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SIDF 2026: DANCE DREAM DONATE
A Sanctuary of Global Connection Through Dance
In a world that can often feel uncertain, fragmented, or distant, opportunities to gather across cultures and perspectives are increasingly rare — and deeply needed.
The Seattle International Dance Festival exists to create that gathering space.
Each June, artists and audiences from around the world come together in Seattle through the shared language of movement. On SIDF stages, local, national, and international artists stand side by side, offering windows into diverse lived experiences, traditions, and creative voices.
For audiences, the festival becomes more than a performance series.
It becomes a place of encounter.
A place of curiosity.
A place of connection.
SIDF is a sanctuary of global community — created through dance.
Why SIDF Matters Now
Live international cultural exchange is not guaranteed. It must be intentionally created, supported, and sustained.
The Seattle International Dance Festival provides one of the Pacific Northwest’s only opportunities for audiences to experience contemporary dance from multiple countries within a single curated festival. For artists, it offers an essential platform for visibility, dialogue, and artistic growth. For Seattle, it creates a civic space where global perspectives are welcomed and shared.
In a time when many people feel separated by geography, culture, or experience, SIDF offers something profoundly human: gathering through art.
Your support ensures this space continues to exist.
What Your Support Makes Possible
Gifts to the DANCE DREAM DONATE campaign sustain the full ecosystem of the festival:
- Presentation of local, national, and international artists
- Fair compensation for performers and creative teams
- Accessible ticket pricing for audiences
- Professional production and venues
- Community engagement and audience access
- Cross-cultural artistic exchange
Every contribution helps bring the world to Seattle — and Seattle into global artistic dialogue.
The Impact of SIDF
Each year, the festival:
- Presents artists and companies from multiple countries
- Supports over 100 dance artists
- Connects thousands of audience members to contemporary dance
- Creates shared experiences across cultures and communities
- Strengthens Seattle’s identity as an international arts city
For many attendees, SIDF is their first live encounter with global contemporary dance.
For many artists, it is a rare opportunity to share work across borders.
For the city, it is a living expression of cultural exchange.
A Gathering Place for Artists and Audiences
What makes SIDF unique is proximity.
Artists from different countries share the same stage.
Audiences encounter multiple cultures in a single evening.
Conversations unfold in lobbies, receptions, and shared experiences.
Difference becomes dialogue.
Curiosity replaces distance.
Connection becomes tangible.
This is the power of live performance.
This is the power of SIDF.
Sustaining a Sanctuary
Festivals like SIDF do not happen automatically. They are built each year through partnerships, planning, and community investment.
The DANCE DREAM DONATE campaign ensures the festival remains:
- artist-centered
- globally engaged
- locally rooted
- financially sustainable
- accessible to audiences
Your support sustains a cultural space where the world meets through movement.
Your Role
When you give to SIDF, you support:
- global artistic exchange
- shared human storytelling
- international cultural presence in Seattle
- artists working across borders
- community gathering through art
You help ensure that, each June, Seattle becomes a crossroads of creativity and connection.
Choices to Support
Choose to support what you feel most passionate about:
Inter|National Series
- $5000 Inter|National Series Sponsor or
- $2500 Inter|National Series Co-sponsor.
This level supports one of four evenings of national and international dance.
Spotlight on Seattle
- $5000 Spotlight on Seattle Sponsor or
- $2500 Spotlight on Seattle Co-sponsor.
Fund the presentation of works from five Seattle area dance companies and artists.
James Ray Residency and Touring Project
- $5000 James Ray Residency and Touring Program Co-Sponsor.
Together with The Raynier Foundation, fund one of two performances featuring works from residency recipients Leah Russell and Rhea Keller, Project Convergence, and Hypernova.
The World Premiere
$2500 Inter|National Series Artistic Premier Sponsor.
Support the World Premiere of Guillaume Basso’s new work, showcasing his transition from PNB dancer to innovative choreographer.
The Emerging Artist
$2500 Spotlight on Seattle Emerging Artist Sponsor.
Support the presentation of a new work by up-and-coming local artists Rodrick Barnes and Staphany G. Olalde.
Techincal Production
$2500 Production Sponsor
Maintain high production standards by supporting the team, providing extra rental hours and tech time for artists, and offsetting the increasing costs of live performance.
The Opening Reception
$2500 Reception Sponsor.
Support the opening night reception and community gathering, fostering meaningful connections between SIDF artists and the audience.
The Accomplished Artist
$1500 Inter|National Accomplished Artist Sponsor.
Support an established and “decorated” artist for their contribution to the world of dance. Posthumously awarded to Nai-Ni Chen for her namesake company’s celebration of the immigrant experience, reflecting her journey as a Chinese artist emigrating to the U.S.
Community Engaged Artist
$1500 Spotlight on Seattle Community Engaged Artist Sponsor.
Celebrate Deshawn Morton, a dedicated artist and mentor who enriches the Seattle-Tacoma community through his artistry and outreach.
Other Levels
Contributions in other amounts are welcomed and valued, no matter how big or how small. We invite you to donate any amount that feels meaningful to you.
Who You Are Supporting
When you support these programs, you support people.
SIDF Artists in 2026
List coming soon…
SIDF Artists in Past Years
Iraqi Bodies (Iraq/Syria), Doppelganger Dance (directed by Shura Baryshnikov, Providence, RI), Tchekpo Dance Company (Germany/Africa), Compagnie 7273 (Switzerland), Experimentus (Brazil), Pisorojo Dance Company (Venezuela), Aura Dance Theater (Lithuania), Idan Cohen (Israel), LED (Boise, ID), Newport Contemporary Ballet (Newport, RI), Emily Sferra (Portland, OR), Vikas Arun and Project Convergence (New York, NY), Andy Chiang (Fort Lee, NJ), Greta Campo and Nai Ni Chen Dance Company (Fort Lee, NJ/New York, NY), Carlota Machado and Companhia de Dança de Almada (Almada, Portugal), Jung Soo Dong and Soo d Art & Company (Seoul, South Korea).
We have showcased local artists Massive Monkees, Ezra Thomson, Price Suddarth, Spectrum Dance Theater, Olympic Ballet, Wade Madsen, Apoorva Natarajan, Cyrus Khambatta and Khambatta Dance Company, DéShawn Morton, Hana Shiozaki and Arlo King, Haruko Nishimura, Joshua Kohl and Degenerate Art Ensemble, Leah Russell, Rhea Keller, Maia Melene D’urfé, Meredith Pellon, Miranda Knorr, Rainbow Fletcher and HYPERNOVA, Rodrick Barnes, Sejin Park, Young-Eun Kwak, Alana O’Rogers Dance Company, Alice Gosti, Amelia Reeber, Amy O’Neil, Andrew Bartee, Ashani Dances/Iyun Ashani Harrison, Badmarmar/Marlo Martin, CabinFever, Coriolis Dance, Deborah Wolf, Derek Crecsenti, Eva Stone / Stone Dance Group, Gendertender, Jade Solomon Curtis, Jim Kent, Mark Haim, Markeith Wiley, Molly Scott, Kate Wallich, Whim W’Him, Zoe | Juniper, Guillaume Basso, and many others.
Join the 2026 DANCE DREAM DONATE Campaign
Your gift — in any amount — sustains a festival where cultures meet, stories move, and community is created through dance.
Together, we can keep this sanctuary of global connection alive.
Donate. Dream. Dance.