This is our fifth annual Leadership Transitions Data Byte, revealing significant gender disparities in leadership transitions within the dance industry. The data shows that from 2023 to 2024, overall artistic director appointments decreased. However, female artistic director appointments decreased by 36%, compared to a 7% decrease for male appointments.
In 2024, male artistic director appointments accounted for 69% of all transitions, an increase from 62% in 2023. This trend extends to both available artistic and executive director roles, where male selection outpaced female hiring by 50 to 34. In contrast, mid-tier leadership roles, such as school directors, saw women slightly exceeding men being chosen at 21 to 19.
Said Elizabeth ‘Liza’ Yntema, President and Founder of DDP, “The significant decline in women reaching the highest rank of artistic leadership and the disturbing number of abrupt early departures of women in leadership across the performing arts highlights a broader trend that necessitates a thorough reassessment of hiring practices. What is absolutely needed is the implementation of considered strategies at the board level to ensure equitable representation and continued success in leadership roles.”
Additionally, from 2023 to 2024, associate artistic director transitions have stayed equal at 8 transitions across companies globally. In 2023, there were a total of 0 male associate artistic director appointments and 7 female associate artistic director appointments. In 2024, there were 2 male associate artistic directors announced and 5 female associate artistic directors announced.
The report also highlights notable shifts in school director appointments. From 2023 to 2024, male school director appointments increased by 267%, while female appointments decreased by 29%. This striking statistic may indicate a shift toward increased compensation and prestige in these roles—an area the Dance Data Project (DDP) plans to investigate further in 2025.
Additionally, the Data Byte reveals that the median tenure for male artistic directors, executive directors, and school directors is longer than that of their female counterparts.
Bailey Walker, the primary author of this Date Byte and DDP’s Archivist & Subscriptions Editor, said “The data highlights that the imbalance in leadership appointments across gender is not simply a short-term fluctuation, but a persistent challenge.”
