NOW SERVING LEGS, LEAPS, AND LIFE:
AN EVENING THAT OFFERS
PIROUETTES WITH A PURPOSE

Dance for Life, the exuberant gala of dance created in 1992 to help address the impact of AIDS on a beleaguered community, returns to the Auditorium Theater on August 16, 2025, stronger than ever. Much has changed since its first fundraising performance was held in a small Chicago theater 34 years ago: medical advancements, education and time have tamed the scourge that once tore so mercilessly through dance ranks and the rest of the arts. But the drive to foster solidarity and promote the well-being of members of Chicago’s dance community has only intensified over the decades and become broader in scope.

Simon Schuh and Sydney Priestly of Giordano Dance Chicago (photo Anderson Photography)

Time has also witnessed a transformation of Chicago’s dance community itself. In the arts, as in many professions, maturation entrenches skills and expands capabilities. In disciplines like dance, it also opens the door to new and innovative approaches to artistic expression. Over the three decades since Dance for Life (DFL) debuted, Chicago’s reputation as a national powerhouse in dance has only grown, making it a magnet for dancers across the country — a place where dancers and others devoted to dance can grow professionally and pursue a wide variety of dance ambitions. According to Michael Anderson, vice president of the board of Chicago Dance Health Fund (CDHF), Dance for Life’s administrative arm, there are an estimated 150,000 dance professionals working in Chicago today.

Aerial Dance Chicago (photo Kip Conwell

These artists may not be contending with a devastating global affliction as they did in the 80s and 90s, but they still face real needs. DFL remains a vital fundraiser for ensuring those needs are met, enabling CDHF to dispense, on average, over $75,000 annually through grants to individual dancers and their cohorts — three times the amount these artists received during DFL’s formative years.

Chicago Tap All-Stars

As Mr. Anderson also shared, DFL’s overall goals have evolved and grown beyond “dancers helping dancers”. The more overarching objective now is to ensure Chicago’s dance community “remains healthy and thriving”. Through CDHF, which includes among its numbers many former dancers and dance professionals, grants are helping dancers tackle challenges like “cancer, lupus, and mental illness”. They also allow dancers to address general health concerns that bolster overall wellness like obtaining routine dental care and receiving physical therapy if they’re injured. As testimony to how physically demanding dance can be, and how empathetic the application process is, one grant enabled a dancer to receive surgery to change the shape of their nose after being struck by another dancer during a rehearsal.

Deeply Rooted Dance Theater in Sacred Spaces (photo by Jennifer Alice Jackson)

All members of the city’s professional dance industry — dancers, choreographers, administrators, teachers, accompanists, designers and more — are eligible to receive allocations distributed by CDHF.

Hubbard Street Dance Chicago in Aszure Barton's Blue Soup (photo KT Miller)

These are all the things that go on behind the veil, or, when considering an illustrious annual dance spectacular, behind the curtain. In addition to helping raise critical funds, Dance For Life also celebrates what dancers do. The number of companies participating in each year’s performance varies. Ten make up this year’s roster, one of the largest in DFL’s history. Entrants are selected through an open submission process that is completed by April.  An artistic committee then selects the companies that will perform and curate the show.

Movement Revolution Dance Crew: Kweku Bransah, TJ Morris, Monte Rezell (photo Amy Aiello)

Over the years, the number of companies making submissions to perform in DFL has grown dramatically. From fifteen 25 years ago to 45 this year, the continual rise in submissions speaks to DFL’s stature in the dance community. Those numbers also ensure the vitality and diversity of each year’s performance remain lavish, energizing and fresh.

South Chicago Dance Theatre: Mya Bryant, Trey Alexander, and Faith von Atzigen
(photo Michelle Reid)

Covering a wide variety of dance styles from the timelessness of ballet to the kaleidoscopic variety of contemporary dance, Dance for Life is a cauldron of creativity and dance excellence set on high boil. Joining marquee names like Giordano Dance Chicago, Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago and The Joffrey Ballet are both established and emerging companies whose contributions to the city’s dance topography are incalculable. Making its first DFL appearance this year, Aerial Dance Chicago normally displays how dance can extend to the air to broadcast its transformative powers.  On the 16th, they’ll employ “curve boards” to achieve the result.

The Joffrey Ballet dancers Joffrey Andante, Victoria Jaiani, Alberto Velazquez, Xavier Núñez
in Andante (photo Cheryl Mann)

South Chicago Dance Theatre dancers Mya Bryant, Trey Alexander, and Faith von Atzigen, photo credit Michelle Reid.jpg.jpgThe blend of care and creativity — of showing up for one another while pushing artistic boundaries — is what makes Dance for Life more than just another date on the cultural calendar. Participating companies are given only two directives: keep within time limits, and incorporate an element of joy. The rest is left to their imagination, and it shows. The result is a night that reflects the breadth of Chicago’s dance scene, honors the community’s resilience, and helps ensure that dancers, who give so much of themselves onstage, continue to be supported offstage. Thirty-four years on, the show still moves with purpose — and the city is better for it.

Trinity Irish Dance Company (photo Chelsea Hoy)

2025 lineup:
The complete lineup of artists, the largest since 1993, includes returning companies Chicago Tap All-Stars, Giordano Dance Chicago, Deeply Rooted Dance Theater, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, The Joffrey Ballet, Movement Revolution Dance Crew, South Chicago Dance Theatre, Trinity Irish Dance Company and Visceral Dance Chicago. Making its Dance for Life debut is Aerial Dance Chicago.

Visceral Dance Chicago: Nia Davis and David Anthony Scheuerman Saucedo (photo Todd Rosenberg)

company photos from previous productions

Dance for Life, 2025
Chicago Dance Health Fund
The Auditorium Theatre, 50 E. Ida B. Wells Drive
Saturday August 16 at 6pm
for tickets, visit Auditorium Theatre

After Party Gala: Venue SIX10, 610 S. Michigan Ave.
to purchase or for questions regarding the Gala, email info@cdhf.org or call 312.678.7919