Anyone speaking about social safety in the Netherlands will sooner or later mention Mariëtte Hamer. As Government Commissioner for Sexual Misconduct and Sexual Violence, she works daily on the question of how Dutch society can become safer and more equal. Her mandate spans all settings where sexual misconduct occurs, including the workplace—from healthcare to media, from education to sport and dance. We spoke with her about cultural change, power dynamics, and what she believes is needed to make the dance sector structurally safer.
“Start the conversation about wishes and boundaries, social safety, and sexual misconduct. That first step is often difficult—but essential.”
Equality as a driving force
Hamer’s current role is no coincidence. Equality—particularly the position of women—has been a guiding theme throughout her career. “We’ve come a long way,” she says. “Men and women are equal under the law, but social culture often hasn’t caught up. Sexual misconduct and sexual violence are symptoms of that gap. Things may be settled on paper, yet behavior too often lags behind. That’s why cultural change remains essential.”
The dynamics of the dance sector
Every sector Hamer works with has its own dynamics, risks, and sensitivities, and dance is no exception. She also knows the field personally: as a child she trained in classical ballet, later moving on to jazz ballet and salsa. “Dance, much like healthcare, is an umbrella term,” she explains. “It covers many different forms, each with its own characteristics and risks.”
Across that diversity, certain factors recur. “Power, dependency, performance pressure—these elements can exist in any sector, though they play out differently. In dance, coaches or teachers may hold significant status, and dancers can be highly dependent on them for their careers. Physical contact is also common, which can increase the risk of boundary-crossing behavior, especially when combined with pressure to perform and limited oversight. These factors are not unique to dance, but it’s crucial to recognize the risks and deal with them responsibly.”
“Artistic freedom should never be a legitimate reason for crossing boundaries.”
Artistic freedom requires clear boundaries
One of the most persistent misconceptions in the arts is the belief that artistic freedom sometimes demands pushing beyond personal limits. Hamer is unequivocal. “Artistic freedom should never be a legitimate reason for crossing boundaries. You can create powerful, beautiful work without violating someone’s limits. That norm needs to be crystal clear. There’s a widespread assumption that people must be pushed past their own boundaries to achieve excellence, but artistic freedom and social safety are not opposites. Expression actually thrives when people feel safe.” She points to the growing use of intimacy coordinators in film and theatre as a positive step. “You get the strongest scenes when everyone involved feels comfortable with what’s happening. Especially when physical contact is involved, it has to be possible to openly discuss what someone needs to feel safe.”
Breaking the code of silence
Talking about boundaries sounds logical, yet many dancers experience it as difficult in practice. This is also reflected in Shadow Dancing, the study into boundary-crossing behavior in the dance sector. The research shows that dancers often feel hesitant to share experiences or raise concerns. The question, then, is what it takes to create an environment where speaking up truly feels possible.
According to Hamer, breaking the silence starts with a solid foundation of safety. “You need to create the conditions in which that sense of safety can grow. Trust begins with open conversation and clarity—about individual wishes and limits, about how you treat one another, and about the culture you want to embody together. It also means being clear about where and when someone can report an issue, and what will happen next. People need to feel that their experiences are acknowledged, taken seriously, and that speaking up won’t harm their careers.”
Men’s experiences: visible, yet rarely discussed
Public debate around boundary-crossing behavior often focuses on women, but Shadow Dancing shows that a significant number of male dancers have also been affected—an outcome Hamer believes deserves more attention. “Sexual misconduct is not just a women’s issue,” she says. “It can happen to anyone. One in five men experience it, yet we talk about it even less.”
Social expectations around masculinity—being strong, not complaining, ‘toughing it out’—make it harder for men to speak up. That’s why Hamer actively advocates for creating space for men to share their experiences, including through her podcast Alles op Tafel (Everything on the Table). Her message to them is clear: “You’re not alone. You don’t have to go through this by yourself, and help is available. If possible, speak out together with others.
From insight to action
Shadow Dancing did more than expose painful realities; it also set a movement in motion. For the first time, the scale and urgency of social safety issues in the dance sector became unmistakably clear.
Hamer identifies two key developments that followed. First, awareness. “Without those signals, there would have been no report and no real insight into what was happening in dance. The report made clear how urgent it was—and still is—to address these issues, change the culture, and make the sector safer.”
Second, translation into practice. “The insights from the report are now being turned into concrete approaches that need to take hold on the studio floor. The Dance Safety Alliance plays an important role here, but it’s equally important that dance organizations themselves take action.”
Small steps, big impact
For many dance school owners, who balance teaching with running their businesses, steps toward social safety need to be practical and achievable. Hamer emphasizes that this doesn’t require extensive policy frameworks. “Organizations do need to set clear standards,” she says, “and intervene visibly when those standards are breached. But it can start very simply—with a conversation.”
“A good first step is talking with dancers about what safe interaction looks like. Agree on shared codes of conduct and seek support from sector-wide initiatives such as Dance Safety.”
To support smaller organizations as well, Hamer helped develop the Guidelines for Cultural Change in the Workplace. “Many organizations were unsure how to begin making their workplaces safer. These guidelines support dance enterprises of all sizes in reviewing their own practices. They include tools like a quick scan that allows you to assess your policies at a glance.”
Ultimately, she stresses, it’s not about how polished a document looks. “What matters is whether it’s actually used. Sometimes materials are too complex, don’t reflect reality, or simply aren’t visible enough. Initiatives should be developed together with dance organizations and dancers, so they truly meet their needs.”
“Start the conversation about wishes and boundaries, social safety, and sexual misconduct. That first step is often difficult—but essential.”
Her message to the dance community
Asked what she would most like to pass on to the sector, Hamer is clear. “The greatest change starts with you—dancers and organizations alike.” She calls for a culture in which people feel able to speak up and support one another. “Check in with each other: ‘How are you doing? Do you feel okay? Do you feel safe? And how can I help?’ Talk openly about boundaries, social safety, and sexual misconduct. That first conversation can be hard, but it’s incredibly important.”
That attention must be sustained. “We’ll know we’ve succeeded only when dance organizations across the Netherlands are genuinely safer—and when that safety is visible. We’re not there yet, but I have every confidence that, with the commitment shown across the dance community, we will get there.”
And if she had a magic wand for a day?
Hamer doesn’t hesitate. “I would immediately prompt dance schools that haven’t yet started talking about conduct to do so—right now. And I would give a stage to dancers who lost theirs due to boundary-crossing behavior. After misconduct, we often focus on the impact on perpetrators, but far too little on the talent we lose as a result. I would put those dancers back in the spotlight and help them rediscover the joy of dancing.”