National Aboriginal and Islander Skills Development Association

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The National Aboriginal Islander Skills Development Association (NAISDA) Dance College was established in 1975 to train Indigenous Australians in dance.^[1]

It is based in Gosford's Mount Penang Gardens on the Central Coast of New South Wales. Graduates have worked in the performing arts: arts management, dance, music, theatre and film, both at the elite and community level. The Bangarra Dance Theatre developed from NAISDA.

NAISDA is funded as a "Centre of Excellence" by the Australian Government Department of Communications, Information, Technology and the Arts and is supported by the Department of Education, Science and Training, the NSW Government Arts Ministry. NAISDA is a registered training organisation and offers Certificates II, III and IV and a Diploma in Careers in Dance. It is a member of the "Australian Roundtable for Arts Training Excellence".^[2]

The FIRST contemporary indigenous Australian dance company was the Aboriginal Islander Dance Theatre (AIDT). This company formed out of the Professional Development arm of NAISDA which was responsible for taking on most performance requests of the organisation.

When Indigenous community members decided that an Indigenous person should take over the reins of the organisation, the then Executive Officer, Ms Carole Johnson decided to form a professional dance company outside NAISDA. AIDT remained a part of the NAISDA under the Artistic Direction of Mr Raymond D. Blanco. AIDT continued a highly successful decade of touring nationally and internationally becoming known as Australia's most toured dance company for two years.

AIDT was disbanded following the departure of Mr Blanco in 1998. Ms Johnson's company went on to become Bangarra Dance Company.