The Rauschenberg Dancer Emergency Grants program provides one-time grants of up to $3,000 to professional dancers facing dire financial emergencies, due to the loss or lack of recent/current live performance work, because of circumstances outside of their control. “Dire financial emergencies“ include the lack or imminent endangerment of essentials such as housing, medicine/healthcare, utilities, and food. This grant program aims to provide dancers with greater stability to move forward by covering up to three months of essential expenses, recognizing the ongoing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the dance sector, as well as other recent career interruptions including illness or injury.
ELIGIBILITY
Individual Eligibility
Applicants must:
- Be 21 years or older on the cycle’s deadline.
- Reside in the United States, the District of Columbia, a Tribal Nation, or a U.S. Territory.
- Be an artist in need, having an adjusted gross income of $80,000 or lower for an individual, or $160,000 for joint filers, averaged over the last two federal tax returns.
- Not have received a Rauschenberg Medical or Dancer Emergency Grant within the last five years (since their original grant award date).
- Not be enrolled in any degree-seeking program.
- Demonstrate current and ongoing activity as a professional dancer (defined below).
Artistic Eligibility
- Applicants must be a professional dancer. You need to have been working as a paid, live dance performer for at least the last five years (since 2021), in any stage/performance style, including but not limited to: contemporary, modern, ballet, hip-hop and street styles, tap, traditional and cultural dance forms, circus, improvisation-based work, and multi-genre or interdisciplinary performances where movement is primary.
- You may apply if you perform in a variety of settings (for instance: ticketed stage performances, free street festivals, and music videos), as long as you have performed in live, public-facing performances regularly since 2021 (at least one paid engagement annually).
- You do not need to be a full-time dancer, or receive your primary income through your dance performance.
- Reduced activity during a period of up to 12 months due to medical or personal reasons is acceptable if, in such cases, you are able to demonstrate public activity prior to 2021.
- Performances in educational/academic settings, social dance, competitive settings, clubs or other commercial settings, exotic dance, commercials, and industrials cannot be considered in this history of performing, nor are publications/papers/interviews in print or online.
- Self-produced online presentation, and/or performances shared solely through personal websites, Instagram, TikTok, Facebook or other online platforms are not eligible.
- If you perform your own work live, your resume needs to clearly indicate that you were BOTH the choreographer and dancer.
Emergency Eligibility
- Applicants must be experiencing a dire financial emergency that has occurred within approximately the last six months. This is defined as the lack or imminent endangerment of essentials such as housing, medicine/healthcare, utilities, food and/or transportation. Your expenses must be direct, out-of-pocket expenses for you individually.
- The dire financial emergency needs to be the result of a loss or lack of current/recent (in the last six months) work as a paid dancer because of circumstances beyond your control. Common circumstances include canceled performances, cutbacks or cancellations of dance engagement contracts, loss of touring opportunities, and illness or injury.
- The expenses for which you are requesting funds must be incurred and paid within the U.S. (including D.C., Tribal Nations and U.S Territories).
- In each cycle, we can consider emergencies that have occurred within approximately the last six months. The earliest date for an eligible emergency is listed in the cycle’s information.
DEADLINE: Cycle 25: August, 4 by 5pm
- Cycle 26: September 8- October 6, 2026
- Cycle 27: November 10- December 8, 2026
