Diasporic Dance Mastermind
A 6-month intimate small group program where you’ll be supported in taking your company to the next level, while standing in your artistic power through strategy, mindset and nervous system work.
Begins September 2024!
- If you are:
- Desiring support to map out a clear path to achieve your vision for your company
- Overwhelmed by the things you know and don’t know - be it about planning and executing a tour outside of your current community and/or region or building a team to support the growth you desire
- Frustrated or uncertain on how to navigate the dominant Eurocentric performing arts sector as a diasporic dance company and artist
- Struggling to convey the unique value of your work in a way that funders and/or presenters “get it”
- Unclear on how to find the right partners, venues, and resources to support your endeavors
- Tired of being pigeon holed as “ethnic” and feeling like you are competing against other diasporic artists
Then, this mastermind is for you. I created it so you can learn and be supported by me, and work alongside a group of peers of the global majority in building infrastructure and administrative knowledge to take your company to the next level.
In this program, you can:
- Gain a clear understanding of your goals and vision
- Develop effective ways to tell your story and vision to different stakeholders
- Learn to strategically identify potential partners and resources
- Learn how to overcome cultural and language barriers, fostering effective communication and networking with different communities, partners, and stakeholders
- Discover strategies to maintain your artistic integrity while navigating the commercial demands
- Gain financial empowerment around producing a show or managing and planning your tours
It is about doing it from a place of confidence and creating ways of working that prioritizes ease,
are sustainable and feel good for you and your nervous system.
I'm Heena and I help performing artists of the global majority to make their dreams come true.
I have spent my career navigating white dominant spaces, amplifying the work of artists of the global majority. For me, putting diasporic arts onto stages is not about representation, but about taking up the space that is ours; sharing our arts not just for cultural exchange, but because music, dance, and stories have shaped where we and our communities come from and where we will go.
From producing and touring my own multidisciplinary productions such as Bollywood Boulevard and Garba360 to communities across the country to booking tours for countless dance companies and bands through my company MELA Arts Connect, I've had the pleasure of putting hundreds of artists onto stages and into communities that we hadn’t even imagined. My desire is to share the learnings, the tips and tricks, so you can realize your dreams with greater ease and confidence.
In small and big moments with audiences of 20 to 50,000, we've shared our stories. I'm excited to help you share yours.
Join me in the Diasporic Dance Mastermind!
Where: LIVE on Zoom
When: Every 2nd Tuesday from 1pm - 2:15pm ET
How long: For 6 months
(Replays will be available for those who can’t make it.)
Investment: $1,111**
We begin September 2024.
*final day / time to be determined with input from the group.**Payment plans available, please email info@melaartsconnect.com
What’s inside the Diasporic Dance Mastermind
Phase 1
Getting Grounded Clear about Today and Dream up the Future
- We will:
- Get honest about what’s been working and where you need to look more deeply
- Identify your why and who you want your work to reach
Phase 2
Get into the Practical Details
- We will:
- Delve into the realities of your vision & how to make it happen
- Dig into the words and numbers - what do you need to make things happen from a marketing, sales, and financial lens
Phase 3
Strategize & Implement
With clarity on your why and an assessment of what is in place and what is needed, we move into the how.
- We will:
- Get creative about different resources and partnerships to support your goals
- Create strategy with steps that feel achieveable and incremental to move you towards your vision
Throughout this program, I'll share specific systems, processes, and strategies that have been most effective for myself and other artists, including the software I used as well as email and spreadsheet templates.
What’s NOT inside Diasporic Dance Mastermind
A prescriptive one-size fits all blueprint for you to follow.
The focus of this program is live coaching.
You’re invited to bring your questions, challenges, and wins to each call. I’m here to support you – be it looking at your pitch emails, addressing mental blocks, or leading you through somatic practices. The intimate nature (max 7 companies) means that I’ll be using YOU in my examples of how to apply the theories and practices, And the benefit of a mastermind is that the entire group becomes your brain trust.
Join the Diasporic Dance Mastermind!
Where: LIVE on Zoom
When: Every 2nd Tuesday from 1pm - 2:15pm ET
How long: For 6 months
(Replays will be available for those who can’t make it.)
Investment: $1,111**
We begin September 2024.
**Payment plans available, please email info@melaartsconnect.com
FAQs
Trust your instinct. Only sign up if it feels like a heaven yes. You may more clarity during our discernment call.
This mastermind is by invitation only. If you and I have worked or interacted, you are whom I had in mind when putting this offering together. If we have not worked together, you are an artist that has been referred to the program via trusted colleagues who felt this was for you. That being said, I want you to be sure, which is why there is a 20-minute discernment conversation with me before you can secure your spot.
No. Your results are 100% up to whether or not you show up fully committed and ready to take action.
I guide from lived experience as someone who has done it for herself and for others. It is a no-BS approach. I’m here to demystify, challenge, and support you in making the career you want if you’re ready to do the work and take action.
Email me at info@melaartsconnect.com
When I began on the administrative side of the business, there were next to no South Asians - be it as presenters, agent-managers, or producers, and basically all the South Asian artists I saw at booking conferences were represented by white people.
It has been a journey to gain the practical skills and know-how, along with the confidence to see my background as a person of the global majority as my superpower instead of a disadvantage. I don’t have it all figured out, but I’ve learned a fair bit from experience and making mistakes.
This work is not going to be easy, but if we were afraid of working hard, we wouldn’t be in the arts. I will challenge you AND also hold your hand.
You are creating magic. You are shaping culture and setting examples for so many. It would be my privilege to support you in making your dreams a reality because I know it's possible.
I hope you’ll let me have a front row seat to your journey as your cheerleader and guide.
- Heena
