The 2016-2017 season marks NDP's 20th anniversary. Moving Dance Forward rigorously unearths NDP's cumulative contributions to the development of the dance field. It also probes critical field trends that influence dance creation and touring today.1NEFA's objectives for this report are threefold: to document NDP's impacts, to improve NDP moving forward by gaining insights into unmet field needs and NDP's strengths and weaknesses, and to broadly share findings with the hopes that this research will inform programs and investments even beyond NEFA.
To meet the study objectives, our firm, Metris Arts Consulting, used a variety of methods and data sources. Core methods included: detailed analyses of NDP's internal records; a literature review; field-wide surveys administered to both dancemakers and presenters (nearly 800 responses); focus groups with dancemak-ers who self-identified as being largely excluded from access to resources that support contemporary dance touring; focus groups with presenters, including those who have and have not received support from NDP; interviews with dancemakers, presenters, NEFA staff, and dance ecology watchers; and an exploration of select secondary quantitative sources.
Our key findings reveal NDP's vital contributions to the development of the dance field. It has provided critical and holistic support for dance; made significant investments in both creation and touring; connected audiences and communities to dance; and increased artists' and presenters' connections, knowledge, confidence, and standing. An analysis of presenters and artists supported along several dimensions reveals strides in meeting NDP's objectives of supporting a diverse range of artists and presenters, as well as potential opportunities for improvement. Below (and to an even greater extent in the full report), we delve into the nuances of these impacts, substantiate findings, and place them in their larger context by connecting them to larger field trends.
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- Copyright 2016 by New England Foundation for the Arts. All rights reserved.