National Endowment for the Arts supports US artists in the EU

IFACCA/Artshub, 20 August 2005,USA

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has announced the winners of 12 grants that will enable the recipients to perform at festivals in Europe. The grants are made available through the 2005 USArtists International (USAI) program, an NEA initiative in partnership with the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation (MAAF). A total of $99,000 has been awarded to seventeen U.S. dance and music ensembles. The recipients will now have the opportunity to perform at festivals in 11 European countries, including the Edinburgh International Festival (Scotland), the Cannes Festival de Danse (France), and the International Folk Music Festival (Poland). Individual grants ranged from $3,000-$10,000. Grantees include the Kronos Quartet, a Grammy Award-winning chamber group (San Francisco, CA), Nai-Ni Chen Dance Company, a cross-cultural contemporary dance ensemble (Fort Lee, NJ), and The Rose Ensemble, a vocal group specializing in Gregorian chant (St. Paul, MN). Additional support for USAI is provided by the JP Morgan Chase Foundation. The USArtists International (USAI) program is administered by MAAF, and works to ‘strengthen the creative and professional development of U.S. artists by providing support for their performances at significant international festivals.’ This year, USAI focused its support on dance and music ensembles which had been invited to perform in within the European Union. NEA and MAAF hope to expand the program in coming years to include other arts disciplines and geographic regions. For information about the Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation (MAAF), CLICK HERE For further information, CLICK HERE

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