Many young dancers have big dreams of a performance career. When they take the stage at New York City Dance Alliancetheir journey begins. “Ever since I founded NYCDA over 30 years ago, I have always put education first,” explains Joe LanteriNYCDA’s founder and executive director. “The goal has always been to give students greater access, visibility, and training opportunities within the professional world of dance.”Through intensive, college auditionsworkshop classes with industry leaders, professional training scholarships, and the NYC Dance Alliance Foundation (a nonprofit that offers high school seniors scholarship funds to pursue a performing arts degree at the college of their choice), NYCDA is far more than just a typical dance convention—it’s a community of professionals helping dancers bridge the gap between the worlds of competition, collegiate, and professional dance.
“Our commitment goes beyond the end of a convention weekend and, in many ways, even beyond high school graduation,” says Lanteri. “With all of the resources we have, I feel a responsibility to equip students with the tools and confidence they need to discover whatever stage is right for them and help them to go find it and thrive on it.”
The NYCDA network spans the globe, with alumni dancing in everything from Broadway shows to renowned ballet and contemporary companies. Below, two former students share how NYCDA helped them jumpstart their dance careers.
Delaney Washington
Company member, Dance Theatre of Harlem
Delaney Washington performing at the BAAND Together Dance Festival. Photo by Rosalie O’Connor, Courtesy Washington.
Growing up in the San Francisco Bay Area, Delaney Washington attended NYCDA regional events every year from ages 9 through 18. “I remember the teachers there were always preparing us for what auditions or rehearsals would be like in the real, professional world,” says Washington. At 14, she was awarded an NYCDA scholarship to attend Complexions Contemporary Ballet’s summer intensive. “Being a Black girl, many people pushed me towards hip hop and commercial dance, because that’s where they saw people of color,” says Washington. “Joe was really the first one to see a ballet dancer in me and helped open my eyes to the world of contemporary ballet.” Lanteri’s keen eye for dancers’ unique potential proved spot-on: Washington was awarded subsequent NYCDA scholarships to continue attending Complexions’ intensive during every summer that she was in high school.
As a senior, Washington attended NYCDA’s National College Scholarship Audition and was awarded an NYC Dance Alliance Foundation scholarship, which she applied towards the Ailey/Fordham Bachelor of Fine Arts Program. “We’re up to 15 college partners and counting, who all attend our annual audition to recruit and offer financial support to our rising seniors and graduating dancers,” explains Lanteri. “This past year, 347 dancers auditioned, the NYCDAF awarded $420,000 in scholarships to 52 graduates, and 13 of our partners offered $25,242,000 in scholarships to 174 rising seniors.” Thanks to NYCDA, Washington’s transition from competition kid to college student was seamless. “Over the years at NYCDA, I had met so many dancers who also ended up pursuing dance in NYC, so I felt like I already had a family when I moved there,” she says.
Joe Lanteri with college scholarships recipients given on behalf of the NCYDA Foundation. Courtesy NYCDA.
Washington’s ties to NYCDA continued to support her beyond college. “Joe had also connected me with Courtney Celeste Spears, an Alvin Ailey Dance Company member and NYCDA assistant who had attended Fordham, and she became one of my mentors,” says Washington. With guidance from Spears, Washington became a member of Dance Theatre of Harlem while simultaneously completing her senior year of college; she’s now in her fourth season. “You can only stay in the convention world for so long,” reflects Washington. “NYCDA makes sure you have the connections and opportunities to take your first steps into the real world.”
Ryan Steele
Ensemble, Broadway’s MJ: The Musical
Ryane Steele in “Once Upon a One More Time.” Courtesy NYCDA.
Ryan Steele grew up dancing at a studio just outside of Detroit, Michigan, and started attending NYCDA in middle school. “Even as a kid in the junior ballroom, I could tell that NYCDA was a special place to learn in,” he recounts. “The faculty cared about more than just teaching dancers technique; they inspired a real passion for dance.”
When Steele was a senior in high school, he got a call from Lanteri about an audition happening for the 2009 Broadway revival of West Side Story. “Over the years, many Broadway and national tours like Billy Elliot and Matilda to Newsies and more have had casting directors join us, scouting young talent at NYCDA events,” explains Lanteri. “When I heard that the team for West Side Story was looking, Ryan immediately came to mind. I made the call, and he went out and made it happen.”
Joe Lanteri teaching at NYCDA. Courtesy NYCDA.
For Lanteri, watching NYCDA dancers like Steele grow into mature, kind, and knowledgeable professionals is the most rewarding part of the job. “We strive to adjust dancers’ mindsets, so it’s not about winning at competition, but rather becoming the best dancers and humans that they can be,” he says. “The opportunities we provide are life-changing, but our goal is always to educate; even dancers who don’t walk away with a job or scholarship have reached back out to share how their time at NYCDA prepared them for a real-world experience.”
Since Steele’s first gig, he’s racked up a resumé of Broadway and national-tour credits, including Newsies, Carousel,and Once Upon a One More Time. Steele is currently performing in Broadway’s MJ: The Musical; the show’s dance supervisor, Kali May Grinder, also happens to be a former NYCDA Outstanding Dancer. For Steele, this is a pretty regular occurrence. “NYCDA creates this huge web of friendships and professional contacts, to where every audition I go into, there’s bound to be NYCDA alumni in the room,” he says. “Countless dancers have gone through this convention and competition and made careers out of it. I know I wouldn’t be where I am today without NYCDA giving me that first opportunity.”
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