The directors of both of these companies usually pay their dancers out of their own pocket. Roschman Dance, seen here in performance, will be joined by fellow NYC company DoubleTake Dance in the shared-bill performance, “ARRIVAL.” Photo by Silvia Saponaro. Yet, we are constantly expected to perform for ‘exposure.’ Companies that pay application fees, theater rentals, costumes and video equipment, but don’t pay their dancers because they can’t ‘afford’ it, are destroying the industry.” No one would ask a non-artist to do their job for free. Somehow, artistry has been given the lowest value possible. Every time a company doesn’t pay their dancers, they contribute to making dance a hobby and not a profession. “Professional dancing is a job,” Carter agrees. If you aren’t paying dancers, you are not a professional choreographer.” “You have to pay dancers,” Roschman says. Even despite financial burdens, however, Carter, Martinez de Baños and Roschman all strive to maintain a certain set of standards and to operate as professional companies.īoth DoubleTake and Roschman Dance strongly believe in paying their dancers for their work, time and talent, rather than asking them to dance for free or even pay to perform, which often seems to be the case in the small dance company world. Scheduling, administrative duties, marketing tasks, social media maintenance and other company requirements are not doled out to others.Īnd, like for many small companies, especially in NYC, perhaps the biggest challenge is money. As is a small company’s nature, Carter, Martinez de Baños and Roschman end up taking on most of the company’s responsibilities themselves. Artistic Director Sean Roschman’s Roschman Dance currently has seven dancers. DoubleTake, run by Co-Artistic Directors Ashley Carter and Vanessa Martinez de Baños, tends to have six to 10 dancers any given season. Although their aesthetics may differ, DoubleTake and Roschman Dance are on the same path: to raise the bar for the dance industry.īoth DoubleTake and Roschman Dance are small dance companies. It may stem from the fact that these companies’ directors are still active dancers in the community, but their first concern above all else is the well-being and treatment of dancers. They also share ideals on how they believe a company should be run in the most professional way. New York City companies DoubleTake Dance and Roschman Dance share more than just the stage at their upcoming performance ARRIVAL, which runs June 6-8 at Theatre 80.
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