Ballethnic Dance Company (East Point, GA): Comprised of Ballethnic Dance Company (BDC) and the Ballethnic Academy of Dance (BAD), BDC is a classically trained, culturally diverse professional ballet company dedicated to providing training and performance opportunities to children, pre-professional and professional dancers. Founded in 1990 by Nena Gilreath and Waverly T. Lucas II, both former dancers with the Dance Theatre of Harlem and the Atlanta Ballet, Ballethnic’s mission is to be a global catalyst for social change through presenting ballet with a fusion of African dance concepts. Ballethnic is unique in its commitment to performing classical ballet blending that traditional discipline with modern, jazz, African, and other ethnic dance forms.
Charya Burt Cambodian Dance (Windsor, CA): Founded and led by Master Teacher, choreographer, dancer, and vocalist Charya Burt, CBCD is dedicated to the preservation and advancement of the classical tradition of Cambodian dance through formal instruction, workshops, performance, and the creation of new works. Through her teaching, choreography, speaking and as a master culture bearer, Charya Burt works to help Cambodian American communities to heal and move beyond their tragic history and define themselves by the values and beauty of their rich culture.
Dancing Wheels Company (Cleveland, Ohio): Founded in 1980 by Mary Verdi-Fletcher, Dancing Wheels is the nation’s first physically integrated dance company, now hailed as the World Center for Integrated Dance and Arts Access, and also a recognized training center for dancers, choreographers and educators. As one of the premiere arts and disabilities organizations in the U.S., Dancing Wheels is animated by its founder’s belief that “If dance is an expression of the human spirit, then it is best expressed by people of all abilities.”
Dayton Contemporary Dance Company (DCDC) (Dayton, Ohio): A culturally diverse modern dance company, DCDC was founded in 1968, and remains rooted in the African-American experience and dedicated to creating exceptional performance, community engagement, and arts-integrated education. DCDC tours nationally and internationally, partners with schools and universities, and offers community-based workshops, classes, and conversations.
Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center (San Antonio, TX): Located in San Antonio’s Westside, the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center (GCAC) is the parent organization of the Guadalupe Dance Company. GCAC promotes and preserves traditional and contemporary Chicano, Latino and Native American arts and culture through multidisciplinary programming as one of the largest community-based, multidisciplinary organizations in the U.S. The Dance Company has existed almost as long as GCAC and creates Mexican folkloric and interdisciplinary performance work.
TeMaTe Institute for Black Dance and Culture (Detroit, MI): TeMaTe’s mission is to embody a more culturally just and equitable world by uplifting and making space for the contributions of the African diaspora. Programs include an education-focused repertory collective which studies Afro-diasporic dance, dance classes, and conferences.