Full creative and financial support, a New York City premiere, and a direct path to bring their work into schools across the five boroughs.
Where: New York City, USA
Deadline for applications: April 30th
Early-stage choreographers in the New York City area with personal, urgent stories to tell have until April 17 to apply for a fully funded commission — one that covers everything from rehearsal space and dancer fees to mentorship and a professional premiere.
Accent Dance NYC, a New York nonprofit that uses dance to build connection across communities, covers all creative costs for the selected choreographer through its NEXT: The Emerging Choreographer Commissioning Program, which provides the selected choreographer with all creative costs, including production support and compensation ranging from $3,000 to $5,000, depending on the scope of the work.
Past commissioned works offer a sense of the program’s mission. Danielle Diniz built A Place for Us from her grandparents’ journeys from Mexico and Portugal; Will A. Ervin Jr.’s Narcissus traced the lifelong work of accepting what you see in the mirror; Miaotian Sun’s Echoes Between Us, which premiered this month at Ailey Citigroup Theater, reaches back to the ancient lost Chinese civilization of Sanxingdui to ask what we inherit across time.
Commissioned works don’t end at the premiere. They travel into school residency curricula across the five boroughs, part of a program that has reached more than 30,000 students since its founding — young people who describe realizing that dance can tell a story without words, finding the confidence to share their own culture in front of an audience, and discovering unexpected common ground with classmates from entirely different backgrounds.
“Early-stage choreographers are often the ones with the most vital work to make and the fewest resources to make it,” said Andrea Ziegelman, Founder and Executive and Artistic Director of Accent Dance NYC. “The choreographers we commission have something true to say, and this program gives them the space, the resources, and the stage to say it.”
Works can draw from any genre, including contemporary, ballet, Hip Hop, tap, jazz, traditional
How to apply:
Applications should be sent to andrea@accent.dance by April 30, 2026, and should include a resume, short bio, two to three video samples, a letter of recommendation, and a one-page proposal.
Costs for participants:
Accent Dance NYC provides the selected choreographer with all creative costs, including production support and compensation ranging from $3,000 to $5,000, depending on the scope of the work.
For further information, please visit https://accent.dance/
For more dance FUNDING, visit https://dancingopportunities.com/category/internships/
