Administrative Support Program

• Mentorships

• Administrative Personnel

• Internships

• Performance Opportunities

• Studio Space

• Fiscal Sponsorship

• Access to Materials for the Arts

• Working Sessions

Connecting artists with seasoned arts professionals

Mentorships connect artists with seasoned arts professionals/administrators in the field who can provide them with guidance in planning and implementing their artist and organizational visions, finding answers to their questions, and strengthening specific skills in areas of need. Pentacle selects the mentor, from a pool of dance leaders who have expressed interest in participating in our program, with the skills and expertise the artist needs. The artist meets with their designated mentor for a minimum of 10 hours, in order to develop the trust and familiarity necessary for a productive mentorship. Through an open dialogue, observation, and evaluation, the mentor counsels the artist and invests time and expertise in the artist’s success.

Providing access to an administrator on Pentacle’s staff

Recognizing that it is very difficult to hire, train, and oversee part-time administrative staff, ASP gives artists access to a dedicated administrator from Pentacle’s staff for short-term projects or administrative tasks that require small amounts of personnel time. As a member of our staff, the administrator works in our offices under the guidance of Pentacle’s Director of Programming and has the skills and experience necessary to help build the artist's organizational structure.

Recruiting, training, and matching artists with interns

Pentacle works with dance companies and affiliated nonprofit organizations to recruit and train interns that fit their interests and administrative needs. Pentacle handles the entire intern recruitment and hiring process: conducting interviews, handling all contract logistics, confirming interns’ projects, and outlining goals for the program session. Pentacle guides both interns and companies throughout the program period to ensure a positive and educational experience for all. In addition, interns attend weekly professional development seminars with Pentacle staff and outside arts professionals, to strengthen their skills and provide them with a network of peers and mentors they can access in their work for their company.

Interns work for their companies 10 hours per week over an 8-week session. Companies and interns are given the option to extend the internship, and many choose to do so beyond the program period.

Producing three annual performances for ASP artists

Artists can participate in any of the exclusive ASP artist performances or showcases happening three times throughout the year including:

• Fall Further (fall performance opportunity at Dixon Place, NYC)

• APAP (performance slot in a showcase at City Center Studios, NYC)

• Pentacle Presents (spring performance opportunity at a venue outside of NYC)

A shared program and the variety of settings gives artists opportunities to present their work to new audiences.

Pentacle fully produces each show: booking the venue, hiring and managing technical staff, and handling all communication and administration. Participants simply let Pentacle know what they need, and then concentrate on their artistry.

Supporting artistic process through subsidized studio rentals

Pentacle has partnered with Nancy Meehan Dance Company to offer discounted studio space in the historic Westbeth Artists Housing building at 55 Bethune Street. The fee includes a total of 6 hours of studio time within the agreement period. With an active online rentals calendar, space booking options are easily visible to artists. Rental requests and fees are administered by Pentacle’s Administrative Support Associate.

Offering free membership to Pentacle’s Unique projects

All artists who are part of ASP receive membership to Pentacle's basic fiscal sponsorship program, Unique projects. This sponsorship program gives artists the ability to receive tax deductible donations, apply for foundation grants, as well as other nonprofit benefits, such as discounted rehearsal space. Artists work with a dedicated administrator to clearly, reliably, and efficiently process their donations and send acknowledgments on their behalf. This service is ideal for emerging or established artists with project-specific fundraising needs.

Providing access to NYC's largest creative reuse center

Artists in ASP receive access on a first-come-first served basis to Materials for the Arts, which is an organization that collects unneeded items from businesses and individuals, making those donations available for free to nonprofit organizations with arts programming, government agencies, and public schools.

Educating artists in specific areas of need

Working Sessions offer artists a chance to work one-on-one with a Pentacle administrator who has expertise in a specific area they have questions about. Our staff leads the artist through the steps to solve the problem at hand, while also offering them tools to continue implementing the solution independently.

Available topics include:

• Fiscal

• Capacity Building & Management

• Marketing

• Booking & Touring

• Grant Writing

$1000 per year

As a participant of our Administrative Support Program, artists receive $1000 worth of services over a year-long period. If an artist requests services that exceed this amount during the contract period, artists will be invoiced for those additional services at the listed rates below.

Pentacle’s Administrative Support Program (ASP) is supported, in part, by public funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of Governor Andrew M. Cuomo and the New York State Legislature, and the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs in partnership with the City Council. Pentacle receives private support for ASP from the Howard Gilman Foundation, The Hyde and Watson Foundation, The Jerome Robbins Foundation, and The Harkness Foundation for Dance.