The CUNY Dance Initiative (CDI), an expansive program providing New York City choreographers and dance companies with creative residencies on CUNY college campuses, announces its open call for applications for the 2026-27 academic year.
Applications will be accepted from December 9, 2025 – January 20, 2026 for residencies that will take place from July 2026 – June 2027. NYC-based individual choreographers and dance companies working in a variety of styles, from contemporary to classical and culturally specific forms, are encouraged to apply. For more information, including program guidelines and to submit, visit: www.cuny.edu/danceinitiative
CDI will award at least 20 residencies for the upcoming cycle at 14 CUNY college campuses and 4 partner organizations in all five boroughs. Available rehearsal and performance spaces include dance studios with both marley and wood floors, intimate theaters, and large proscenium stages. A residency can be used to start a new project, continue developing an existing work, or culminate in a premiere performance. All residencies include an honorarium, plus teaching or community engagement opportunities.
ABOUT THE CUNY DANCE INITIATIVE
A transformative arts incubator that takes advantage of CUNY facilities while integrating New York City’s dance community with the public university system, CDI provides artists with rehearsal and performance space on 14 CUNY college campuses and 4 partner organizations, plus teaching opportunities.
The program was developed in response to the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation’s 2010 report, “We Make Do,” which cited how destabilizing the shortage of affordable rehearsal space in New York City is to the dance sector. A successful pilot supporting residencies on four CUNY campuses in 2013 led to CDI’s formal launch in 2014. Since then, CDI has become a key player in New York City’s performing arts ecosystem, leading a consortium of 14 CUNY colleges and four arts organizations to host 20+ residencies for NYC choreographers and dance companies each year. CDI marked a decade of supporting the NYC dance field in 2024, and in the past 11 years, CDI has granted 275 residencies to emerging and established choreographers, providing invaluable resources to artists, while enhancing CUNY students’ education and cultural experiences.
The CUNY Dance Initiative receives major support from The Mertz Gilmore Foundation and the Howard Gilman Foundation. Additional support is provided by the SHS Foundation, the Rockefeller Brothers Fund’s Charles E. Culpeper Arts & Culture Program, the Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation, and the Harkness Foundation for Dance. CDI is spearheaded by The Kupferberg Center for the Arts at Queens College.