Funding 2024: less money - higher costs
Little funding according to the watering can principle or a lot of funding with a low funding quota: Each decision creates different situations that the following economic chain of funders - organizers - companies - artists (and team) have to deal with. We want to think through and discuss the different situations, alternatives and their consequences: What expectations may I have? Who bears what responsibility where?
Led by: Béla Bisom, Managing Director transmissions GmbH and Commercial Director Favoriten-Festival

Thinking production and distribution together
How can the promotion of production and distribution be brought more in line to enable a more holistic promotion of dance art? What funding tools are needed to increase the visibility of artistic work beyond its own region?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Laurence Nagel, cultural manager, expert in funding, fundraising and strategic development.

Shaping the relationship between 'gatekeepers' and artists
How can 'gatekeepers', programmers, festival directors and artists focus on common interests instead of manifesting dependencies?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Douglas Bateman and artist friends from the Festival Friends program.

Artists need production structures that are funded!
The work of small artists is often a full-time job - and moreover, professional support through production offices or management is often missing. But these structures are often not funded. How can the integration of producers / production offices as GbR or sole proprietors succeed in the German funding structure?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Nadine Freisleben, cultural manager and founder of "Apricot Productions".

Self-determination instead of self-exploitation
Precarious working and living conditions make dancers vulnerable to abuse of power. What conditions are needed in the working world of dance professionals in order to lead a good and safe life? What can be done to actively fight against abuses?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Tatjana Basow, dance pedagogue, independent lecturer with many years of experience as a trade union secretary.

Where did you go, my Publikum?
How can an audience development strategy be developed to reach different audiences? How can audience loyalty be strengthened and new audiences be attracted at the same time?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Nikos Konstantakis, actor, sociologist, dance facilitator

More appreciation for the art form Dance
What strategies can the scene develop and what alliances can it form to lend weight to the sociatal importance of dance and increase the reliability of political statements?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Sabine Gehm, curator, coordinator, project manager, board member of Dachverband Tanz Deutschland

Diversity promotion - the when and how?
Diversity is on everyone's lips. However, there is still a lack of visibility and access for diverse dance practices that operate outside the mainstream understanding of dance. How can access and exchange be created on an equal footing - according to the motto "Nothing about us without us"?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Rajyashree Ramesh, dance facilitator, niche expert, board member of Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.

A mobile dance studio?!  
Would a mobile dance studio - realized through interim real estate use - be a chance for the independent dance scene to solve (rehearsal) space problems? Beneficial, questionable or nonsense? Would this be a win-win situation for dance makers/performers and for property owners - and ultimately for the attractiveness of cities?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Sabina Stücker and Kati Masami Menze, IG Tanz Essen

What would a dream application form look like?
Together we would like to model application forms and discuss in mixed groups - from the perspective of applicants, funders and jury members - how applications can be made more accessible and inclusive for all. This session will be based on the DIS-TANZ-SOLO jury's reflection paper on the discrimination-sensitive implementation of jury work and funding procedures.
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Nicole Fiedler, Friederike Geisler and the team of the DIS-TANZEN funding program of the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.

Urban dance needs more visibility!  
How can a place for Urban Dance be created in the current funding structures of dance? How can the visibility of Urban Dance be increased? How can professional structures in the form of independent stages, training centers and festivals be thought along, planned and implemented (in terms of cultural policy)?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Zekai Fenerci, artistic director and managing director Pottporus e.V.

Wanted: New funding pots for dance art in old age
The connection between dance art and age - and thus the appreciation and acceptance of idiosyncrasies, physical-mental development processes and aging in dance - is an important topic. Nevertheless, there are very few funding opportunities for this. There is a need for a rethink and, if possible, an extra funding pot for dance art in old age!
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Gabriele Gierz, dance teacher, dancer and choreographer

Funding and development of dance journalism in the future?
'tanznetz' is working within the association TANZ.media and the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland to secure, finance and develop dance journalism in the future. But what about the importance of dance journalism? What are the funding strategies? What would be a fair, just and sustainable approach at eye level - between journalists and readers?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Rico Stehfest, freelance journalist

Everything on Google!? Dance Knowledge in the 21st Century
Journalism, science and archives form a joint competence network. They collect, preserve, develop and communicate knowledge about dance. But what about these forms of knowledge in the 21st century? What can dance archives offer that is not already available on Youtube and Wikipedia? What is the need for dance science? And who will save dance journalism?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Members of the Standing Committee IV (Dance Studies, Archives and Journalism) of the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland

Promotion of young talents in dance through demand-oriented qualification
Short presentation of the digital knowledge platform "EMERGING DANCE ARTISTS" and collection of impulses and contents for its development and advancement. Which topics are particularly relevant for the career entry of young dancers in Germany, which qualification offers already exist and which are missing - and where are the challenges?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Dany Beyer, coordinator of the DIS-TANZ-START qualification program of the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland.

Dance in area regions
The promotion of networks creates structures to strengthen dance and its actors. The alliance "Tanz weit draußen" (Dance far out) strengthens dance beyond the urban agglomerations through transnational exchange and transfer of competencies, including residencies, mentoring, online formats, exchange of productions and symposia.
Led by: Andrea Gern, Management TanzSzene Baden-Württemberg e.V., Elisabeth Nehring, specialized office Dance Mecklenburg-Vorpommern

Empowerment
How can the desire for change be translated into action and activism? What prevents artists from actively shaping change in the dance scene? What conditions must be met in order for them to feel empowered to become active in their work environment or on a cultural policy level?
(Working language of this session is English.)
Led by: Sara Escribano and Diana Wöhrl, hybrid dance artists and dance activists, dancersconnect

Equality for BIPoC artists  
How can cultural justice and equality for BIPoC artists* in dance be achieved on a national level? What demands and funding are needed?
(Working language of this session is English.)
Led by: Hannah Ma, performer, choreographer, producer and Leonard Cruz, performer, choreographer, professor of theater and dance.

World Cultural Heritage - and now?
In 2022, the practice of modern dance was included by UNESCO in the worldwide list of Intangible Cultural Heritage. How can the discourse around the heritage of Modern Dance as a significant dance cultural expression be maintained and the knowledge be deepened and disseminated?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Claudia Fleischle-Braun and Dr. Christiana Rosenberg-Ahlaus, AG Modern Dance 

Lower fee limits and funding
Sustainable funding and continuous funding perspectives are needed to counteract crises. What has been achieved so far with the lower fee limits in the independent performing arts? What concrete experiences have been made? Where do improvements need to be made?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Helge-Björn Meyer, Managing Director, Bundesverband Freie Darstellende Künste e.V.

Creating access
Accessible events and equal collaboration of chronically ill/disabled/deaf artists, including appropriate sustainable project funding - how can this succeed (better)?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Angela Alves, Choreographer

We need to talk! Abuse of power in dance
The Ethics Commission of the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland introduces its tasks and activities and presents the format 'Traveling Salon'. The Salon is a space for encounters. Here topics are discussed that inspire but also polarize and are emotionally charged. It creates a Safe Space to discuss issues such as abuse of power.  
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Marie-Zoé Buchholz, Antje Klinge, Sonja Laaser, members of the Ethics Committee of Dachverband Tanz Deutschland

Continuity in ensemble work
The permanent ensembles at municipal and state theaters as well as continuously working independent ensembles are multiplayers - they develop three to four new productions per year, play repertoire, go into the urban space, into the area and on tour. In the structures of the theater houses as well as in independent sponsorship, they often reach their limits. For several years, ensemble funding has been discussed, which should strengthen the continuous artistic work.
Led by: Michael Freundt, Managing Director of Dachverband Tanz Deutschland

Getting older and growing old in the free performance scene
What is the current situation for dancers beyond 60 (or even 50)? How is age discrimination dealt with? What are the perspectives? And how can experience be passed on as valuable potential to the following generations?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Petra Lehr, dancer, choreographer, dance mediator

Artists in Exile
How can dancers and choreographers continue their dance careers in exile? What possibilities of support are there and which ones make sense - regionally and nationally? How can problems and challenges be solved together?
(Working language of this session is English)
Led by: Elena Leskova, cultural manager, producer

What next for dance education?  
How can dance training be strengthened so that dance can be presented with the highest professionalism in the ensembles of the municipal and state theaters and the independent scene? How can tradition and the present, pedagogical experience and current dance medical findings be equally incorporated into training?
(The session will be held in German.)
Led by: Dr. Jaš Otrin, member of the permanent expert committee III (dance pedagogy, dance mediation) of the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland

The Shapeshifting Game App
Digital Exploration of the Arts: Using Laban motion analysis, participants will be introduced to the Shapeshifting Game App, which allows them to explore and analyze all the arts.
(Working language of this session is English)
Led by: Prof. Dr. Leonard A. Cruz, Performer, Choreographer, Professor of Theater and Dance