// ARTIST PROGRAMS //
Velocity is an artist-led organization providing a responsive framework to support, fuel and sustain dance artists in their ongoing development as professionals. We provide generous residency, performance and artist development opportunities; and collaborative creative production.
Access Velocity / Theater Rental
Access Velocity supports independently produced performances by Seattle artists in Velocity’s flexible Founders Theater. We offer three affordable rental packages that respond to artists’ different performance needs and offer theater rental support systems that reflect the highest national standards.
Artist-in-Residence (A.I.R.)
The A.I.R. program serves the needs of accomplished professional dance and movement-based artists or collaborative teams engaged in the process of research / creation by providing free space and time for work, reflection, and community interaction. In 2012, Velocity expanded its Residency program to include annual Creative Residents.
The Bridge Project
The Bridge Project is Velocity’s 3-week challenge program for movement-based artists new to making work in Seattle or who have not been making work for more than three years. This intensive residency offers up to four artists up to 45 hours of free rehearsal space for a new project while working with a cast of auditioned dancers. Additionally, all artists receive the creative, financial and administrative support of a fully produced weekend of performances at Velocity.
Guest Artist Series
This series provides the Seattle community with residency activities from national/international dance artists including technique classes, workshops, and performances.
Made in Seattle
Made in Seattle is dedicated to growing the Northwest’s creative community by commissioning, producing and presenting evening-length dance works by some of the most talented and experimental artists from our region. The goal of this program is to increase the artistic quality of new contemporary dance pieces created at Velocity by increasing our direct support to midcareer and established artists during the critical Development Phase of a new work.
Master Class Series
Velocity’s Master Class Series provide Seattle dancers the opportunity to learn from leading dance artists from around the globe. Ranging from technique, improvisation, and creative process, master classes take place year-round and bring internationally renowned artists to Velocity through partnerships with UW Meany Hall, Seattle Theatre Group, and Cornish College for the Arts.
Next Fest NW + Next Dance Cinema
A new works festival for dance artists and filmmakers in the Pacific Northwest, showcasing the most dynamic contemporary movement works on stage and in film coming out of the region, including Portland, Tacoma, and Vancouver BC.
Ongoing Classes
Velocity offers an average of 1,700 classes per year taught by renowned local teachers. The backbone of the curriculum is contemporary dance with many additional genres taught to diversify and expand our adult student base.
SCUBA: National Touring Network for Dance
SCUBA provides touring opportunities to locally-established, nationally-emerging dance artists. This visionary program was initiated by Velocity in partnership with dance organizations in Minneapolis, Philadelphia, and San Francisco.
Seattle Festival of Dance Improvisation (SFDI)
SFDI, an annual weeklong summer dance festival, has presented the best in improvisational dance and related fields since 1994. A world-renowned summer dance festival SFDI features classes, intensives, jams, performances, and discussions with leading local, national and international dance innovators.
The Speakeasy Series
The Speakeasy Series is an artist and Velocity-curated series of panel discussions, audience labs, show + tells, performance lectures, informal community conversations and/or other formats that focus on provocative or timely issues of aesthetics, philosophy or the intersection of dance and social justice confronting, or of interest to, the dance and performance community. The purpose of the Speakeasy Series is to encourage cross-disciplinary dialogue, promote civic engagement, create meaningful links between artists and the community, and support initiatives at the cutting edge of change.
Seattle Youth Dance Collective
Seattle Youth Dance Collective (SYDC), an initiative of Velocity Dance Center and Seattle Theatre Group, is for aspiring dance artists ages 15-18 with an interest in growing as choreographers, dancers and dance producers. Students will develop themselves as artists; learning dance, choreography, film-making and performance production skills through creative investigations and professional mentorship.
SH*T GOLD
SH*T GOLD is Velocity’s Open Mic Night, for artists experimenting in any genre; for those unafraid to fail. SH*T GOLD was developed by Velocity in the spirit of community co-creation.
STANCE
STANCE is Velocity’s online journal that aims to activate and foster thoughtful discourse on dance, movement-based research and choreographic culture in and beyond Seattle. STANCE publishes informed writing, interviews, and responses to Velocity Speakeasy Series events as well as audio and video, images, research, experimental digital projects and other relevant online content while insuring a diversity of perspectives and areas of expertise are represented.
Strictly Seattle
A three-week summer dance intensive in July for beginning through professional adult students, featuring Seattle teachers and choreographers. This program includes daily classes and rehearsals, and a culminating performance at Broadway Performance Hall.
Studio Rental
Velocity offers movement artists beautiful, clean, and low cost rehearsal space in the heart of Capitol Hill. Velocity’s three studios house all of our Artistic Programs, ongoing classes and rehearsals by hundreds of local dance companies and choreographers. All studios feature sound systems, mirrors + curtains, and lots of natural light.
What We Talk About When We Talk About. . .
What we talk about when we talk about. . . is Velocity’s program created in collaboration with 2012 Artist-in-Residence Zoe Scofield. A quarterly interdisciplinary conversation about creative process, WWT@WWT@ is an opportunity for artists of different disciplines to share their current creative thinking, and to bring their unique lenses to experiencing and talking about each other’s work.
Work/Study Scholarship Program
Velocity’s Work/Study Scholarship program provides financial aid to dedicated students with opportunities to take class no matter what their financial means. Our program requires 4-5 hours a week, and consists of cleaning our facilities. All work study applicants commit to the program for at least 3 months.
