Tulsa arts groups awarded NEA grants
BY JAMES D. WATTS JR. World Scene Writer
Monday, December 10, 2012
12/10/12 at 5:40 AM
The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded $55,000 in grants to five Oklahoma arts organizations, for projects and performances that will take place during 2013.
Two of the recipients are Tulsa organizations. Tulsa Ballet was awarded a $10,000 Dance grant to help underwrite the company's upcoming "Off the Floor: Creations in Studio K" production.
The Tulsa Symphony Orchestra received its first-ever NEA grant - a $10,000 Challenge America grant - to support the orchestra's Feb. 9 concert, which will feature violinist-composer Mark O'Connor.
Ron Predl, the orchestra's executive director, said the entire grant will be used to sponsor workshops for Tulsa students with O'Connor and violinist Kelly Hall-Tompkins. The two performers will be guest soloists for the Feb. 9 concert, titled "Red," which will include a performance of O'Connor's Double Violin concerto.
The workshops will be open to the public. A schedule will be available Feb. 1.
Tulsa Ballet's "Off the Floor: Creations in Studio K" will be presented May 3-12 in the ballet's own Studio K theater. It will feature world premiere performances of ballets created especially for the company by choreographers Ma Cong, Nicolo Fonte and Matthew Neenan.
Other state recipients are:
Oklahoma Israel Exchange in Oklahoma City, which received a $10,000 Challenge America grant to support performances by Shesh Besh, an Arab-Jewish music ensemble from the Israel Philharmonic Orchestra.
Poncan Theatre Company of Ponca City, which received a $10,000 Challenge America grant for its planned "American Celebration of Jazz and Folk" performances and workshops.
The University of Oklahoma, which was presented a $15,000 Visual Arts grant for its upcoming "Image and Word" issue of World Literature Today that will feature the visual and literary work of more than 20 photographers.
The NEA awarded 153 Challenge America Fast- Track grants totaling $1.53 million to organizations in 41 states, Washington, D.C., and the U.S. Virgin Islands. The Tulsa Symphony was one of 49 first-time recipients of NEA grants.
The Challenge America Fast-Track grants offer support primarily to small and mid-sized organizations for projects that extend the reach of the arts to populations whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics or disability.
Original Print Headline: Tulsa arts groups receive NEA grants
James D. Watts Jr. 918-581-8478
james.watts@tulsaworld.com
