Dayton Contemporary Dance Company

Dayton Contemporary Dance Company was founded in 1968 to create performance opportunities for dancers of color. 52+ years later, it remains rooted in the African American experience, committed to the development of diverse movement artists on the global stage.

DCDC is known for its extraordinary artistic execution, dance precision, and storytelling through dance art of international standard. Having the world’s largest repertoire of classic works by African-American choreographers, the company continues to celebrate dance art around the world. In 2018, DCDC performed internationally in Russia, Kazakhstan and China. They are the 2016 NYC Bessie Award winner for Outstanding Revival for their work performed at Lincoln Center and 2018 winner of the Ohio Governor’s Irma Lazarus Award. In 2019-2020, they presented in NYC (The Joyce and Lincoln Center), Philadelphia, the Bahamas, Cincinnati and Dayton.

Chief Artistic Administrator & Producing Director Debbie Blunden-Diggs continues the company’s long legacy with fresh new dance works by top choreographers, including Donald Byrd, Ronen Koresh and Kiesha Lalama while maintaining its volume of repertoire with works by Donald McKayle, Talley Beatty, Bill T. Jones, Alvin Ailey, Dianne McIntyre, José Limón and more. CEO Ro Nita Hawes-Saunders created collaborative partnerships between the dance company and area universities including University of Dayton, Central State University, and Wright State University. The company delivers extensive education and outreach programs and services to elementary, middle, and high schools, both locally and while on tour to 25,000+ students annually ages Prek- College.