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| Choreographers' Guild | |
|---|---|
| Name | Choreographers' Guild |
| Formation | 20th century |
| Type | Professional association |
| Headquarters | New York City |
| Region served | International |
| Membership | Choreographers, directors, educators |
| Leader title | President |
Choreographers' Guild is a professional association dedicated to the rights, development, and recognition of choreographers working across theater, film, television, concert dance, and commercial media. It engages with institutions, festivals, unions, and funding bodies to standardize contracts, advocate copyright frameworks, and promote choreographic practice through mentorship, publication, and awards.
Founded in the 20th century amid debates about attribution and labor standards, the Guild emerged alongside organizations such as Actors' Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild, American Guild of Musical Artists, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, and SAG-AFTRA. Early interactions involved disputes influenced by cases connected to figures like Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Agnes de Mille, Merce Cunningham, and institutions such as New York City Ballet, Joffrey Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, Judson Dance Theater, and Royal Ballet. The Guild's formation paralleled developments at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, Royal Opera House, Broadway, and festivals including Edinburgh Festival Fringe and Jacob's Pillow. During the late 20th century, the Guild negotiated with unions and producers after landmark works by choreographers such as Jerome Robbins, Twyla Tharp, Paul Taylor, Pina Bausch, Yvonne Rainer, and Bob Fosse reshaped commercial and concert practices. Its policy engagement touched on copyright debates related to Berne Convention implementations and performance rights organizations like ASCAP and BMI. International collaborations connected the Guild with bodies including UNESCO, British Council, Australian Council for the Arts, Canada Council for the Arts, and venues such as Sydney Opera House and Théâtre de la Ville.
The Guild is structured with an elected board, committees, and regional chapters linked to major centers like New York City, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Berlin, Tokyo, Sydney, and Toronto. Membership categories reflect career stages from emerging creators associated with Juilliard School, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, Trinity Laban, Codarts Rotterdam, and University of California, Irvine to established figures with ties to Columbia University, Yale School of Drama, Royal Holloway, and Royal Academy of Dance. The board has included representatives who worked with companies such as San Francisco Ballet, Houston Ballet, Boston Ballet, National Ballet of Canada, Kirov Ballet, and presenters like Lincoln Center Theater and Sadler's Wells. The Guild maintains partnerships with unions and legal advisors akin to American Federation of Musicians engagements and consults with arts funders like National Endowment for the Arts and Arts Council England.
Programs include contract template development, residency placements, commissioning schemes, and arbitration services used by theaters, broadcasters, and film studios including Warner Bros., Netflix, BBC, HBO, Paramount Pictures, and venues like Palais Garnier. The Guild facilitates mentorships with institutions such as The Juilliard School, The Royal Ballet School, Moscow State Academy of Choreography, and festivals like Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival, Vail International Dance Festival, and Sadler's Wells International Residency. Professional development workshops feature conversations referencing methods from Martha Graham, Ballet Russes, Cunningham Technique, Horton Technique, and choreographic approaches linked to Pina Bausch, Akram Khan, Shobana Jeyasingh, and Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui. The Guild runs archival projects collaborating with repositories such as New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Victoria and Albert Museum, Library of Congress, and university archives at Harvard University and University of Oxford.
The Guild administers prizes, fellowships, and commissioning awards presented in ceremonies alongside major honors such as the MacArthur Fellows Program, Kennedy Center Honors, Laurence Olivier Awards, Tony Awards, Bessie Awards, and national medals like the National Medal of Arts. Annual awards spotlight emerging makers, lifetime achievement, and innovation in choreography with panels often composed of jurors from Royal Opera House, Lincoln Center, Sadler's Wells, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, and institutions linked to recipients such as Merce Cunningham, Jerome Robbins, George Balanchine, Pina Bausch, and Martha Graham.
The Guild influences curriculum and professional standards in conservatories and university programs at Juilliard, Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland, The New School, NYU Tisch School of the Arts, and Royal Academy of Dramatic Art through guidelines on credits, pedagogy, and assessment. It shapes industry practice by negotiating standard fees and rights for collaborations with broadcasters like BBC and Channel 4, film studios such as Universal Pictures and Sony Pictures, and streaming platforms including Amazon Studios and Hulu. The Guild's policy work informs funding priorities of organizations like National Endowment for the Arts, Arts Council England, Canada Council for the Arts, and grant-makers such as Graham Foundation and Ford Foundation.
Prominent members and affiliates have included creators and directors who worked with or influenced institutions like New York City Ballet, Royal Ballet, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, San Francisco Ballet, and productions on Broadway and in film and television with companies such as Warner Bros., MGM, Paramount Pictures, and broadcasters like BBC and PBS. Individual names associated through membership, collaboration, or governance include Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Jerome Robbins, Merce Cunningham, Pina Bausch, Alvin Ailey, Bob Fosse, Twyla Tharp, Paul Taylor, Akram Khan, Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui, Shobana Jeyasingh, Yvonne Rainer, Robert Joffrey, Rudolf Nureyev, Margot Fonteyn, Anna Pavlova, Isadora Duncan, Loie Fuller, Paul Taylor, Mark Morris, Christopher Wheeldon, Wayne McGregor, Justin Peck, Alexei Ratmansky, Karole Armitage, Ann Reinking, Susan Stroman, Moisés Kaufman, Lin-Manuel Miranda, Stephen Sondheim, Stephen Petronio, Bill T. Jones, Pina Bausch, Olivier Assayas, Ang Lee, Stanley Donen, and Fred Astaire.
The Guild has faced disputes over crediting, compensation, and creative control in high-profile cases involving Broadway productions, film choreography, and commercial choreography used in advertising and music videos by companies such as Sony Music, Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, and broadcasters like MTV and VH1. Criticisms have come from members affiliated with collectives such as Judson Dance Theater and institutions like Dance Theater Workshop over transparency, governance, and the perceived corporatization of choreographic labor. Legal controversies have intersected with intellectual property claims related to international treaties like the Berne Convention and engagements with rights organizations including ASCAP and BMI.
Category:Performing arts organizations