New Matching Grant to Present Indigenous Performing Artists

Western Arts Alliance (WAA) announces the launch of the Advancing Indigenous Performance (AIP) Touring Fund, a new grant opportunity for presenters of Native performing artists.

The AIP Touring Fund provides matching fee support to presenting organizations, which engage eligible performing artists through the touring programs of the six Regional Arts Organizations. Arts organizations outside of New England should contact their RAO about the matching support. Arts organizations in New England receiving funding through NEFA’s New England States Touring (NEST) program for a project featuring Indigenous artists can receive an additional dollar-for-dollar match – up to 50% of the artist fee – from the AIP Touring Fund.

Process

New England presenters who wish to be considered for an AIP Touring Fund match should make a regular application to NEFA’s existing touring program, identifying the artist or ensemble to be presented as Indigenous. These applications are forwarded to WAA for confirmation of eligibility and processing of matching funds. There are no additional application requirements and the funding will follow NEFA’s existing disbursement timelines and policies. Organizations applying to the April 1 New England States Touring grant are eligible.

Eligibility

Awards are considered for projects featuring individual or ensemble artists who self-identify as Indigenous. Otherwise, award eligibility follows the requirements established by each RAO’s guidelines. In WAA documents and forms, Indigenous is defined as: Member or descendant of a Native American, Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian nation or community, including U.S.-based Native/First Peoples of Canada, Mexico, and U.S. Territories of American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands. This includes individuals without official tribal status who are members of Native communities, and tribal members or descendants not living in their homelands or home community. Must be a US citizen or permanent resident. New England artists who are NEST-eligible or have identified as Native American can be found on CreativeGround, NEFA’s directory of New England-based creative enterprises and artists.

Learn More

To learn more about the NEST or Expeditions programs, please contact a New England Presenting & Touring staff member:

• Adrienne Petrillo (she/her/hers), Program Director, New England Presenting & Touring, 617.951.0010 x527
• Daniela Jacobson (she/her/hers) Program Manager, New England Presenting & Touring, 617.951.0010 x528
• Falyn Rose Elhard (they/them/theirs) Program Associate, New England Presenting & Touring, 617.951.0010 x538

For program guidelines, FAQs, and opportunities for presenters in other regions of the U.S. please review the program information provided by WAA.

Inquiries regarding the Touring Fund may be addressed to AIP Program Manager Ed Bourgeois.

The Advancing Indigenous Performance Program (AIP) and the AIP Touring Fund are made possible by generous support from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, with additional support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Native Arts and Cultures Foundation.