appreciation,
Sara, and the Dance/NYC Team
DANCE/NYC FAQs
Key Dates:
- December 18: Submit website ads by 3:00 p.m. to run during Dance/NYC’s winter break.
- December 25–31: Dance/NYC winter break; offices closed, no external programs, and limited communications and ad placements.
- January 1–9: Dance/NYC office reopens for internal activity: no external programs, limited external communications.
- January 12: Resume all external programs and communications.
Contact:
Please expect a delay in response to any email communications, phone calls, voicemails, and/or direct messages via social media received from December 25–January 11 .
Advocacy:
1. This year, we launched the second annual Our New York City Dance campaign, a rallying call for the New York City dance community to come together and take action towards building an industry that is valued, protected, sustainable, and just.
- Review our campaign timeline to learn how we mobilized the dance community to win the largest arts budget in city history and more.
- Take your advocacy to the next level and join the #OurNYCDance Action Crew here.
- Check out our four advocacy priorities and how we acted on them.
- Experience the recording of our 2025 campaign launch event.
- Review our issue primers for everyday moves you can make to tackle major issues in the dance industry.
2. Check out our November Dance Worker Digest for important news and resources of particular interest to our community.
3. Review our Advocacy Alerts for our latest calls to action.
4. Visit Dance/NYC’s Advocacy page for upcoming events, news, and updates on legislative efforts at the federal, state, and local levels.
5. Visit Dance/NYC’s resource pages including:
• DWR Resource Library
• Racial Justice Resources
• Sexual Harassment Resources
• Land Acknowledgement Practice Resources
• Disability. Dance. Artistry Resources
• Immigrants. Dance. Arts. Resources
• Rehearsal Space Resources
• Fiscal Sponsorship Resources
6. Culture@3 calls and New Yorkers for Culture and Arts advocacy calls are for leaders of nonprofit cultural institutions in NYC to connect with each other and discuss advocacy issues central to the cultural sector. If you would like to join these calls, email Lucy Sexton of New Yorkers for Culture & Arts at lucy@ny4ca.org.
7. Sign up for Governor Hochul’s mailing list for the latest news and guidelines
8. Join NYC Arts in Education Roundtable in advocating for the arts as essential to education for all students
9. Reference Arts Action Fund’s Breaking News Updates Impacting Arts and Culture for up-to-date national arts news.
10. Review Nonprofit New York’s legislative priorities for nonprofit organizations
11. Check out Dance/USA’s Key Advocacy Issues
Research:
1. Review Dance/NYC’s latest research report: State of NYC Dance 2023: Findings from the Dance Industry Census.
2. Review the results of the 2025 Cultural Development Fund Impact Survey, conducted by Dance/NYC and A.R.T/New York.
3. Dance/NYC’s research page also hosts a library of all of the past research reports for your use.
Dance.NYC, Advertisements, Communications, and Press:
- New accounts created during the winter break will be processed starting January 5, 2026.
- Dance/NYC is sunsetting the current version of the Featured Profile Lottery and Ad Package. Stay tuned for updates as we reimagine these opportunities for 2026.
2. Advertisements:
- If you are interested in advertising with Dance/NYC during this period, please note the following:
- E-newsletter and social media ads will not be available between December 24 and January 4. There will be no Dance/NYC newsletter on Monday, December 29, 2025.
- Ads purchased between Friday, December 19 and Wednesday, December 31, will not begin being processed until Thursday, January 1, 2026. Please plan accordingly.
- For ads to run in the Monday, January 5 newsletter, ads must be submitted by 10:00 a.m. ET on Friday, January 2, 2026.
- For website ads to run during the organizational break, the submission deadline is 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, December 18.
- All ads and payments must be submitted via our website
- E-newsletter and social media ads will not be available between December 24 and January 4. There will be no Dance/NYC newsletter on Monday, December 29, 2025.
- Listings and events added to Dance.NYC’s Community Calendar will continue to be available during the organizational break. To place a listing, please visit: www.dance.nyc/place-free-listings-and-purchase-ads
3. Press
- If you are a member of the press, please direct your questions to Michelle Tabnick, Michelle Tabnick PR, michelle@michelletabnickpr.com, 646-765-4773
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Learn more about the organization by browsing our website.
Leadership Training, Networking and Convening:
Revisit Past Events and Initiatives, as well as resources related to our major initiatives:
1. Experience Dance/NYC’s Collective Motion: Dance/NYC’s 5-Year Commitment to the Field from October 2025.
2. Experience Dance/NYC’s State of NYC Dance: Findings from the Dance Industry Census Research Performance Event from December 2023.
- Learn more about the Dance. Workforce. Resilience. (DWR) Initiative
- Explore tools and resources available on the DWR Hub.
3. Experience All Symposium 2022 sessions.
4. Disability. Dance. Artistry. Initiative
- Visit this page for information related to this initiative that aims to advance inclusion and access to the art form for disabled people including: research reports, resources and accessibility guides and recent fellowship recipients.
- Visit this page for information related to this initiative that aims to extend the role of dance artistry in fostering the inclusion, integration, and human rights of immigrants in NYC including: research reports, and resources.
Grantmaking:
Included below are resources related to our major regranting programs:
1. Dance Workforce Resilience Fund
- Applications for the Dance Workforce Resilience (DWR) Fund opened on June 18, 2025 and will be accepted on a rolling basis through March 3, 2026. Award notifications will be sent out following each month-long application round. For more information, visit Dance.NYC/DWRFund.
- For inquiries specific to the DWR Fund, please email dwrfund@dance.nyc.
- This program is nearing the end of the first year of a two-year grant cycle (2024-2026). New requests and applications to the Dance Advancement Fund are not being accepted at this time.
- For inquiries specific to the Dance Advancement Fund, please email danceadvancementfund@dance.nyc.
2. Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program
- The Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program is sunsetting in its current form at the end of 2026, supporting existing 2022-2024 grantees. New applications and requests to the Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program will not reopen.
- For inquiries specific to the Rehearsal Space Subsidy Program, please email rehearsalspacesubsidy@dance.nyc.
Funders and Donors:
We are deeply grateful to our funders and donors and all they have enabled us to do so far this year, and in the many preceding.
1. Dance/NYC is a registered nonprofit organization (EIN: 46-0830780) that champions the New York City metropolitan area dance sector by fostering a more just, equitable, and inclusive landscape where dance workers and organizations can thrive. If you or anyone you know is interested in making a contribution or learning about the different ways to support Dance/NYC’s sector-advancing work, please visit Dance.NYC/about/donate.
- If you encounter any issues while attempting to donate online: email sroer@dance.nyc.
- To donate by check: mail your, check payable to “Dance/NYC,” to Dance/NYC, 218 East 18th Street, Ground Floor, New York, NY 10003.
- To make a donation through a donor-advised fund: visit our donation page for further instructions.
- To inquire about stock donations or alternate forms of giving: email sroer@dance.nyc.
2. Note that federal charitable giving rules will shift on January 1, 2026, under the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. While the new framework may offer additional advantages for some donors, others may benefit from leveraging charitable contributions before December 31, 2025.
- What’s Changing on January 1, 2026:
- New deduction floor: donors who itemize will only be able to deduct charitable contributions that exceed 0.5% of their adjusted gross income (AGI).
- Reduced benefit for those in the highest tax bracket: the value of itemized deductions, including charitable contributions, will be capped at 35 cents per dollar for taxpayers in the top (37%) bracket.
- Strategic Giving Opportunities prior to December 31, 2025:
- Accelerate your giving: If you typically give annually (or are planning multi-year support), frontloading your contributions before December 31, 2025 may help you benefit from the current, more favorable rules.
- Leverage donor-advised funds (DAFs): By contributing to a DAF before year-end, you can secure the 2025 tax advantage now, while retaining flexibility to recommend grants to nonprofits over time.
- Review the expanded state and local tax (SALT) deduction: Beginning earlier this year, the increase in the SALT cap from $10,000 to $40,000 means that itemizing may be newly advantageous for donors in high-tax states. If you expect to itemize, consider whether accelerating charitable gifts this year could increase your savings.
- Explore IRA giving options: For individuals age 70½ and older, IRA Qualified Charitable Distributions (QCDs) allow tax-free donations up to $108,000 directly from your IRA to qualifying nonprofits. QCDs also avoid the new 2026 deduction floor and cap, making them an especially efficient giving tool.
