Dance Place
Dance Place is a 501(c)(3) non-profit performing arts organization in Washington, DC, founded in 1980, that presents professional dance performances, festivals, and dance education programs for youth, adults, and professional artists out of a 300-seat theater and studio complex.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1980
- HeadquartersWashington, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What Dance Place does
Dance Place is a 501(c)(3) non-profit performing arts organization founded in 1980 and headquartered in Washington, DC's Brookland/Edgewood neighborhood at 3225 8th Street NE. The organization operates a 300-seat theater (the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Theater), multiple dance studios, and the 8th Street Arts Park, functioning as a dedicated center for dance activity in the DC metro area. It currently presents its 45th season, themed "Home Is Coming," under the leadership of Executive Director André Mazelin and Artistic Director Tariq Darrell O'Meally (appointed July 2024), with Anastasia Johnson serving as Education Director.
The organization's product portfolio spans four verticals: (1) live performances and festivals, anchored by the long-running DanceAfrica DC festival and the BlackLight Summit; (2) dance education, including adult classes, kids classes, the Coyoba Academy, summer camps, and school partnership programs such as Kids on the Move; (3) artist development, comprising multiple residency tracks, the Carla Perlo Fund for Choreography and Performance, the Double Jump Fellowship, and a 6-member Artist Advisory Council; and (4) community programs including facility rentals and the Community in Motion monthly giving program. The technology footprint is limited to off-the-shelf SaaS: Salesforce for ticketing and donations, MindBody for class registration, and MailerLite for email marketing.
Revenue is generated through a hybrid non-profit model combining earned income (ticket sales, class fees, facility rentals) and contributed income (individual donations, foundation grants, and government arts funding). Major funders include the National Endowment for the Arts ($38K in 2024, $70K in 2025), the Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation (matching grants with 191+ donors in the second consecutive year), the New England Foundation for the Arts ($5K), the DC Commission on the Arts and Humanities, and the Howard and Geraldine Polinger Family Foundation. The organization serves four primary customer segments — youth and families, adult dance students, professional dance artists, and general audiences — with no proprietary technology platforms.
Dance Place firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Dance Place
- Legal name
- Dance Place
- Website
- https://danceplace.org
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1980
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Dance Place is a 501(c)(3) non-profit performing arts organization in Washington, DC, founded in 1980, that presents professional dance performances, festivals, and dance education programs for youth, adults, and professional artists out of a 300-seat theater and studio complex.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Dance Place industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Performing Arts Center
- NAICS
- Dance Companies (71112), Dance Companies (711120), Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers (71394)
- SIC
- Services-Miscellaneous Amusement & Recreation (7990), Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Dance Festivals & Dance Series (MPAGADAJ)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Dance Education (Ballet, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Cultural Dance) (EDAMAAAH), Contemporary & Modern Dance (MPAGADAB)
Keywords
Where Dance Place is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Washington
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Dance Place business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others
Revenue model
- Ticket Sales: Revenue from ticketed performances and events including dance productions, festivals, and special events.
- Dance Classes: Fees from adult and kids dance classes, summer camps, and specialized programs like Coyaba Academy.
- Donations and Grants: Non-profit funding through individual donations, monthly giving program (Community in Motion), foundation grants (Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation, Howard and Geraldine Polinger Family Foundation), and government grants (NEA, DC Commission on Arts and Humanities).
- Facility Rental: Revenue from renting studio and theater spaces to external artists, companies, and organizations for rehearsals, performances, and events.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Community in Motion monthly giving program |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels5 records
Dance Place product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Dance Place is a non-profit center of dance activity in Washington, DC that presents professional dance performances and festivals, runs dance classes for kids and adults, and delivers arts-in-education programs in schools and the community. It supports dance artists through residencies, commissions (including the Carla Perlo Fund and Deal-Davis DanceAfrica DC Commission), and the Artist Advisory Council, and operates a 300-seat theater plus studio spaces available for rental.
Product overview
Dance Place is a non-profit center of dance activity in Washington, DC offering a comprehensive portfolio of dance arts services. The organization operates as a unified platform combining live performance presentations (performances & events, DanceAfrica DC festival), dance education (classes for adults, kids, and families; education programs including Teaching Artist initiatives and school partnerships), and artist development (residencies, grants like the Carla Perlo Fund, and the Artist Advisory Council). Supporting infrastructure includes facility rentals, a monthly giving program (Community in Motion), and the Deal-Davis Commission for African Diaspora choreographers.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Performances & Events
- Dance Classes (Kids & Adults)
- Education Programs
- Artist Development & Residencies
- DanceAfrica, DC Festival
- Facility Rental
- Community in Motion Monthly Giving Program
Companies that use Dance Place
Customer profileNamed customers6 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Dance Place technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Dance Place partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Six partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.
- DC Dance NetworkminorCo-presenting Brendan Drake's Ceremonials performance with Dance Place in July 2025. Jane Raleigh developing DC Dance Network to build momentum around identity of DC choreographers.
- The Clarice Smith Performing Arts CentercoreCo-presenting BlackLight Summit and Keep the Light On Performance Series. Jane Hirshberg serves on Dance Place's Curatorial Advisory Committee.
- International Association of Blacks in DancecorePartnership for Deal-Davis DanceAfrica, DC Commission Project supporting choreographers in African and African Diaspora dance expressions.
- DanceAfrica, DC Elders' CouncilcoreLed by Griot Mama Sylvia Soumah, serves as advisors to DanceAfrica DC festival vision. Council includes Baba Melvin Deal, Baba Baile McKnight, Mama Akua Kouyate and Mama Makini Niliwaambieni.
- Hillwood Estate, Museum & GardensminorCo-commissioned site-specific, movement-based performance presentation at Hillwood, featuring artist Krystal Collins/new growth collective.
- National Performance Network (NPN)minorCreation Fund Awards supporting dance artists including Titus Ogilvie Laing/Works & Process at the Guggenheim with Dance Place as part of the funding network.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Dance Place competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Gibney: New York-based non-profit dance and social justice hub offering performances, classes, residencies, and community programs across multiple studios and a theater. Closest structural analogue to Dance Place: presenting venue + education + artist services under one non-profit roof.
- The Joyce Theater: Non-profit dance-only presenting theater in NYC's Chelsea. Directly comparable as a mission-driven presenting house dedicated exclusively to dance with a similar education and community programming arm.
- The Yard: Non-profit dance presenting organization and residency center on Martha's Vineyard. Comparable for its combination of performance season, artist residencies, and community classes in a regional setting.
- Velocity Dance Center: Seattle-based non-profit dance center producing performances, festivals, residencies, and classes. Directly comparable mid-sized regional dance center model with similar programming mix.
- The Dance Complex: Cambridge, MA non-profit dance center offering classes, performances, residencies, and rentals. Closely comparable small-to-mid-sized dance presenting and education facility.
- Links Hall: Chicago-based non-profit venue and presenter dedicated to experimental dance and performance. Comparable as a mission-driven presenting organization serving emerging and established choreographers.
- Pentacle: NYC-based non-profit dance management and presenting support organization serving independent dance companies. Comparable as a dance-sector support organization, though Pentacle focuses more on management services than venue presentation.
- La MaMa Experimental Dance Club: NYC-based non-profit theater and dance presenting organization with a comparable mix of artist residencies, community programs, and presenting. Strong model peer for a non-profit presenting organization with community engagement mission.
Broad incumbents
- Ailey Citigroup Theater: The Joan Weill Center for Dance houses multiple presenting and residency programs under the larger Alvin Ailey organization. Comparable dance presenting and residency programming at a larger institutional scale with broader funding base.
Regional players
- Dance/NYC: Non-profit dance advocacy, research, and service organization for the NYC metropolitan dance community. Thematically comparable as a dance community-builder and grant-maker, but operates in a different geography.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks5 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Dance Place social profiles
Digital presenceDance Place financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Dance Place leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
Dance Place funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Dance Place M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Dance Place
What does Dance Place do?
Dance Place is a non-profit center of dance activity in Washington, DC that presents professional dance performances and festivals, runs dance classes for kids and adults, and delivers arts-in-education programs in schools and the community. It supports dance artists through residencies, commissions (including the Carla Perlo Fund and Deal-Davis DanceAfrica DC Commission), and the Artist Advisory Council, and operates a 300-seat theater plus studio spaces available for rental.
Is Dance Place a public or private company?
Dance Place is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was Dance Place founded?
Dance Place was founded in 1980. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Dance Place based?
Dance Place is headquartered in Washington, United States, in the North America region.
How does Dance Place make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Ticket Sales are the primary driver. The others are dance Classes, donations and Grants and facility Rental.
Who are Dance Place's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Gibney, The Joyce Theater, The Yard, Velocity Dance Center, The Dance Complex, Links Hall, Pentacle and La MaMa Experimental Dance Club. Ailey Citigroup Theater is listed as a broad incumbent. Dance/NYC is listed as a regional player.
Does Dance Place have an API?
No public API is recorded for Dance Place.
What industry is Dance Place in?
Dance Place's product category is Performing Arts Center. Its primary akta.pro industry code is MPAGADAJ, Dance Festivals & Dance Series, with a secondary code of EDAMAAAH, Dance Education (Ballet, Contemporary, Hip-Hop, Cultural Dance). Its NAICS code is 71112 and its SIC code is 7990.