Gender Equity Index
Brennan Wall’s “Untwine”
Photography by Chris Hardy
Dance Data Project® (DDP) announces the results from the first-ever Gender Equity Index (GEI) for the U.S. dance industry. DDP’s GEI is designed to assess how dance companies measure up in terms of commissioning female creators, promoting women to leadership positions, and fostering a transparent and accountable culture through the completion of our GEI Survey.
Included below are DDP’s “Best of” Awards for companies in specific categories, as well as several Honorable Mentions for companies who have created opportunities for full-length premieres by female choreographers. We have ranked the Largest 50 U.S. ballet companies based on their equity score and provided a series of Frequently Asked Questions about DDP’s Gender Equity Index. Additionally, to celebrate and highlight the commitment of various companies to supporting women, we’ve included several direct quotes from responses to DDP’s GEI Survey.
Company Awards
Best Overall:
EUGENE BALLET
Best of Leadership:
BALLETX
DALLAS BLACK DANCE THEATRE
SMUIN BALLET
Best of Commissions
EUGENE BALLET
Best Company (Male Artistic Leadership) Overall:
BALLET IDAHO
Best Company (Male Artistic Leadership) Commissions:
BALLET HISPÁNICO
Founder’s Award:
ANN WILLIAMS OF DALLAS BLACK DANCE THEATRE
Eugene Ballet
Best Overall
Best Overall
Eugene Ballet in Melissa Bobick's "Apollon Musagete"
Courtesy of Eugene Ballet
Dallas Black
Dance Theatre
Best of
Leadership
Dance Theatre
Best of
Leadership
(Tied)
Dallas Black Dance Theatre in Hope Boykin's "in●ter●pret
Photo by Amitava Sarkar
Courtesy of Dallas Black Dance Theatre
BalletX
Best of Leadership
Best of Leadership
BalletX in Tiler Peck's "Umoja"
Photo by Arian Molina
Courtesy of BalletX
(Tied)
Smuin Ballet
Best of Leadership
Best of Leadership
Smuin Ballet in Brennan Wall's "Untwine"
Photography by Chris Hardy
Courtesy of Smuin Ballet
(Tied)
Eugene Ballet
Best of Commissions
Best of Commissions
Eugene Ballet in rehearsal for Suzanne Haag’s "Petrushka"
Courtesy of Eugene Ballet
Ballet Idaho in Anne Mueller's "At Dusk"
Photo by Mike Reid
Courtesy of Ballet Idaho
Ballet Idaho
Best Company
(Male Artistic Leadership) Overall
Best Company
(Male Artistic Leadership) Overall
Honorable Mentions
DDP has given Honorable Mentions to companies that have programmed full-length premieres by women between 2018 and 2022. Commissioning of new, full-length works requires a large investment of company resources (i.e., time, money, new costumes/sets, promotion, and marketing). Opportunities to create new full-length works are rare, and few women are provided opportunities to stage these large-scale works. For these reasons, DDP has heavily weighted full-length premieres in the Commission’s score. DDP applauds the companies that have given these rare opportunities to female choreographers.
*See FAQs below for more details about DDP’s Honorable Mentions.
Commissioned Full-length World Premiere by Female Choreographer:
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre – Swan Lake, Susan Jaffe
Ballet San Antonio – Cinderella, Conny Mathot
Commissioned Full-Length U.S. Premiere by Female Choreographer:
Tulsa Ballet – Vendetta, A Mafia Story, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa
American Ballet Theatre and Joffrey Ballet – Jane Eyre, Cathy Marston
Virtual Premiere by Female Choreographer:
Louisville Ballet – Rite of Spring, Andrea Schermoly
Overall Rankings
DDP has ranked the Largest 50 U.S. ballet companies (with a few omissions, explained in the GEI Frequently Asked Questions below) based on their equity score. Companies are ranked as Needs Work (0-30%), Good (30-50%), and Exceptional (50-100%). These ranges allow companies to benchmark where they stand in terms of gender equity among other Largest 50 companies.
These categories also include room for future improvement, which all companies, regardless of their scoring, can strive towards to advance gender equity in a historically inequitable field. The 50% mark is the threshold at which women are receiving similar percentages in terms of commissions and leadership opportunities in comparison to men, and are showing commitment to transparency by completing our GEI Survey. The companies that fall in the Exceptional category, termed this year as the Equitable Eleven, include those with scores over 50%. This grouping distinguishes those companies providing more opportunities for women, thus making advances to become equitable organizations.
| EXCEPTIONAL |
|---|
| Eugene Ballet |
| Cincinnati Ballet |
| Smuin Contemporary Ballet |
| Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre |
| BalletX |
| Miami City Ballet |
| Ballet Idaho |
| Dance Theatre of Harlem |
| Dallas Black Dance Theatre* |
| Ballet Hispánico |
| Richmond Ballet |
| GOOD |
|---|
| Charlotte Ballet |
| Boston Ballet |
| San Francisco Ballet |
| The Alabama Ballet |
| Festival Ballet Providence |
| Ballet San Antonio |
| Kansas City Ballet |
| Louisville Ballet |
| Pacific Northwest Ballet |
| Tulsa Ballet |
| The Sarasota Ballet |
| Atlanta Ballet |
| Orlando Ballet |
| Sacramento Ballet |
| Los Angeles Ballet |
| Carolina Ballet |
| NEEDS WORK |
|---|
| Ballet Memphis |
| Texas Ballet Theater |
| Grand Rapids Ballet |
| Oregon Ballet Theatre |
| American Repertory Ballet |
| Colorado Ballet |
| The Washington Ballet |
| Ballet Austin |
| Oklahoma City Ballet |
| Nevada Ballet Theatre |
| American Ballet Theatre |
| Milwaukee Ballet |
| Joffrey Ballet |
| Nashville Ballet |
| Ballet West |
| Philadelphia Ballet |
| BalletMet |
| New York City Ballet |
| Ballet Arizona |
| Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater* |
| Houston Ballet |
Rank by Commissions
| RANK BY COMMISSIONS |
|---|
| Eugene Ballet |
| Cincinnati Ballet |
| Smuin Contemporary Ballet |
| Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre |
| Ballet Hispánico |
| Ballet Idaho |
| Colorado Ballet |
| Sacramento Ballet |
| Grand Rapids Ballet |
| BalletX |
| Kansas City Ballet |
| Ballet Memphis |
| Charlotte Ballet |
| Richmond Ballet |
| Joffrey Ballet |
| Los Angeles Ballet |
| Boston Ballet |
| Ballet San Antonio |
| Dance Theatre of Harlem |
| Miami City Ballet |
| Ballet Austin |
| American Ballet Theatre |
| Ballet West |
| Tulsa Ballet |
| The Washington Ballet |
| American Repertory Ballet |
| Louisville Ballet |
| Oklahoma City Ballet |
| Festival Ballet Providence |
| Pacific Northwest Ballet |
| Nevada Ballet Theatre |
| The Sarasota Ballet |
| Carolina Ballet |
| Atlanta Ballet |
| Milwaukee Ballet |
| Nashville Ballet |
| Dallas Black Dance Theatre* |
| San Francisco Ballet |
| Oregon Ballet Theatre |
| BalletMet |
| Philadelphia Ballet |
| Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater* |
| New York City Ballet |
| The Alabama Ballet |
| Orlando Ballet |
| Houston Ballet |
| Texas Ballet Theater |
| Ballet Arizona |
Rank by Leadership
| RANK BY LEADERSHIP |
|---|
| Smuin Contemporary Ballet |
| BalletX |
| Dallas Black Dance Theatre* |
| Miami City Ballet |
| Ballet San Antonio |
| Dance Theatre of Harlem |
| Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre |
| Eugene Ballet |
| Cincinnati Ballet |
| The Alabama Ballet |
| San Francisco Ballet |
| Los Angeles Ballet |
| American Repertory Ballet |
| The Washington Ballet |
| Ballet Idaho |
| Richmond Ballet |
| Milwaukee Ballet |
| New York City Ballet |
| Orlando Ballet |
| Ballet Memphis |
| Philadelphia Ballet |
| BalletMet |
| Nevada Ballet Theatre |
| Oklahoma City Ballet |
| Festival Ballet Providence |
| Nashville Ballet |
| Sacramento Ballet |
| Ballet Arizona |
| Ballet Austin |
| Texas Ballet Theater |
| Louisville Ballet |
| Pacific Northwest Ballet |
| Charlotte Ballet |
| American Ballet Theatre |
| Boston Ballet |
| Grand Rapids Ballet |
| Atlanta Ballet |
| The Sarasota Ballet |
| Tulsa Ballet |
| Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater* |
| Ballet Hispánico |
| Carolina Ballet |
| Ballet West |
| Kansas City Ballet |
| Joffrey Ballet |
| Colorado Ballet |
| Oregon Ballet Theatre |
| Houston Ballet |
*Included in both DDP’s Largest 150 U.S. ballet and classically influenced companies and Largest U.S. contemporary and modern dance companies.
DDP wants to extend our thanks to the following companies who responded to our first GEI Survey:
San Francisco Ballet
Boston Ballet
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Miami City Ballet
Atlanta Ballet
Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre
Cincinnati Ballet
Kansas City Ballet
Texas Ballet Theater
Oregon Ballet Theatre
Charlotte Ballet
The Sarasota Ballet
Tulsa Ballet
Ballet Hispánico
Richmond Ballet
Orlando Ballet
Dance Theatre of Harlem
Carolina Ballet
Louisville Ballet
Smuin Contemporary Ballet
Dallas Black Dance Theatre
BalletX
Eugene Ballet
Alabama Ballet
Festival Ballet Providence
Ballet Idaho
Frequently Asked Questions
What is DDP’s Gender Equity Index?
A Gender Equity Index (GEI) is a metrics based method to effectively track and highlight gender inequities. Gender equity indexes, (e.g., Bloomberg, Equileap, Gender Fair) utilize publicly available and/or surveyed corporate data to determine companies’ commitment to supporting equity through transparency, diversity, and policy development (Bloomberg).
Prior to the creation of DDP’s Gender Equity Index, DDP researched multiple other examples of gender indices to inform the creation and development of the Index. A comprehensive list of this research can be found HERE.
DDP’s GEI quantifies and ranks the Largest 50 ballet companies’ performance as it relates to gender equity. In DDP’s Gender Equity Index, companies are awarded points for commissioning female-choreographed works, appointing women to leadership positions, and showing commitment to transparency by completing our GEI Survey. With this data driven approach, companies’ equity is quantified and ranked on a scale that ranges from Needs Work to Exceptional.
What research went into creating DDP’s Gender Equity Index?
Prior to the creation of DDP’s Gender Equity Index, DDP researched multiple other examples of gender indices to inform the creation and development of the Index. A comprehensive list of this research can be found be found here:
Why is a GEI specific to the ballet sector important?
Dance, specifically ballet, has historically been a female-dominated field with 76.6% women (Data USA). Despite this, men typically hold more prestigious and higher-paying positions, such as artistic and executive directors, and receive the most lucrative, high-profile artistic commissions as choreographers. DDP found that for the Largest 50 U.S. ballet and classically influenced companies, only 30% of Artistic Directors were female (as of July 2022; Artistic & Executive Leadership Report). Amongst the Largest 50, women choreographed only 29% of the works programmed in the 2021-2022 season, and 46% of world premieres were choreographed by women (Season Overview 2021-2022). In the current 2022-2023 season, the percentage of works choreographed by women amongst the Largest 50 has decreased to 27% (First Look 2022-2023). Additionally, between 2018 and 2023, the Largest 50 commissioned 14 full-length premieres by women compared to 60 by men (Full-Length World and United States Premieres Data Byte).
Even in the collegiate setting, only 34% of deans overseeing dance programs are female, while the percentage of the lowest-ranking faculty is 69% women (Collegiate Dance Programs Faculty & Administration Report).
DDP’s GEI highlights companies that are making strides to provide leadership and choreographic opportunities for women in ballet. This provides, in line with DDP’s #AskB4UGive campaign, a strong tool, very similar to ESG rankings, that can guide foundations or individual donors interested in supporting classically based dance without reinforcing – and frankly, continuing to fund systematic inequity.
How do transparency, accountability, and procedures contribute to gender equity?
Transparency contributes to gender equity as it provides concrete examples of ways to improve and work towards a more equitable, healthy, and safe workplace as well as ensuring integrity in procedures and policies. Research shows that higher corporate transparency increases an organization’s value and trustworthiness (Lang et al. 2012; Schnackenberg et al. 2020). Conversely, low corporate transparency leads to poorer business outcomes (Anderson et al. 2009). In regards to pay, research indicates that providing senior managers with data on how their pay decisions compared to others helped managers hold themselves accountable and reduce pay disparities by gender, race, and birth nationality (University of Massachusetts, Center for Employment Equity). Additionally, new salary transparency laws across the United States have helped workers demystify pay and make informed decisions when applying for new jobs (Bloomberg). In some cases, individuals have also used pay information as leverage to negotiate salary raises in their current roles (Bloomberg).
By offering companies the opportunity to highlight their good practices, we can elevate best practices industry wide. The DDP Gender Equity Index breaks down how companies are ranked and highlights future changes for companies to make to become more equitable institutions.
Why does DDP’s GEI investigate only the Largest 50 ballet or classically inspired companies?
Creating a Gender Equity Index requires longitudinal data substantiated through extensive analysis of financial and programming records. DDP utilizes proprietary software to obtain additional data from the IRS website for detailed company financials, a laborious (but necessary) process to execute alongside recording company season programming. DDP uses company financial information to rank the Largest 150 companies by expenditure. Rankings are then grouped into the Largest 50 (#1-50), the Next 50 (#51-100), and the Additional 50 (#101-150).
In Fiscal Year 2020, the Largest 50 companies operated with combined expenditures of $586,724,176, representing 91% of the Largest 150 companies’ expenditures. Furthermore, DDP determined that the Next 50’s aggregate expenditures represent approximately 8% of the Largest 50’s aggregate expenditures in FY 2020, and only 2.5% for the Additional 50 companies (Largest 150 U.S. Ballet & Classically Based Companies & Financial Scope of the Industry). Because the Largest 50 ballet and classically inspired companies represent the overwhelming percentage of the dance economy, this year’s GEI focuses on these highly influential, resource-laden organizations. As DDP continues to expand its datasets, the GEI will grow to encompass more organizations than just the Largest 50. Currently, the inclusion of companies from the Next and Additional 50 is not possible due to the lack of longitudinal data for these smaller companies and would create an unfair disadvantage for these organizations.
What refinements will be made to DDP’s GEI in future years?
In the future, DDP intends to extend the Index to include additional ballet and classically inspired companies. Beyond adding more companies in future iterations, DDP plans to expand the Leadership section of the Index to include other roles, such as rehearsal directors, heads of schools, conductors, and composers in residence. Additionally, DDP is examining the viability of including “back of house” jobs (i.e., set and lighting designers, engineers, electricians, carpenters) within dance organizations in future versions of the GEI. Current and announced season programming may also be included in future iterations.
DDP understands that our current information is limited to websites, publicly available records through the IRS, press releases, social media, and other news and media sources. To ensure accurate information is reported, DDP relies on company information verification (i.e., season programming, 990s, etc.). DDP extends our gratitude to the companies who respond to our verification and survey requests.
There is much more to investigate, such as dancer pay and salaries. DDP is interested in partnering with other organizations (e.g., universities, AGMA) to examine compensation differentials, if any, between male and female artists of the company, length of dancer contracts, insurance costs, benefits, and leave policies around child and elder care. We realize the importance and call by the dance community for this information to be shared and researched – DDP will work to serve the community in this matter when the appropriate infrastructure to support this study is in place.
How will the GEI take into consideration leadership changes?
A company’s GEI score consists of the company’s’ leadership, programming, and commitment to transparency. Leadership is only a portion of the overall score. For example, if there was a change in leadership from July 2022 onward, points were assigned to the person who was present for the first half of the season, as chronologically, they were most likely to have the most input in the programming of that season.
For example: Susan Jaffe at American Ballet Theatre did not program the current 2022-2023 season, as she assumed the role of Artistic Director at the end of 2022. Similarly, Tamara Rojo at San Francisco Ballet has only been with the company since August 2022. We understand SFB will announce their 2023-2024 season this April, the first season in which she will program as Artistic Director. Julie Kent was recently named Co-Artistic Director of Houston Ballet, after the 2022-2023 season was announced. Peter Franc at Oregon Ballet Theater was serving as the Interim Artistic Director after the departure of Kevin Irving.
On February 13, 2023 Danielle Rowe was named as the new Artistic Director but Mr. Franc is continuing as Artistic Consultant. These instances exemplify the importance of our continued longitudinal research over many years. Only by collecting year-over-year data are we able to accurately assess how the industry and particular companies are progressing in their continued commitment to gender equity.
Are any companies excluded from the ranking and why?
Companies that have stopped programming, whether permanently or for a period of time, or have gone defunct are excluded from the ranking. For example, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet’s professional company was shuttered in March 2021. However, ASFB has recently begun commissioning works again, but because of the lag time, they will not be included in the current Index. California Ballet dissolved in 2020 during the pandemic. Alonzo King LINES is excluded, as the company only commissions work by a singular choreographer – their Founder. Classically inspired companies also move in and out of the ranking of the Largest 50, creating additional complications in tracking programming year to year. For example; Ballet Magnificat! moved into the Largest 50 in 2022. Due to this recent shift, DDP does not have adequate data to accurately rank them against the rest of the Largest 50. Festival Ballet Providence is no longer ranked in the Largest 50 but have been included in the ranking as DDP has sufficient longitudinal data to rank them.
Why are you only considering men v. women? There are so many other issues, like racial equity, and LGBTQ+ representation. Why not consider those?
While DDP does not conduct specific research relating to these important issues, we uplift opportunities for BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists and highlight other positive changes that are being made in the dance sector whenever possible.
DDP’s mission is women and girls in dance. We are the only organization representing the overwhelming majority of the dance workforce (76.6% women, 23.4% men; Data USA). We acknowledge the importance of racial equity and LGBTQ+ representation. However, DDP is a small organization and is unable to examine all the inequities that exist within the dance sector.
Currently, there are no other organizations dedicated to focusing on the issues DDP’s GEI confronts:
-
- >
- Fiscal transparency
- Publication of pay ranges
- Prompt filing of IRS 990 returns
- Creation of and publication of annual reports
- Culture/codes of conduct for board members, artistic & executive staff, as well as independent contractors, parents and students
- Sexual assault/harassment & training, policy, and reporting procedures
- Non-fraternization policy to protect dancers
- Child/elder care issues & policies
- Accommodations for working parents
- i.e., child care, lactation rooms, flexible work schedules
How are companies scored?
Dance Data Project® utilizes a proprietary algorithm that combines participating companies’ answers (including the company’s transparency around policies, pay, and practices) with DDP’s research findings. In combination, companies’ Commissions (55%), Leadership (25%), and the GEI Survey (20%) will determine their equity score. By taking an additive approach, companies gain points for every area in which they are working towards equity.
A company’s overall score is determined by a weighted sum of its component (or category) scores. Because ballet/classical dance has historically been a gender-inequitable field, DDP only awarded points to women-choreographed works, or when leadership positions were filled by women. Below is a breakdown of how points were distributed. The point values were chosen from the Fibonacci sequence, inspired by the Agile methodology to estimate the value of works that companies present.
The overall Gender Equity Index score includes:
Commissions (55% of overall score)
The commission component is scored by comparing the total commission opportunities provided by a company each year against the number of those opportunities awarded to by women. Each year is weighted twice as much as the prior year to focus on the most recent decisions by a company. Companies were awarded points for commissioning female-choreographed works from the 2019-2020 season, the 2020-2021 season and the 2021-2022 season. To ensure programming information is as accurate as possible, the current 2022-2023 season was excluded from this year’s score as programming may change at any time.
The values awarded are as follows:
- Full-length, mainstage, premiere works – 21 points
- Full-length, mainstage works – 8 points
- Mixed repertory, mainstage, premiere works – 5 points
- Mixed repertory, mainstage works – 2 points
- Works performed by schools or trainee/second companies, or in black box theaters and films were not awarded points. As DDP continues to expand and refine our Index, these will be scored in future years.
The points system previously described does not apply to the scoring of the 2018-2019 season, as DDP’s database only includes straight counts of works choreographed by men and women for this season. Companies instead were awarded points for programming female works regardless of length or if they were a premiere. Note: this less refined method of scoring has little impact on companies overall commission scores as more recent seasons are weighted more heavily than past seasons.
Leadership (25% of overall score)
The leadership component is scored similarly to commissions. The total number of leadership opportunities is compared against the number of those opportunities filled by women. Each year is weighted twice as much as the prior year. Points were awarded to companies with women in the following leadership positions:
- Artistic Directors – 5 points
- Executive Directors – 3 points
- Assistant/Associate Artistic Director – 2 points
- Resident Choreographer – 2 points
- Head of Studio/Second/Trainee Company – 2 points
GEI Survey addressing transparency, accountability, and procedures (20% of overall score)
In October 2022, companies were asked to complete a survey regarding their publishing of most recent tax returns, publicly disclosing pay ranges, the adoption, publication of, and training in codes of conduct, as well as reporting mechanisms for sexual assault/harassment and bullying.
- This year, DDP rewarded all companies who completed the GEI Survey with full credit for their Survey score addressing transparency, accountability, and procedures score. DDP does so in order to acknowledge these companies that have demonstrated initiative and a commitment to furthering gender equity in the dance field through their responsiveness to DDP’s first GEI. In future years, there will be stricter parameters on how these points will be distributed.
Based on these scores, companies are ranked as Needs Work (0-30%), Good (30-50%), and Exceptional (50-100%). These ranges allow companies to benchmark where they stand in terms of gender equity among other Largest 50 companies. These categories also include room for future improvement, which all companies, regardless of their scoring, can strive towards to advance gender equity in a historically inequitable field.
The 50% mark is the threshold at which women are receiving similar percentages in terms of commissions and leadership opportunities in comparison to men, and are showing commitment to transparency by completing our GEI Survey. The companies that fall in the Exceptional category, termed this year as the Equitable Eleven, include those with scores over 50%. This grouping distinguishes those companies providing more opportunities for women, thus making advances to become equitable organizations.
Honorable Mentions
DDP has given Honorable Mentions to companies that have programmed full-length world and U.S. premieres by women between 2019 and 2022. Commissioning of new, full-length works requires a large investment of company resources (i.e., time, money, new costumes/sets, promotion, and marketing). Opportunities to create new full-length works are rare, and few women are provided opportunities to stage these large-scale works. For these reasons, DDP has heavily weighted full-length premieres in the GEI Commission scoring section.
DDP has also given an Honorable Mention to Louisville Ballet for their virtual film Rite of Spring by resident choreographer, Andrea Schermoly. While virtual works were not included in the overall GEI score, DDP commends Louisville Ballet for their continued efforts to provide women opportunities to create works with a longer production (40 minutes) with larger casting, new sets and costumes, and professional production during the hardships of the pandemic when the difficult decision was made to make the entire 2020-2021 season virtual. DDP looks forward to seeing this work presented on the live stage in future seasons.
DDP applauds the companies that have given these rare opportunities to female choreographers. A listing of companies and works that received honorable mentions can be found HERE.
Celebrating Companies – In Their Own Words
Company responses were taken directly from their answer to the following questions in DDP’s GEI Survey
Please describe any special programs or initiatives to promote women into non-traditional leadership roles, such as new choreographer programs or initiatives promoting women into union roles, such as an engineer or carpenter.
Please describe any specialized contractors and trainings, such as the inclusion of intimacy coordinators and/or sexual harassment/assault trainings, designed to create a safe and positive working culture.
Click below to learn more about DDP’s Gender Equity Index.
