Your gift will ensure that The Bates Dance Festival continues to provide dancers, students and our community access to classes, performances, events and programs that we are proud to offer each and every year. Here are some ways your gift supports our mission of offering a transformative dance experience to all who participate.

An average scholarship is $675 for a residential training program and $215 for a student in our Youth Arts Program.
Each community event costs approximately $2,000 in fees, marketing, transportation, and supplies.
The Artist in Residence program costs $18,000 to support 4 companies to develop new work and show that work to our students and audiences.

Your gift makes a difference!

Current Supporters

The Bates Dance Festival gratefully acknowledges the following contributors for their generous gifts, received since 11/1/25:

$25,000 +

National Endowment for the Arts, New England Foundation for the Arts

$10,000 +

Anonymous, Elmina B. Sewall Foundation, Onion Foundation

$1,000 – $9,999

Amelia Brown, Androscoggin Savings Bank, Baxter Brewing, Kathryn & Thomas Colby, Estate of Suzanne Crowell, Davinci’s Eatery, David Lakari, Maine Arts Commission, National Performance Network, Peregrine Capital Management, Paula Marcus-Platz and Tom Platz, Platz Associates, David Plavin, Lisa Plavin and Steven Plavin, Kirk Read and Camille Parrish, Margaret Vail

$500 – $999

Gregory Catellier and Kristin O’Neal, Richard and Clare Hardy, Alice Harvey, Charles Johnson, David Plavin in memory of Marcy Plavin, Christopher R. Tine and Michael Ohlhausen, Darby Ray and Raymond Clothier

$250 – $499

Casco Bay Movers Dance Studio, Laura Faure, Michael Foley and Yannick Nombalier, Leslie Hill, Lisa Leidy, Delaney McDonough, Susie Richardson, Rick Speer and Judy Frost, Edward Walworth, Lida Winfield

$100 – $249

Helen Albee, Butch and Amy Baxter, John Bonneau, Seth and Lori Brewer, Susan Ciampa, Lisa Clarq, Deborah Clendenning, David E. Currier, David Dorfman and Lisa Race, Mary C. Dwyer, Holly Ewing, Bobbie and Tom Gottschalk, Jennifer Green, Kristin Guglietti, Elizabeth Hart and Alison Hart, Gwyneth Jones, Sara Juli and Chris Ajemian, Carl Landa, Jessica Lockhart, Paula Mcarthur, Chip and Jane Morrison, Laura Nicoll, Joseph O’Donnell, Richard A. Partridge, Babe Paul, Aimée Petrin, Susan Pond, Shonach M. Robles, Nancy Salmon, Gretl Schatz, Linda Shary, Linda Stimpson and Peter Darvin, Dawn and Holly Trenbath

Up to $99

Carolyn Branson, Shari Broder and Eric Bryant, Charles and Barbara Carnegie, Sarah Gillespie, Mary Griffin, Zhen Heienmann, Christine Holden, Katherine Kyle, M. McCullagh, Cecilia I. Mitchell, Peggy Muir, Barbara (Bo) Parish, Alan and Susan Piccole, Ariel Pollack, Mark Roy, Gabriella Titolo, Sharon Townshend, June Vail

Leadership Circle

The Leadership Circle ($1,000 and up) is a fundraising initiative aimed at bringing advocates of the festival to a level of recognition, while also using their leadership gifts to help raise critical funds towards Festival operations. The generous support from The Leadership Circle makes BDF’s programs possible.

Being a Leadership Circle donor allows you to deepen your relationship to dance. Please consider joining our Leadership Circle. Contact dancefest@bates.edu for more information.

Thank you to the following donors who are part of our 2025 program:

Anonymous, Kathryn & Thomas Colby, Steven Edwards, Steven J. Gruverman, Clarissa Krinsky, David Lakari, Paula Marcus-Platz and Tom Platz, Christopher Barrett Politan, John C. Robinson, Kirk Read and Camille Parrish, Jean Wilson and John Roberts in memory of Marcy Plavin, Laquimah VanDunk

Additional thanks to:

Malcolm Hill, Jason Scheideman, Victoria Blaine-Wallace, Brenda Pelletier, Christine Schwartz, Donald Desrosiers, Jason Moreau, Mary Pols, Phyllis Graber Jensen, and the many Bates College employees who provide ongoing support and assistance.

Significant support has been provided by the New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Project, with lead funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and The Andrew W. Mellon foundation, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts; and the New England States Touring Program made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts Regional Touring Program and the six New England state arts agencies.

The Bates Dance Festival is a member of the National Performance Network which supports artist’s residencies and performances with funding from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Ford Foundation, and the National Endowment for the Arts (a federal agency).