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Dancing to the Polls

David Dorfman Dance has been awarded a National Dance Project Production Grant.

David Dorfman Dance, one of the nation’s leading modern dance companies and Connecticut College’s company in residence, has been awarded a National Dance Project Production Grant from the New England Foundation for the Arts to support The Front Line, a new dance-theater work examining American democracy through the voting process.

The piece, developed by DDD’s artistic director, Professor David Dorfman ’81, in collaboration with company members, is set in a middle school gymnasium turned polling site for an imagined Election Day 2040. The movement, song and words of the professional dancers portraying poll workers—aka the front line—interact with those of community cast members playing the roles of voters and campaigners. Together, cast and audience unravel the act of voting amid deep disillusionment, anger and division. By reframing community building, hope and dreaming as vital political acts, The Front Line blends sober reflection with joyous celebration to interrogate what it truly means to participate in America.

The initial research and development for the piece took place during a May 2026 residency at Conn. The production grant provides $45,000 for creation and development, $10,000 in unrestricted general operating support and $20,000 to support U.S. touring and sharing of the new work.

The Front Line is a Democracy Cycle commission through Perelman Performing Arts Center and the Civis Foundation. The work has received additional support from the Doris Duke Foundation, Mellon Foundation, New England Dance Fund, Aliad Fund at the Boston Foundation, New Music USA, American Dance Festival, Bates Dance Festival, Connecticut College and Yale Schwarzman Center. It is scheduled to premiere at the 2027 American Dance Festival.

Dorfman, a professor at Conn since 2004, founded David Dorfman Dance in 1987. As Conn’s company in residence since 2007, DDD spends several weeks each year working with Conn students and developing new works.