With NPN – STEPPING OUT, non-theatrical, analog, media and digital public spaces as well as performative scene areas and fields of action that had to be newly conceived were opened up for dance. This was done to expand the presentation channels for dance, which were restricted by the pandemic, and thus enabled artistic practice and employment. Funding could also be applied for to transform works – originally produced for the stage – for performances in public and/or digital spaces.

NPN – STEPPING OUT was implemented from August 2020 within the framework of the NEUSTART KULTUR initiative of the Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media, which preserved the cultural life in Germany under the substantial restrictions and financial burdens of the global COVID-19 pandemic. Together with the programs TANZPAKT RECONNECT by Bureau Ritter and DIS-TANZEN by the Dachverband Tanz Deutschland, NPN – STEPPING OUT formed the “Assistance Program for Dance.”

Who was the program aimed at?

Eligible to apply were individual artists, dance teachers and dance ensembles, collectives, production centers, venues, festivals, production offices and dance networks, individuals and legal entities with a residency or registered office in Germany that were not primarily supported by public funds, which meant they received less than 50% of their support from public budgets. The projects had to be developed and realized mainly in Germany.

In which fields of support could applications be submitted?

FIELD OF SUPPORT 1

Planning and realization of individual artistic projects that opened up temporary presentation spaces (public)

FIELD OF SUPPORT 2

Artistic projects that explored new ways of recording, projection and distribution (public and non-public)

FIELD OF SUPPORT 3

Education programs, web-based seminars or similar discourse formats (public and non-public)

FIELD OF SUPPORT 4

Conceptual planning of projects that were intended to be realized in an analog, media or digital public space at a later time (non-public)

To what extent were projects funded?

Out of a total funding amount of 18.5 million euros, 16.9 million euros were available for artistic projects. Thanks to a successive increase in funding, five allocations could be realized by February 2022. Funding was provided at a minimum of 10,000 to a maximum of 50,000 euros. Applicants had to provide counterfinancing of at least 10 percent of the total project volume. The counterfinancing could be provided in the form of third-party funds, own means and noncash contributions, provided that these could be allocated to the project in a plausible manner.

Who decided on the applications?

The applications were assessed by a jury of three experts. The members of the jury alternated between the critic, curator, artistic and managing director of the tanzhaus nrw Ingrida Gerbutavičiūtė (North Rhine-Westphalia), the freelance theater and dance critic Sabine Leucht (Bavaria), the artistic director of the fabrik Potsdam Sven Till (Brandenburg) and the festival and managing director of the euroscene Leipzig Christian Watty (Saxony).

"Especially in times of crisis, the value and significance of art is also measured by who it declares solidarity with."

Sabine Leucht, NPN jury member, freelance dance and theater critic, Munich

"In Germany, the precarity of those working in the independent dance and theater scene continues to be terrible. This has been clearly demonstrated with the outbreak of the pandemic; based on this experience, a concept must finally be developed that protects the people who work here in the event of unemployment or personal crises and gaps in employment."

Christian Watty, Jury member Festival and Managing Director of the euro-scene, Leipzig

"Even against the backdrop of global political challenges, it is important to secure the basis of our national and federal system: The maintenance of a democratic social discourse and the ability of people to engage in a respectful exchange of ideas with those who are different and think differently from themselves."

Walter Heun, Project Lead NPN - STEPPING OUT

"The fact that dance is moving out of the theaters, finding other forms of communication and other arenas, is hugely important for expanding its reach and impact in different parts of society, whether in rural areas or in communities where art and culture are still difficult to access."

Walter Heun, Project Lead NPN - STEPPING OUT

NPN – STEPPING OUT PUBLICATION PDF

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EVALUATION OF THE “NEUSTART KULTUR” PROGRAM - Evaluation report