THE SEATTLE SYMPHONY ANNOUNCES FIVE RECIPIENTS OF THE COMMUNITY STAGES FUND
NOW IN ITS SECOND YEAR, THE COMMUNITY STAGES FUND PROVIDES RESOURCES TO LOCAL ARTISTS AND ORGANIZATIONS AND INVITES THEM TO PERFORM AT BENAROYA HALL
From left: Puckduction (photo by Megan Farmer); Sharon Nyree Williams (photo by Alen Blake); The Rhapsody Project (photo by Jim Meyers); Key to Change (photo by James Holt / Seattle Symphony); Movimiento Afrolatino Seattle (photo by Leo Carmona).
Seattle, WA – The Seattle Symphony announces five grant recipients of the Community Stages Fund (CSF), which provides support to local artists from a variety of diverse backgrounds, allowing the Symphony to help amplify the voices of those who shape and grow Seattle’s vibrant artistic and cultural landscape. The Fund was created in 2021, and due to the overwhelming interest to participate and community support, the Symphony extended the CSF for a second year. Since its inaugural year, the CSF’s reputation has steadily grown, and last fall, applications for the program’s second round of funding more than doubled. The selection committee, made up of community leaders and Seattle Symphony staff, have just announced this year’s exciting lineup of grant recipients: Key to Change, Movimiento Afrolatino Seattle, Puckduction, Sharon Nyree Williams and The Rhapsody Project.
The CSF works to share Benaroya Hall with the entire community and open its stages to more diverse groups of artists and audiences, sharing performances across a variety of media. The CSF selection committee prioritized applicants’ demonstrated level of need as well as groups from racially diverse communities; these five CSF grant recipients represent many facets of Seattle’s unique creative community, including underserved youth of South King County, Afro-Latino performers, BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ creators, and Black artists working to establish racial and cultural equity. The grants are set up to allow each artist and organization flexibility to fulfill their individual missions, and this year, CSF grants will collectively bring a broad range of music, dance, poetry, culture and storytelling to Benaroya Hall.
Key to Change inspires underserved youth through world-class music instruction and supports their development as self-aware leaders.
Movimiento Afrolatino Seattle (MÁS) raises awareness about the history and cultural contributions of artists of Latino and African descent. MÁS supports Afrolatino arts and culture coming together to ensure the sustainability of ongoing Afrolatino-focused cultural and education arts activities.
Puckduction supports BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ creators, with a focus on neo-burlesque, cabaret and film. Puckduction offers education about these art forms while providing space and financial compensation for marginalized performing artists.
Sharon Nyree Williams is an Emmy Award-winning voiceover artist, storyteller, producer, presenter and teacher. She believes in experiencing life through the artistry of storytelling and leadershipand hopesthat her stories will act as a bridge in bringing communities closer together.
The Rhapsody Project creates a community that explores and celebrates music and heritage through an antiracist lens, providing music instruction and sharing cultural events, virtual programs and consulting services that establish racial and cultural equity.
COMMUNITY STAGES FUND
The Community Stages Fund was launched for the first time in 2021 by the Seattle Symphony to support arts organizations who shape and grow the city’s diverse arts landscape and to work together as a cultural community to support equitable arts access. Due to continued community support, the Symphony was able to extend the CSF for a second year, providing additional support mechanisms for organizations of diverse backgrounds in the Puget Sound region. Recipients receive a wide variety of support, including resources and performance space(s) needed to produce and present their art in person and/or online, and to connect with their community. The Seattle Symphony also provides recipients with fully sponsored or highly subsidized use of the S. Mark Taper Foundation Auditorium, Illsley Ball Nordstrom Recital Hall and Octave 9: Raisbeck Music Center, along with in-house digital streaming equipment and production crew support.
KEY TO CHANGE
Key to Change inspires underserved youth of South King County through world-class music instruction and supports their development as self-aware leaders. Founded and directed by educator and violinist Dr. Quinton Morris, Key to Change offers a proven pathway to educational excellence for public school students through rigorous, personalized programming. A second-time CSF awardee, Key to Change will present their annual Solo String Festival and Spring Salon Fundraiser at Benaroya Hall in April 2023. The multi-day event gives middle and high school violin and viola players a chance to participate in workshops and masterclasses, perform for a panel of renowned professional musicians compete for the chance to win prizes and raise funds for underserved youth.
MOVIMIENTO AFROLATINO SEATTLE
Movimiento Afrolatino Seattle (MÁS) raises awareness about the history and cultural contributions of artists of Latino and African descent to ensure the sustainability of ongoing Afrolatino-focused cultural and arts education activities. MÁS will use the Community Stages Fund grant to produce an event at Benaroya Hall that showcases a range of traditional Afrolatino music and dance. This event will feature nine performance groups bringing the spirit and aesthetic of community-based art, inviting the audience to participate and experience Afrolatino art and culture.
THE RHAPSODY PROJECT
The Rhapsody Project is a community that celebrates music and heritage through an antiracist lens. The Rhapsody Project provides music instruction, cultural events, virtual programs and consulting services that help to establish racial and cultural equity. The Rhapsody Project will use the Community Stages Fund grant to host a concert celebrating the contributions of Black American musicians in Seattle and featuring youth performers as well as The Rhapsody Project’s professional teaching artists.
SHARON NYREE WILLIAMS
Sharon Nyree Williams is an Emmy Award-winning voiceover artist, storyteller, producer, presenter and teacher. She believes in experiencing life through the artistry of storytelling and leadership and loves telling stories about her life, the lessons she’s learned and the things she’s observed. Sharon’s hope is that she will reach at least one person, and that her stories will act as a bridge in bringing communities closer together.
PUCKDUCTION
Puckduction’s mission is to support BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ creators, with a focus on neo-burlesque, cabaret and film. Puckduction aims to educate the general public about these artforms while providing space and financial compensation for marginalized performing artists. Puckduction will use the Community Stages Fund grant to host Queer Prom Seattle at Benaroya Hall, featuring a full burlesque and drag show plus the crowning of a new Queer Monarch, a silent auction and a dance party. The event brings the QTCBIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities together to fundraise in support of their important mission.
SEATTLE SYMPHONY
The Seattle Symphony unleashes the power of music, brings people together and lifts the human spirit. Recognized as one of the “most vital American orchestras” (NPR), the Seattle Symphony is internationally acclaimed for its inventive programming, community-minded initiatives and superb recordings on the Seattle Symphony Media label. With a strong commitment to new music and a legacy of over 150 recordings, the orchestra has garnered five Grammy Awards, 27 Grammy nominations, two Emmy Awards and was named Gramophone’s 2018 Orchestra of the Year. The Symphony performs in Benaroya Hall in the heart of downtown Seattle from September through July, reaching over 750,000 people annually through live performances and radio broadcasts, and through the Seattle Symphony Live streaming service, the orchestra’s concerts reach audiences at home and around the world.
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The Seattle Symphony’s Community Stages Fund is generously supported by the Tagney Jones Family Fund at Seattle Foundation.
The Seattle Symphony’s Family, School & Community programs are supported by 4Culture, Marco Argenti, ArtsFund, Delta Air Lines, the Klorfine Foundation, the Merriman-Ross Family, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Seattle Office of Arts & Culture, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, and individual contributions to the Seattle Symphony Annual Fund.