NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE ARTS ANNOUNCES GRANT TO PENNSYLVANIA BALLET
$35,000 grant will support two Company Premieres and a Word Premiere in Spring 2011
Philadelphia, PA (November 23, 2010) – Rocco Landesman, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts, today announced that Pennsylvania Ballet has been approved for a grant of $35,000 to support the presentation of two Company Premieres, The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude by William Forsythe and Polyphonia by Christopher Wheeldon, and the creation of a World Premiere by Benjamin Millepied during Spring 2011. Pennsylvania Ballet is one of 1,057 not-for-profit organizations recommended for a grant as part of the federal agency’s first round of fiscal year 2011 grants. In total, the Arts Endowment will distribute $26.68 million to support projects nationwide.
An independent agency of the federal government, the National Endowment for the Arts advances artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. NEA Chairman Rocco Landesman said, “I continue to be impressed with the creative, innovative, and excellent projects brought forward by arts organizations across the country. Our grantees are not only furthering their art forms but also enhancing their neighborhoods by making them more vibrant, livable, and fun.”
“We are so grateful to the NEA. Their commitment to the arts truly is an inspiration,” Pennsylvania Ballet Artistic Director Roy Kaiser said. “This generous grant will allow Pennsylvania Ballet to continue toward our goal of exposing our audience to new work and modern masterpieces.”
Pennsylvania Ballet will present Classic Innovations, featuring The Vertiginous Thrill of Exactitude and Polyphonia, February 3-6 at the Merriam Theater, in addition to In the Upper Room by Twyla Tharp. Choreographer and New York City Ballet Principal Dancer Benjamin Millepied’s first World Premiere for Pennsylvania Ballet will be presented April 14-17 at the Merriam Theater on the program Building on Balanchine, along with George Balanchine classics Agon and Who Cares?. For more information and tickets to both programs, visit paballet.org.
Founded in 1963 by Balanchine student and protégée Barbara Weisberger, Pennsylvania Ballet is one of the nation’s leading ballet companies. Headquartered in Philadelphia, the Company’s annual local season features six programs of classic favorites and new works, including the Philadelphia holiday tradition, George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker™. For more information, visit paballet.org or call 215.551.7000.
The National Endowment for the Arts was established by Congress in 1965 as an independent agency of the federal government that has awarded more than $4 billion on projects of artistic excellence, creativity, and innovation for the benefit of individuals and communities. The NEA extends its work through partnerships with state arts agencies, local leaders, other federal agencies, and the philanthropic sector.
