The Virginia Dance Awards Voting Committee is comprised of some of the commonwealth's most qualified dance professionals.  This small, hand selected group spans a wide range of dance platforms; Washington Performing Arts, Virginia Commonwealth University Dance Program, Mid Atlantic Arts, dance company directors, established choreographers, and veteran professional dancers.  

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HOW RECIPIENTS ARE DETERMINED

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The Virginia Dance Awards selection process begins with the public. Nomination polls open each July and remain open through September, giving the dance community three months to nominate dancers, studios, choreographers, and other artists across all eligible categories. Nominations are open to everyone, you can nominate a peer, a favorite artist, or even yourself! We actually encourage you to nominate yourself. We promote the nomination period heavily through social media, paid advertising, and email campaigns to ensure broad participation from across the Commonwealth.

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Once nominations close, our Voting Committee reviews the top three votes in each category. The Committee conducts a careful evaluation of all submitted nominations to determine whether the public's top selections should be honored or whether a more deserving nominee better reflects the standard of excellence the award represents. From there, official nominees are announced and invited to submit supporting materials including performance videos, artist bios, and testimonials, all specific to their category. The Virginia Dance Awards team collects and distributes these materials to each Voting Committee member individually, who then casts their votes anonymously. After a three-to-four week review period, the nominee receiving three or more votes is named the official recipient.