Managing Dance: Current Issues and Future StrategiesEdited by Linda Jasper and Jeanette Siddall The underlying concepts and the practicalities of managing contemporary dance are addressed in this very useful book. Drawing together the experiences of a diverse and well-qualified group of contributors it sheds light on the issues and challenges being tackled by today's dance managers and discusses models for future application. It begins with a useful chapter by Jeanette Siddall charting the development of dance management and is then structured into four sections, each looking at a particular management context: dance artists, dance products, participation and the political context, and covering professional performance through to recreational activity. The chapters within each section (each by a different contributor) are jargon-free and informative. They describe the author's immediate experience and/or use their research findings to reveal the complexities and subtleties of managing dance artists and their work. There are valuable insights into the 'softer' management skills and qualities required in supporting artists through to analysis of some 'harder' practical skills and techniques required to market dance. Overall the book highlights the need for mature partnerships between artists and managers and the need for an artist-centred management approach. The strength of this book rests in its findings being rooted in practical experience; I highly recommended it to existing, new and aspiring dance managers but there is also much of interest and value to a broad management readership.
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