Statements
Mission
New Dialect is a contemporary dance organization devoted to fostering a sustainable ecosystem for today's dance artists, audiences, and advocates in Nashville. It is our goal to increase the visibility and accessibility of contemporary dance in the South, and to raise awareness and appreciation of our art form by providing the public with world class dance education and performance experiences. We partner with local, national, and international artists to create one-of-a-kind productions that connect us more deeply to ourselves and each other.
Background
Banning Bouldin, a graduate of The Juilliard School, began the work of New Dialect out of a desire to help foster a sustainable ecosystem for contemporary dance in her hometown of Nashville, Tennesse.
After spending eight years dancing internationally, she returned to Nashville in the Fall of 2010, and was quickly engaged as a contemporary dance instructor and guest choreographer for the Nashville Ballet and Vanderbilt University. As she worked within the local dance community, she soon perceived a need for more opportunities for dance artists to train, create, and share their work with the public.
New Dialect was founded in 2012 to be a community resource for dancers, students, teaching artists, choreographers, and audiences. The organization received nonprofit status in 2013.
As of today, New Dialect is actively achieving the tenets of its mission, and has garnered the support of an ever-growing community of participants, partners and patrons, as well as the recognition and support of Metro Arts Commission, Tennessee Arts Commissions, South Arts, the National Center for Choreography at the University of Akron, Mellon Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts.
Impact
2023/2024 Accomplishments:
- Celebrated our 10th anniversary of offering world class contemporary dance training and performances in Nashville
- Hosted 2 multi-week Summer and Winter Intensives for 116 pre-professional and professional choreographers and contemporary dancers in Middle Tennessee and from across the US. Sessions were led by award winning dance artists Peter Chu, Amadi Washington, Sam Pratt, Kayla Farrish, Pioneer Winter, Kendra Portier, Maurya Kerr, Jonathan Fredrickson, Mark Caserta, and Micaela Taylor.
- Hosted 25 weeks of open level community classes for dancers and dance lovers of all skill levels, ages 16+, at Centennial Performing Arts Studios.
- Facilitated 8, 3-hour creative process and contemporary technique workshops to aspiring professional dancers and choreographers at Nashville School of the Arts. These classes served 42 youth.
- Provided 73 Black, Indigenous, and artists of color with free and reduced tuition to our community classes and Intensives through our initiative, the BIPOC Free Access Fund.
- Participated in Nashville Design Week through the creation and production of a light design and dance installation choreographed by Banning Bouldin, and produced by Tracey Ford and EOA Architects. Performances took place a Soho House Nashville and were attended by 300 people.
- Celebrated ten years of partnership with OZ Arts Nashville with a performance of our Nashville Design Week installation for 355 people at OZ'a 10th Birthday Bash.
- Completed our work as a research artist at the National Center for Choreography at the University of Akron. As the key representatives from the South, Banning Bouldin and New Dialect stakeholders participated in the Center's Creative Administration Research, a three-year project funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation that has stated the goal of observing, examining, and ultimately improving upon the traditional organizational models used by contemporary dance companies. Banning's essay Causing A Scene, details her experience forming New Dialect in Nashville, and will be published in NCCAkron's latest book, Artists on Creative Administration in September 2024.
- Featured in articles in the New York Times, Dance Magazine, and the Nashville Scene for our successful pioneering efforts to grow a hub for contemporary dance in Nashville.
2024/2025 Goals:
- Deepening existing partnerships with Metro Parks and Recreation Dance and Nashville School of the Arts to develop excellent, ongoing contemporary dance programming for youth in Middle Tennessee
- Investing in a new partnership with Tennessee Performing Arts Center and expanding our reach to new audiences
- Developing an agile, self-sufficient production strategy for our latest production of 21 Yeses, that will allow us to tour with greater efficiency
- Broadening the demographic reach of all our programming
Needs
1) funding new staff positions
2) increasing volunteer engagement
3) organizing an annual fundraising event
4) building organizational capacity for touring opportunities
CEO Statement
We have created something that has never existed in Nashville; something I wish had been here, when I was a young person. I studied dance at the Nashville Ballet, where I received excellent ballet training. But I had dreams of becoming a professional contemporary dancer, and there was no school in Nashville that could give me the education I needed for the career I wanted. So I left home. I was 17 years old, when I was awarded a scholarship to The Juilliard School. After receiving my degree, I spent eight years traveling the world performing with internationally acclaimed contemporary dance companies-an extraordinary experience. Today, I am thrilled to be home again, sharing what I learned abroad and the incredible artists I know from around the world with Nashville-based dancers and audiences. In order to pursue my studies and career in contemporary dance at the highest level, I had to leave Nashville. New Dialect has changed that for current and future generations of dance artists in our area. Supported by of a diversely skilled Board of Directors and numerous stakeholders, we have built an organization where local dancers are able to study the most up-to-date contemporary dance techniques, internationally renowned choreographers and master teachers share their expertise, and Nashville audiences experience inspiring contemporary dance performances. New Dialect is meeting the need for new dance in Nashville. As we grow, our efforts will continue to empower more and more people to see contemporary dance as an artform that is both accessible and inspiring.
Board Chair Statement
This is a new day in Nashville. It is time for new, exciting, world-class work to be born here. We should be known as a cutting edge city of new ideas and a force in the global art discussion. Having had a long contemporary dance career in New York and Nashville, it is deeply satisfying to me to now be involved with New Dialect, a Nashville-based group with an international outlook and connections. From the name, which connotes a revised way of communicating through movement, to the artistic director, who is a homegrown force of nature with world class talent and credentials, to the beautifully trained and authentic dancers, New Dialect can place Nashville at the centre of the current dance explosion, while educating, entertaining and enhancing those of us fortunate enough to call this city home.
- Andrew Krichels, New Dialect Board President Emeritus and former Artistic Director of Tennessee Dance Theatre
Service Categories |
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| Primary Category: | Arts, Culture & Humanities - Dance |
| Secondary Category: | Public & Societal Benefit - Citizen Participation |
| Tertiary Category: | - |
Areas Served
Our classes, workshops, and professional development intensives are held in Davidson County (zip codes 37201, 37203, 37205, 37206, 37209, 37215) and Knox County. Our program offerings are attended by participants from Davidson County, from middle Tennessee, from cities across the country, and from overseas (Europe). Audiences for our performances are attended by representatives from the same demographics.
| National |
| TN - Davidson |
| TN - Williamson |
| TN - Franklin |
| TN - Tennessee (Entire State) |
| National |
