Weston Playhouse awarded $15,000 NEA grant

The National Endowment for the Arts has awarded the Weston Playhouse Theatre Company a $15,000 grant to, in part, support the newly developed American Masters Series, which seeks to bring both iconic and contemporary master theater works to the stage.

American Masters launches late this summer, with Tennessee Williams’ drama The Glass Menagerie, which will premiere on Aug. 27. It will run for 10 days on the Weston stage before heading north for a performance at the Flynn Center in Burlington and south for an October run at the Gulfshore Playhouse in Naples, Fla.

NEA chair Jane Chu said, “Funding these new projects like the one from Weston Playhouse represents an investment in both local communities and our nation’s creative vitality.”

Weston continues to leverage the strength of its education and outreach programs to promote engagement and appreciation of the theater arts with a wide range of supporting activities. Also part of The Glass Menagerie production will be workshops, director’s talks, talk backs and school matinees — making the story, script, cast and culture of this American classic available to all.

“We’re so proud and grateful, once again, to receive the support of the National Endowment for the Arts,” said Weston Producing Artistic Director Steve Stettler.  “This award affirms that Weston is serving our community and state with theater of national quality and significance.”

During its spring 2015 grant awards, the NEA has given a total of $74 million to more than 1,000 organizations nationwide. In Vermont, 15 organizations were awarded $946,300, most of which will go to the Vermont Arts Council. Also, the NEA awarded:

• $10,000 to the Dorset Theatre Festival to support  its New Play Development Program, which mentors playwrights in the development of new plays from conception to production.
• $15,000 to the Vermont Agency of Education to support the Vermont Governor’s Institute on the Arts, which serves Vermont high school students who participate in a residential summer immersion program at Castleton State College. Students are nominated by their arts teachers or guidance counselors for intensive study in music, drama, dance, writing, folk arts  or visual arts.

For the complete list, including a breakdown by state, go here.

For more information about NEA grant recipients, visit arts.gov.

For a look at Weston’s complete summer season, visit westonplayhouse.org.