history, transparency, & impact
Garet&Co was founded in the Fall of 2021, although we had no idea what we were starting at the time. After graduating from NYU Tisch with both her BFA in dance and with stress fractures in her lower spine, Garet moved back to her home state and was keen to keep choreographing, even while not able to dance herself. After receiving opportunities to present her work live at a few different dance festivals and performances, Garet recognized the need for a community that dancers could count on. Since then, Garet&Co has not only been a platform for Garet's choreographic vision, but has been a needed vessel for so many dancers to experience their craft.
Garet&Co believes strongly that transparency fosters trust and enables growth. We feel that the best way for professional dance in CT to grow and thrive is for all of us in this industry to be truthful, open and communicative about the way we do business. And, to support & uplift each other!
current pay structure of garet&co:
For Season 5 (2025-2026):
(dancers selected through audition & application)
Principal Members (adult professional dancers) receive:
- $22/hr for rehearsals
- $65/show day
- 100% free access to all company classes & workshops
Professional Members (adult professional dancers) receive:
- $20/hr for rehearsals
- $50/show day
- 100% free access to all company classes & workshops
Student Members (high school & college-age students) receive:
- 100% free performance opportunities
- 100% free access to all company classes & workshops
- eligibility to be paid $15/hr for rehearsals and $50/show day as understudies of professional works
Apprentice Members (high school & college-age students) receive:
- 100% free performance opportunities
- 50% discounted access to all company classes & workshops
our impact in numbers:
- Garet&Co has paid dancers $64,000 between April 2022 and April 2026.
- Garet&Co has provided dance jobs to 30 professional dancers between Seasons 1-5 (Principal & Professional Members).
- Garet&Co has provided free training and performance opportunities to 20 high school & college-age students between Seasons 1-5 (Student Members).
- Garet&Co has provided subsidized training and free performance opportunities to 16 high school & college-age students between Seasons 1-5 (Apprentice Members).
- Garet&Co has hosted 150 classes, all of which have been open to the community at large, between Seasons 1-5.
- Garet&Co has hosted 8 workshops, all of which have been open to the community at large, between Seasons 1-5.
- Garet&Co has self-produced 18 dance performances, all of which have been open to the community at large, between Seasons 1-5.
- Garet&Co has self-produced 15 dance films, all of which have been posted publicly on social media in efforts to provide free accessibility to our work, between Seasons 1-5.
- Garet&Co has performed at 49 dance festivals and community performances across the Northeast between Seasons 1-5.
where does the money come from to support all of this?
In order to pay our professional dancers, offer financially accessible training & performing opportunities to our students, and sustain our operations via the many administrative expenses that a company like ours requires, here are the ways we generate income:
- Ticket sales to our self-produced shows. Self-producing shows has been a HUGE way that Garet&Co has been able to sustain our operations. Come support us at the many self-produced shows we offer each season! If you're not able to support in person, we also sell the professionally recorded video versions of our shows for a
hugely discounted rate. Purchasing our merchandise (including our dancergrams and raffles at shows) also supports our work!
- Class & workshop registration. We offer open classes weekly, as well as workshops in the winter and summer! We make an effort to keep registration for these training opportunities affordable through the many discounts we offer, as our larger dance community is vital to us. Each time you sign up to take class or join a workshop, you are truly a part of keeping our work alive!
- Donations. Contributions to our fundraisers are integral to our ability to offer all that we do.
- Sponsorship. We create mutually beneficial advertising opportunities for businesses to support our shows, and the financial support of those sponsorships is vital to the success of every show!
- Paid performance opportunities and grants. While many of the community performances and dance festivals we participate in are unpaid, some do pay us to perform! These paid opportunities are crucial, and set an important standard for the way we value dance. We are so grateful for those opportunities! We also have received two grants thus far to support our work, each for $1,000. Though less experienced with the landscape of grant writing, this is an area we hope to delve further in as our work continues to grow.