Theatre company earns national grant

The National Endowment of the Arts recently announced awards totaling more than $30 million as part of the NEA’s first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2017.

Included in this announcement is a Challenge America grant of $10,000 to the Whitefish Theatre Company to host award-winning Middle Eastern music ensemble Niyaz on March, 10. The grant is providing a free-of-charge concert for several organizations that work with at-risk youth in the Flathead Valley, as well as free transportation for those groups who need travel assistance to this show.

The Challenge America category supports primarily small and mid-sized organizations for projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations — those whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability. Challenge America grants are comparatively small investments that have a big impact in their communities.

“The arts are for all of us, and by supporting organizations such as the Whitefish Theatre Company, the National Endowment for the Arts is providing more opportunities for the public to engage with the arts,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. “Whether in a theater, a town square, a museum, or a hospital, the arts are everywhere and make our lives richer.”

“With the generous support of the National Endowment of the Arts, this is the second year that the Whitefish Theatre Company has been able to offer a free outreach concert to organizations working with at-risk youth,” said WTC Executive Director Gayle MacLaren. “It is exciting to be able to offer this unique cultural experience to this select population, most of whom don’t have the means or opportunity to see live music.”

While WTC has contacted several groups and homes that work with young people, please contact Gayle at 862-5371 if you know of other similar organizations that may be interested in this free concert.

Described by the Huffington Post as “an evolutionary force in contemporary Middle Eastern music,” Niyaz—which means “yearning” in both Farsi and Urdu—blend medieval Sufi poetry and folk songs from Turkey, India, and their native Iran with acoustic instrumentation and modern electronic rhythms. The result is a mesmerizing folktronica, a distinctively 21st century global trance sound that crosses not only stylistic and cultural boundaries but generational ones as well. Niyaz’s fusion sound features an array of traditional instruments, spellbinding vocals, and a transcendent production complete with an immersive multi-media show. The band will perform a free concert for underserved youth in the afternoon, while the public is invited to purchase tickets to their evening performance on March 10.

For a complete listing of projects recommended for Challenge America support, please visit the NEA website at arts.gov.