Structural Vulnerability in Dance Education: Case Studies on Power, Abuse, and Safeguarding Reform

This article examines systemic child-protection failures within professional and pre-professional dance through two case studies: 1) allegations of sexual abuse by Mitchell Taylor Button and Dusty Button, and 2) allegations of sexual misconduct within Break The Floor Productions. Drawing from investigative journalism and current scholarship, the article analyzes how institutional hierarchies, celebrity influence, and pedagogical norms create conditions in which young dancers, especially minors, are vulnerable to grooming, coercion, and sexual exploitation. Both cases reveal how mentorship structures, career mobility, professional status, and social media influence can obscure boundaries between instruction and abuse. Integrating research on dancer welfare, embodiment, and training culture, the article situates these cases within broader discussions of power and compliance in dance education. It highlights the persistence of instructional methods rooted in obedience, endurance, and fear and their relationship to psychological and somatic harm. The study positions safeguarding as a structural issue requiring coordinated reform.