AFTER THE BALL IS OVER

In 2000, the Research Center for Arts and Culture at Columbia University’s Teachers College was approached by a board of persons knowledgeable about dance and the International Organization for the Transition of Professional Dancers (IOTPD) to provide data about the challenges and realities of dancers’ career transition. This first study of its kind became a coordinated inquiry into the career transition of professional dancers in eleven different countries, culminating in a report written by William Baumol, Joan Jeffri, and David Throsby. The major areas of concern are: information that confirms what the field has always known about career transition, but did not have the numbers to support; and data that surprised the researchers. Our findings show that, in many instances, expectations of current dancers and realities of former dancers sometimes differ widely, providing important information for policy makers, funders and supporters interested in furthering continued employment of artists.