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Touring Realities: Financial Perspectives from Presenters and Dance Companies

December 2025

Is touring a financially viable strategy, and is it sustainable for the broader dance ecosystem? This question, posed by an ABA member, led ABA to deploy two surveys: one for presenters and one for dance and classical ballet companies. In addition, six interviews were conducted with survey participants. Together, these efforts shed light on the decisions and nuances behind touring and presenting.

To present the results, we have divided the material into three documents:

  • Key findings based on essential data points from the surveys and insights from the interviews.

  • Complete survey results for dance and ballet companies.

  • Complete survey results for presenters.

Key findings include:

  • Touring is primarily driven by strategic rather than financial goals: Companies that choose to tour typically do so in service of broader strategic objectives aligned with their mission, vision, and core principles, such as bringing dance to wider and more diverse audiences.

  • Tours rarely generate profit but offer valuable non-financial benefits: While profitability is always desirable, companies that tour are often willing to absorb financial losses as long as key objectives—such as audience development, visibility, or relationship-building—are achieved.

  • Dance and ballet are less profitable for presenters than other art forms: Presenters face rising production costs, particularly in classical ballet; challenges in ticket sales, especially outside of well-known works (such as The Nutcracker) or performances by established companies; and reductions in grants and other third-party support.

  • Some presenters are exploring alternative models: While most presenters operate under a traditional model—paying a fee per performance or tour and retaining box office revenue—others are experimenting with shared-bill models with multiple companies or co-presentations.

The full report is available to ABA members by clicking below.

This article is related to a recently completed custom research project conducted on behalf of an ABA member. Our research team is always delighted to speak with members about tailoring research projects to your organization. To learn more or submit a custom research request, simply contact your member advisor or email us at info@advisoryarts.com.