The Dance Creatives Compensation Survey: Why This Matters
In Q4 of 2025, we surveyed dancers, performers, teachers, and choreographers about how they are compensated for their work. Today we released the results. Even with a small sample, the findings confirmed something widely felt in the field: dance is powered by labor that is often under-resourced, under-compensated, and largely invisible.
Why It Matters
This survey isn’t just about documenting current conditions—it’s about supporting better ones. When we understand how compensation actually happens, we can:
Help the community compensate better when possible, by making norms and expectations more visible.
Aid artists in negotiating compensation, with real data instead of guesswork.
Highlight the funding and opportunity gaps that shape who gets to make work and how often new dance is shared.
These insights matter because funding gaps become access gaps. They determine who can develop full-length work, who only gets to show short pieces, and how frequently audiences get to experience new voices and forms.
What’s Next
This survey is a starting point, not an endpoint. From here, we plan to:
Expand data collection, especially around presentation opportunities and shared platforms.
Broaden participation, to better reflect the full range of working artists.
Use this data in sector conversations with funders, presenters, and institutions to support sustainable labor practices.
The takeaway is simple: if we want more dance, we must support the labor behind it. With better data, the community can compensate more fairly, negotiate more effectively, and advocate more clearly for the resources it needs.
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