Most dance workers do not earn a living wage from work in dance.
Dancers and choreographers earn the least, at $23K per year. To make ends meet, over half our community supplements income with work outside the industry in human service jobs in health/wellness, education, and hospitality. Dance organizations and groups: (1) rely heavily on donated/granted income—a fickle source of income and subject to grantors’ priorities; (2) have limited cash available; and (3) self-report weak financial health. Additionally, 64% of us are paying out of pocket to fund our artistic projects. National public sector arts and culture funding in the U.S. is low compared to other countries, is not keeping pace with inflation, and is often the only source for the needs of underserved communities.1
What are the Facts?
- Federal funding for the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has not kept pace with inflation.2
- Federal funding for the arts is low in comparison to other countries with federal arts agencies.3
- National adjusted public arts funding including local, state, and federal per capita as of 2023 was $3.94.4
- Federally about 62 cents per capita for the arts as a whole.5
- Funding for culture and the arts is less than 1% of New York City’s budget.6
From the State of NYC Dance 2023 Report:
Dance workers earn on average $22 per hour, 15% below the New York City living wage of $26 per hour.
41% of dance workers worked in dance without pay last year.
54% of dance workers also work outside of the industry.
64% of dance workers work outside of typical business, funding, and employment structures and pay for some of their work from their own pockets.
63% of organizations are relying on contributed income as compared to 55% in 2016.
56% of organizations do not hold a reserve/savings.
40% of organizations classify financial health as weak or very weak.
Dancers and choreographers earn on average $23,000 per year from dance work, which is approximately 60% of their total income.
Dancers and choreographers’ earnings are the lowest of any other role in dance, with CEOs or equivalent leads earning $80,000 on average.
- Public Funding for the Arts 2023. GIA Reader ↩︎
- NEA Inflation and Discretionary Spending Analyses 2023. Americans for the Arts. (2023). ↩︎
- Comparisons of Arts Funding in Selected Countries: Preliminary Findings ↩︎
- Public Funding for the Arts 2023. GIA Reader ↩︎
- NEA Appropriations History, FY 1966 to 2023. Americans for the Arts. (2023). ↩︎
- City Council Report to the Cultural Affairs Committee 2021 ↩︎
How do we get to Financial Sustainability?
By considering our relationship to larger systems, how we interact in community, and activities on a day-to-day level as well as incentivizing those in positions of power to take action.
Larger Systems
Dance is directly affected by the funding policies and priorities of government funding from federal to local and private philanthropy. Shifts in either direction at this level have direct effects on project funding and the availability of jobs, and which organizations, disciplines, and workers thrive. Here’s how you can help shift larger systems to better the New York City dance industry:
Quick Actions (5 minutes)
- Sign on to this Open Letter Imploring Mayor Adams to Restore Arts Funding before June 30, 2024.
- Thank your New York City Council Representatives for supporting funding for culture in this year’s budget
- Ask your U.S. Representatives and Senators to support the STAGE Act.
- Ask your U.S. Representatives and Senators to co-sponsor and support the Creative Workforce Investment Act (CWIA).
- Ask your U.S. Representatives and Senators to support the Passage of the Charitable Act (H.R. 3435, S. 566).
Deeper Actions (30 minutes to 3 hours)
- Testify at public hearings at the city or state level in support of arts and dance education.
- Identify an upcoming hearing on the New York City Council hearing calendar and sign up.
- Use the General Testimony Guidelines from Nonprofit New York and NYCAIER’s Testimony to Support Dance and Arts Education Funding.
- The next New York City Council hearing for the Cultural Affairs Committee is scheduled for May 21, 2024.
Questions for Reflection
- Do you understand the general advocacy environment and how it operates?
- Are you staying abreast of the budgeting cycles + policy shifts at City, State, and Federal levels?
- Are you aware of the movement for universal basic income?
In Community
When we engage with others in dance by hiring them, collaborating, teaching/attending a class etc., we shape the tone of the industry and can mitigate the less-than-ideal environment in which dance operates. Here’s how you can engage in community with this in mind:
Quick Actions (5 minutes)
- Transparently list pay and time commitment when reaching out to other dance workers. Ask your peers to do the same.
- Pause before you suggest a rate for a project or a teaching artist contract you will take on.
Deeper Actions (30 minutes to 3 hours)
- Sign up to serve on grant panels for city, state, or invited private panels where funding decisions are made.
Questions for Reflection
- Are you drafting equitable contracts?
- Are you engaging others in dance work in good faith, transparency, and accountability?
- Are you accounting for the investment they are making in your work if you aren’t able to pay a living wage? E.g. appropriate credit for creative involvement, warm-up space, work documentation, schedule flexibility, bartered services etc.
- Are you engaging with others in dance considering the level of resources they have access to, the resources you can provide, and the investment that your process requires?
- Is your dance activity housed in a fiscal/legal structure that supports your goals and capacity?
- Are you supporting practices of mutual aid and circular economy that are considering the needs of those engaged?
- Are you managing the tax implications of your business activities? I.e. Do you have to save for taxes or pay quarterly?
Day-to-Day
Our day-to-day can create shifts that promote more equitable practice standards and better sustainability. Here’s what you might consider:
Quick Actions (5 minutes)
- Learn about your rights to timely payment and contracts as a freelancer in NYC.
- Track the time you spend on artistic projects to be able to give estimates and put financial values to your work.
Questions for Reflection
- Is your compensation transparent and fair based on expectations, commitment, and levels of risk, and the means/resources of your community?
- If you transparently agree to work on a project that has limited financing, will you be financially sustained in other ways?
- Is there a balance in your portfolio of work between artistic fulfillment and self-sustenance?
- Is there room to negotiate for increased resource provision and/or acknowledgment of labor investment?
- Have you considered long-term savings and retirement options?
Positions of Power
Do you hold a position of power that influences how funding reaches the dance community or how policy is set? Review and prepare to advance the following actions for:
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