BDFête | A Celebration of Artistic Community | Thursday | July 30 | 5-7PM

Join us for The BDFête, an evening dedicated to honoring the transformative power of performance and the visionary individuals who shape the soul of our dance community.

The evening will feature an awards ceremony honoring those whose contributions have profoundly shaped the festival’s legacy, culminating in a headline performance of Jesse Factor’s evocative masterwork, The Marthaodyssey.

This year’s honorees are vital members of the BDF and the Maine dance community. Their dedication is fundamental to BDF's mission, and their support is what makes each season possible.

*Purchase your tickets early to secure your seat for

While this is a family-friendly event, individuals must be 21+ to consume alcohol.

Proceeds raised during the BDFête are used to maintain accessible programming, ensuring that our free and pay-what-you-can performances remain available to everyone.

Photo Credit: Olivia Moon Photography

Tom and Paula Platz are dedicated advocates for the Lewiston-Auburn community, contributing to its structural and cultural vitality through their professional expertise and philanthropic leadership. Since returning to the region in 1980 to co-found the architectural and engineering firm Platz Associates, Tom has spearheaded the restoration of over one million square feet of historic local landmarks, reintegrating these foundational structures into the modern life of the city. Beyond his architectural contributions, Tom has served on more than a dozen nonprofit boards and maintains a steadfast commitment to projects that generate a positive regional impact. Through Platz Associates, he has ensured the Bates Dance Festival remains a premier cultural asset, providing consistent corporate sponsorship for many years.

Paula’s distinguished tenure with the Bates Dance Festival began in the 1990s, driven by a commitment to the Festival’s artistic mission and its "magic." For many years, she served as a pivotal member and coordinator of the Advisory Committee, while simultaneously providing clinical support for students and professional guidance for counselors within the Youth Arts and Young Dancer programs. Together, the Platzes have devoted extensive time and resources to a broad spectrum of local nonprofits, with the Bates Dance Festival remaining a primary focus of their advocacy. Their enduring support reflects a shared pride in the world-class talent the Festival brings to the community each summer and a mutual dedication to its continued excellence.

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Michael Foley has enjoyed a diverse career as a dancer, choreographer, and teaching artist for over 30 years. He holds an MFA in Dance from the University of Washington, and an undergraduate degree from Bates College thanks to the mentorship of Marcy Plavin. Foley has received numerous recognitions for his work in the arts including a William J. Fulbright scholarship from the United States government for his research and teaching in Mexico with Delfos Danza Contemporánea, a Kennedy Center/American Theater Festival Award, and he was the Ruth Page Visiting Artist at Harvard University. In 2019, he received the Chicago National Association of Dance Masters’ “Artistic Achievement Award.” His own work has been commissioned by over 25 different dance companies in 10 countries, and he has worked with a wide variety of artists and institutions including Cirque du Soleil, DanzAbierta in Havana, the Bumbershoot Festival in Seattle, Centro Danza Mimma Testa in Rome, Trinity College in Dublin, Compañía Nacional de Danza Contemporánea de la República Dominicana, and Balettakademien in Stockholm, among many others.

Foley’s affiliation with the Bates Dance Festival goes back to the summer of 1986 when he took his first class with Dan Wagoner and Dancers, and over the next four decades he would be an Emerging Choreographer, co-director of the Young Dancers Workshop and a member of the Professional Training Program’s faculty on several occasions.

Foley is currently a Professor of Dance at the University of South Florida, where he received the university’s Outstanding Undergraduate Teaching Award, and Global Achievement Award for Student Success. He is also the director/creator of the USF Dance in Paris Programs, which has brought over 450 dance majors from 25 American colleges and universities to Paris since 2007. He recently became a French citizen.

Photo Credit: Jennifer Gerber

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