imprint

program logistics:

• program year: September 1, 2026 - September 1, 2027

• application opens Mon June 1st, 2026 and is due Tues June 30th, 2026 by 11:59pm PST

• 3 emerging dance writers will be selected

  • we are looking for people who are interested in learning the craft of dance writing to grow the field of dance writers

  • this program requires dedicated time over the course of a year to monthly meetings, learning, attending performances, and the editing process. while we know that unexpected things may arise and schedules may shift, we ask that to the best of your ability, you commit to a year of monthly meetings and to engagement in the writing process

  • note: given the time requirements, this fellowship program is not intended for full-time students

  • $500 stipend for each fellow to be received at end of program pending 3 published writings, attendance at all meetings, and at 5 performances

• time commitment:​

  • 40 hours of work/study a year, which includes 12 x 1.5hr monthly cohort meetings over the course of the year.

  • fellows must commit to attending all cohort meetings, and may not miss more than 1 cohort meeting. (The meeting time will be recurring and set at the start of the cohort year in September 2026).

  • seeing 5 performances over the year

  • producing at least 3 written dance reviews/reflections for publication on the PDW blog​

​

how it works:

imprint is an annual dance writing fellowship program designed for US-based QTBIPOC dance writers. Artistic Director Bhumi B Patel will support three emerging dance writers through writing and publishing mentorship and professional development as a dance writer. Through this program, participating writers will be compensated $500 for 40 hours of work/study over the course of a year. During their fellowship with pateldanceworks, participating writers will attend twelve monthly cohort meetings, which will include readings, discussions, co-writing sessions, writing feedback sessions, and guest speakers. Fellows will also attend at least five performances and receive mentorship to write reviews/reflections on each performance attended. Over the course of the program year, fellows are expected to publish at minimum 3 of their completed writings published on the PDW blog. The application for the 2026-2027 cohort opens June 1st, 2026, is due June 30th, 2026, and the program year will run Sep 1, 2026 - Sep 1, 2027.​

​

why a dance writing program:

PDW is continuing imprint at this important moment for dance writing and criticism. There has been a long history of exclusion of BIPOC and queer voices in dance writing, and artists of color and queer artists have often been written about through racially homogenous, heteronormative standards. With imprint, we hope to do something different. This program is by and for QTBIPOC, with the program being led by Artistic Director Bhumi B Patel, who has been published in Performance Research Journal, Refractions Journal, the San Francisco Chronicle, Life as a Modern Dancer, Contact Quarterly, and InDance. Patel has a forthcoming essay on performing futurisms in The Routledge Companion to Performance and Technologies edited by Norah Zuniga Shaw and Maaike Bleeker. It is necessary to include voices of queer and BIPOC in dance writing to diversify how dance performance is written about and remembered. We look forward to growing and futuring dance writing!