The City of Minneapolis’ Arts & Cultural Affairs Department (ACA) is pleased to announce the Bridge Fund for Dance Program, a new funding opportunity designed to support the local dance ecosystem and broader dance community. This program aims to energize Minneapolis’ internationally recognized dance scene while attracting artists, audiences, and creative experiences to downtown.  

Funding will be used to invest in Minneapolis and Minnesota-based choreographers, dance companies, event producers, and performing arts organizations for the creation of new and existing creative dance & choreography projects in downtown Minneapolis. A total of $450,000 is available for the 2025 Bridge Fund for Dance application round.  Selected applicants will receive grants of between $5,000 and $30,000.  

Projects must align with one of the following three categories:   

Development and Research Residency Support ($5,000 – $15,000): 

• Funding can be used for Choreographers, independent dance artists, companies, and collectives, to host 1–3-week creative development and research residences to incubate new dance ideas, innovation and collaboration.  

Production & Tech Week Support ($15,000 – $30,000):

• Funding can be used for expanding / adding additional, final production elements to a confirmed future public presentation. 

Presentation Support ($15,000 – $30,000): 

• Funding can be used to incentivize new or expand existing fully produced dance showcases / presentations / events in Minneapolis. 

Applications for the program are open now through July 15. An optional, informational session for those interested in learning more will be held virtually on June 5. More details including applicant and location eligibility, project examples and evaluation criteria also be found on the ACA Bridge Fund for Dance webpage.