RSVP HERE to our free performance, WE WEAR THE SKY, on Wednesday, June 18, 2025 at 7:00pm at the Jack Crystal Theater, 111 Second Avenue, 5th floor.

THE PRIDE RESIDENCY, PERFORMANCE and COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROGRAM

WADE, supported by the Department of Dance at New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, presents the Pride Residency, Performance and Community Engagement 2025.

The Pride Residency is made possible in part with funds from Creative Engagement, a regrant program supported by The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) in partnership with the City Council, The New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by LMCC.

Created by WADE in response to feedback from the LGBTQIA+ artistic community, this program addresses the ongoing need for free rehearsal space, professional production opportunities, and financial and logistical support for underrepresented and historically marginalized artists. The initiative is divided into two sessions—Spring and Fall—each focused on different aspects of artistic and community development.

Spring Session: Creation and Performance

The Spring Session centers on the creative process. Up to four (4) emerging LGBTQ2+ choreographers are selected to receive up to 50 hours of free rehearsal space to develop new work or refine existing choreography that reflects and amplifies their identities and experiences.

This rehearsal period runs from January 21 to June 15, 2025 (20 weeks) and culminates in a free public performance at the Jack Crystal Theater on Wednesday, June 18, 2025. The evening includes a moderated artist talk and informal mingling session to foster dialogue between artists and audience.

In addition to rehearsal space and performance opportunities, choreographers receive:

Mentorship and feedback from WADE collaborators
Professional photography and video documentation for their portfolios
A small stipend to support their work

Fall Session: Community Engagement

The Fall Session shifts focus to community impact. Participating choreographers design and implement a unique, community-based event in partnership with an organization of their choice. These events may include movement workshops, informal performances, lecture-demonstrations, Q&A sessions, or a combination of interactive elements.

To support this work, artists receive:

Four (4) 2-hour virtual training sessions to develop a clear curriculum with specific learning goals
Two (2) in-person “vision sessions” to present and finalize plans for their events

The community events are scheduled to take place in November and December 2025.

Photos by John Eng

ANNOUNCING OUR
2025 RESIDENT ARTISTS

JAY BEARDSLEY is an interdisciplinary dance artist currently based in Brooklyn, NY. Their talent and commitment to dance has led them to train and perform across the United States and internationally. Jay's stage performance credits include Ballez, work by Merce Cunningham, Douglas Dunn + Dancers, PERFORMA, Johnnie Cruise Mercer, and their own performance project Katerina & Jay. They have collaborated with Sidra Bell Dance New York, GREYZONE, Cornfield Dance, and MICHIYAYA Dance.

Jay Beardsley
(they/them)

MAGGIE JOY (she/her) and CORINNE LOHNER (they/she) are dance collaborators and long-time friends. Both from Dallas, TX with a B.F.A. from New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts, they currently freelance as performers and educators in New York City and make work that prioritizes queerness, play, and partnering.

Between the two of them, they’ve danced for David Dorfman, Dual Rivet, cullen + them, Douglas Dunn + Dancers, Yin Yue, and more. Their first collaboration was supported through InQUAD programming and was performed at the Jack in Brooklyn, NY.

Maggie Joy (she/her) and
Corinne Lohner
(they/she)

A thrower of parties both on and off stage, heavily influenced by social dance and the human impulse to move, RYLAN JOENK is a movement artist dedicated to creating work that dissects and challenges the expectations of contemporary dance performance. By playing with elements of theatricality and improvisation to explore collective justice and queer identities, Rylan's work exists at the intersection of camp, kitsch, and fervent sincerity.

Rylan began dancing at the Joffrey Ballet in Chicago before attending Walnut Hill School for the Arts, under the direction of Michael Owen. As a student at NYU Tisch School of the Arts, Rylan had the opportunity to perform works by Dana Ruttenberg, José Limón, and many peers, finding their greatest passion in the collaborative and experimental nature of taking part in new work.

After receiving a BFA in dance in 2024, Rylan's piece pearl was presented at Arts On Site for 7MPR Midnights' Pride Celebration. The piece's predecessor, PEARL DIVER, is set to be presented at WestFest 2025.

Rylan Joenk
(they/she)

DYLAN RICHMOND is a choreographer, dancer, and poet from the Connecticut shoreline. He graduated cum laude from Bowdoin College with a B.A. in Dance and English where he received the President’s Award for his exceptional achievements and contributions to the college. Dylan has performed or presented work at Yale University, UCLA, Bowdoin College, Queen Mary University of London, TOTAH, the Grand Ole Opry, and at the African Diasporic Dance Summit at Connecticut College. As a poet, Dylan is a 2024 Pushcart Prize nominee and is notably published in “From Root to Seed: Black, Brown, and Indigenous Poets Write the Northeast.” Currently, Dylan is the company manager for New York Live Arts and the Bill T. Jones/ Arnie Zane Company.