Our Mission
To facilitate the development of a strong infrastructure for dance of the African Diaspora in Britain
Vision and Objectives
Our vision is to see Dance of the African Diaspora (DAD), move from the margins to the mainstream and we will do this by:
- Representing the sector, prioritising advocacy and engaging with relevant organisations in support of the sector
- Acting as a contact point for the sector, facilitating collaborations between organisations and individuals
- Supporting independent artists through forums, web-based resources and publications
- Publishing and developing education and training resources
- Increasing the visibility and understanding of dance forms from the Diaspora
- Organising projects to meet specific needs as they arise within the sector
Dance forms of the African Diaspora (DAD) exist in Britain on the margins. Though they feature strongly in the commercial sector, their presence in education and on the subsidised touring circuits is low. For a long time individual dance practitioners and companies have carried the burden of trying to change this situation without appropriate support.
Through working collaboratively with various institutions, advocacy, the development of new strategies and encouraging debate, we aim to create an awareness of the complexity of the sector, encourage closer engagement with the work and increase the presence of DAD forms, moving them from the margins to the mainstream.
There are a number of challenges that face this sector which are unique. These are partly due to the difficulties around definition. Owing to the nature of the sector, ethnic minority status and artistic issues are often conflated. Both issues are important but confusions arise when one agenda is mistaken for the other which affect the way the dance practices are featured in curricula, are presented by the media and how institutions relate to dance artists.
We will address issues of definition by raising the level of discourse around British companies and practitioners, and by encouraging a greater understanding of the history and heritage of the sector.
