How Does Minnesota Benefit from the National Endowment for the Arts?

The NEA benefits Minnesota in two ways:

First, the NEA gives significant money to the Minnesota State Arts Board (MSAB), which in turn gives grants to arts organizations serving communities in every corner of our state, making access to culture less dependent upon where you live.

MSAB grants, partially funded with NEA dollars, regularly go to organizations around the state, such as:

Bloomington Art Center * College of St. Benedict in St. Joseph * Commonweal Theatre in Lanesboro * Duluth Art Institute * Duluth Playhouse * Duluth-Superior Symphony Assn. * East Side Arts Council * Fargo-Moorhead Civic Opera Company * Fargo-Moorhead Community Theatre * Fargo-Moorhead Orchestral Association * Fergus Falls Center for the Arts * Jewish Community Center of Greater Minneapolis * Mankato Symphony Orchestra * Minnesota Ballet in Duluth * Minnetonka Center for the Arts * New York Mills Arts Retreat * Northfield Arts Guild * Plains Art Museum in Fargo-Moorhead * Reif Arts Council in Grand Rapids * Rochester Art Center * Rochester Civic Music * Rochester Civic Theatre * St. Francis Music Center in Little Falls * St. John’s Boys Choir in Collegeville * St. Louis County Heritage Center/The Depot in Duluth * Sheldon Theatre in Red Wing * Tweed Museum of Art in Duluth * Willmar Community Theatre * and many, many more *

In Fiscal Year 2004, Minnesota and its arts organizations received a total of $120,970,000 in National Endowment for the Arts grants. The NEA is good for Minnesota, and increases in funding for the agency would result in more resources for artists and arts organizations in our state. Minnesota has received over $144,512,224 million in federal support for our state’s outstanding artists and arts organizations since 1989.

Second, the NEA makes direct grants of regional and national significance to Minnesota arts organizations to provide and promote the arts and culture for large areas of Minnesota and the nation.

Thanks to NEA support in 2003 and 2004:

• The Sheldon Theatre hosted performances of Othello by the Aquila Theatre Company as part of the Shakespeare in American Communities Initiative, the largest tour of Shakespeare’s work in this country’s history.
• The Center for Hmong Arts and Talent produced 4 plays about Hmong culture and history in Minnesota. The plays were created to educate audiences about Hmong tradition and heritage, and to create dialogue about social issues within the Hmong community.
• The Chamber Music Society of St. Cloud presented concerts by the Borromeo String Quartet and Imani Winds, and conducted week-long educational residency activities in elementary schools, universities, and senior centers.
• A Center for the Arts, Fergus Falls, produced Songs from the Tall Grass, which introduced tourists and others to frontier traditions of the prairie region from around Fergus Falls. The show was based on first-person documentation of homesteaders’ life on the frontier and featured lyrics from the nineteenth century in contemporary musical interpretations.
• Midwest World Fest, an NEA funded performing series, brought internationally renowned artists - the Bamboo Orchestra from Japan and Chuchumbe from Mexico - to the Fairmont Opera House for performances and educational programs.
• The Bloomington Art Center helped create visibility for and enhance the careers of local artists in their new arts facility.
• Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe, Cass Lake, sponsored the Children’s Juried Art Show. It included an after-school workshop in Ojibwe traditional crafts, drumming, dancing, painting, drawing, and theater, and culminated in an exhibition and performance at the Seventh Annual Northern Woodland Winterfest, a celebration of Ojibwe art and culture.

In FY2005, additional NEA direct grantees included:

American Composers Forum * Arts Midwest* Buddhist Support Society, Inc. * Cedar Cultural Center * Hmong American Institute for Learning * In Progress * Independent Feature Project-North * Loft, Inc. * Minneapolis Society of Fine Arts * Minnesota Chorale * Minnesota Orchestral Association * Saint John’s University * Ten Thousand Things * Asian Media Access, Inc. * Children’s Theatre Company and School * Coffee House Press * College of Saint Benedict * Graywolf Press * Guthrie Theater Foundation * Heart of the Beast Theatre, Inc. * Jungle Theatre * Milkweed Editions, Inc.* Minneapolis Public Schools * Minnesota Opera Company * Mixed Blood Theatre Company * Penumbra Theatre Company, Inc. * Playwrights’ Center, Inc. * Rain Taxi, Inc. * Rose Ensemble * Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Society * Schubert Club, Inc. * Contemporary Dance Arts, Inc.* Theater Mu* Theatre de la Jeune Lune * Vocal Essence *Walker Art Center * Zeitgeist

In FY2004, additional NEA direct grantees included:

Arts Midwest * Center for Hmong Arts & Talent * Dale Warland Singers * East Side Arts Council * Galumph Interactive Theater * In Progress * Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe * Minnesota Orchestral Association * Minnesota Public Radio, Inc. * Minnesota STAR, Inc. * Performance Lab * Pillsbury United Communities * Public Radio International, Inc. * Ragamala Music and Dance Theater *Artspace Projects * Asian Media Access * Chamber Music Society of St. Cloud, Inc. * Children’s Theatre Company and School * Coffee House Press * Dale Warland Singers * FORECAST Public Artworks * Graywolf Press * Greater Twin Cities Youth Symphonies * Guthrie Theater Foundation * Heart of the Beast Theatre, Inc. * Illusion Theater & School, Inc. * Independent Feature Project-North * James Sewell Ballet * JAZZDANCE * Jungle Theatre * Loft, Inc. * Milkweed Editions * Minnesota Opera Company * Mixed Blood Theatre Company * Penumbra Theatre Company, Inc. * Playwrights’ Center, Inc. * VocalEssence * Rain Taxi * Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra Society * Schubert Club, Inc. * Contemporary * Theater Mu, Inc. * Theatre de la Jeune Lune * Walker Art Center * Fergus Falls Center for the Arts, Inc.