American Dance Festival School Auditions

In February, the American Dance Festival (ADF) will embark on a 14-city tour to audition the country’s most talented dance students for the 2014 ADF Six Week School (6WS). Acclaimed by the Wall Street Journal as “artistically the most important gathering of modern dance professionals and students in America,” the ADF School provides one of the world’s leading professional training programs for students, choreographers and teachers. The 2014 ADF 6WS, directed by Gerri Houlihan, coincides with ADF’s 81st season held from June 12 – July 26 in Durham, North Carolina. Applications for the school are currently available online.

Tuition scholarships are offered to promising students who demonstrate a high level of technical and creative ability or potential, as well as financial need. In 2013, over $200,000 was given in scholarships to over 50 percent of the students who attended the festival. Scholarship amounts range from $200 to full tuition.

“By providing scholarships each year to talented and deserving dancers from around the world, we are helping support the future of modern dance,” said ADF Director Jodee Nimerichter. “These young dancers come to ADF to study with the best of the best and go on to become stunning performers, groundbreaking choreographers and skilled teachers that will inspire the next generation.”

The 2014 ADF 6WS faculty include Brenda Daniels, Mark Haim, Ishmael Houston-Jones, Pamela Pietro, James Sutton, Andrea Weber and Jesse Zaritt, among others. Notable scholarship alumni include Hope Boykin, Trisha Brown, Steve Paxton, Paul Taylor and Shen Wei, and many former scholarship students have gone on to have successful careers with renowned companies such as Paul Taylor Dance Company, Pilobolus, Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE and Shen Wei Dance Arts, among others.

Students should bring the following to the audition: a completed 6WS application with the accompanying $40 application fee, a minute-and-a-half solo (choreographed or improvised), and a copy of the student’s or the student’s parents’ 2013 Tax Form 1040 (the first page only.)

Auditions are currently scheduled for the cities listed below:

Miami, FL

February 1, 11 a.m. – 1 p.m.

The Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts

Pasadena, CA

February 9, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

ARC Pasadena

Boston, MA

February 15, 10:30 a.m. – 12 p.m.

Boston University

Athens, OH

March 5, 10:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

Ohio University

Fairfax, VA

March 12, 9 – 11 a.m.

George Mason University

Brockport, NY

March 12, 3 – 4:30 p.m.

The College at Brockport

Tempe, AZ

March 13, Time TBA

Arizona State University

Austin, TX

March 15, Time TBA

University of Texas at Austin

Milwaukee, WI

March 17, 12:30 – 2:30 p.m.

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee

Milledgeville, GA

March 21, Time TBA

Georgia College

Chicago, IL

March 22, Time TBA

Northeastern Illinois University

Little Rock, AR

March 24, 8 – 10 a.m.

University of Arkansas at Little Rock

New York, NY

March 30, Time TBA

Location TBA

Durham, NC

March 30, 10 a.m. – 1 p.m.

ADF’s Samuel H. Scripps Studios

All audition dates are subject to change. Check the ADF website before the audition for the most up-to-date information.

Students unable to attend an audition may submit a DVD containing two minutes of technique and a one-and-a-half minute solo along with their application package. The deadline for DVD submission is April 1.

All scholarship recipients assist with operational and administrative work at the festival. Tuition scholarship students are responsible for their room and board fees and living expenses during the six weeks. Students dependent on financial assistance to attend the ADF School are urged to apply early and to call the school office for advice on how to cut costs. The deadline for all financial assistance applications is April 1. Notification of all awards will be made after April 15.

For more information, visit www.americandancefestival.org.

Photo: Dancer auditioning for the ADF Six Week School. Photo courtesy of ADF.