The Alliance Boosts Local Arts Community with $40,000 in Grants Awards are designed to help small groups leverage additional funding New York City - A total of $40,000 in grants was awarded through the Asian American Arts Alliance's Small Organization Arts Regrants (SOAR) Program, designed to help small Asian American arts organizations who are producing at a high artistic level but remain under the radar of major funding sources......

Through a competitive panel process, fifteen New York City community-based Asian American arts organizations were awarded project grants ranging from $1,000 to $3,000. Recipients were selected on the basis of their project's merit, the group's track record, and their community ties. "It's not just the money; it's the validation of our work that's so important," said Nandini Sikand of Trinayan, a collective that interprets the Indian classical dance form of Odissi.

The SOAR Program is funded by the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and the CJ Huang Foundation, and is part of the Alliance's mission to increase financial and other resources for Asian American arts and cultural groups based in New York City.

Asian American Arts Alliance Soar Award in support of Sakshi: The Witness

November 17, 2005
Contact:Kelly Kuwabara
kkuwabara@aaartsalliance.org
(212) 941-9208

The Alliance Boosts Local Arts Community with $40,000 in Grants Awards are designed to help small groups leverage additional funding New York City - A total of $40,000 in grants was awarded through the Asian American Arts Alliance's Small Organization Arts Regrants (SOAR) Program, designed to help small Asian American arts organizations who are producing at a high artistic level but remain under the radar of major funding sources.

"We are thrilled. This is our first grant ever, and it will help us in approaching more funders in the future," said Vikas Menon of Kundiman, an organization that provides workshops and mentorship programs for emerging poets.

Through a competitive panel process, fifteen New York City community-based Asian American arts organizations were awarded project grants ranging from $1,000 to $3,000. Recipients were selected on the basis of their project's merit, the group's track record, and their community ties. "It's not just the money; it's the validation of our work that's so important," said Nandini Sikand of Trinayan, a collective that interprets the Indian classical dance form of Odissi.

The SOAR Program is funded by the JPMorgan Chase Foundation and the CJ Huang Foundation, and is part of the Alliance's mission to increase financial and other resources for Asian American arts and cultural groups based in New York City. "Small arts groups play an essential role in voicing our city's diversity," said Kelly Kuwabara, Program Director of the Alliance.

Fifteen organizations were chosen to receive the > SOAR award in 2005:

Chinese Theater Works for Book of Songs, which interprets China's literary history through traditional Chinese and contemporary Western performing arts.

Coalition of Asian Pacific Americans for the performance showcase of the Asian Pacific American Heritage Festival.

Crossing Jamaica Avenue for Thousand Years Waiting, combining live theater and Otome Bunraku puppetry, a specialized form of Bunraku performed by women since the 1920s (Bunraku is traditionally performed only by men).

Dance Project Sequence, Inc. supporting their new > Art Cure dance center in Queens.

Dance Theater of Nepal, Inc., for the concert "Shared Journeys," in collaboration with other world music & dance artists.

Desipina Productions, Inc. for the fourth year of Seven.11, seven eleven-minute plays by South Asian, East Asian, and multi-ethnic writers.

Fluid Motion Theater & Film, Inc. to support Nora Chau's "Once More, Now, With Feeling," an adaptation of Sun Tzu's Art of War.

Four Seas Players for "Fundamentals of Theater" workshops for Chinatown community members and aspiring theater artists.

In Mixed Company for JET STREAM, a "playful and profound" performance of the Asian Diaspora through dance, live music, video, and theater.

Indo-American Arts Council Inc. to support publicity costs for the fifth annual IAAC festival of Indian Independent and Diaspora Films.

Kundiman, Inc. for a retreat providing mentorship, individualized workshops, and rejuvenation to NYC poets.

Kunqu Society for a public lecture/demonstration and a professional production intended to introduce and showcase the Chinese theatre art of Kunqu.

NAATCO (National Asian American Theatre Co.), to support the world premiere of Cowboy v. Samurai, an original play by Michael Golamco adapted from Edmon Rostand's Cyrano de Bergerac.

Sachiyo Ito and Company for a Salon Series of educational lecture/demos on Japanese and Okinawan art forms.

Trinayan Collective for Sakshi/Witness, an interpretation of Odissi (an Indian classical dance form) which draws on the social and spiritual connotations of the concept of "witness."

Asian American Arts Alliance welcomes contributions to support SOAR and other grantmaking programs for underserved artists. In addition to grantmaking, current programs and services include: Culture Pass visibility project, Meet the Funders series, e-Calendar of Asian American arts events, and ongoing advocacy and promotion.
Asian American Arts Alliance Asian American Arts Alliance, founded in 1983, is dedicated to strengthening Asian American arts & cultural groups in NYC through funding, visibility initiatives, and access to new resources. We are a diverse alliance of artists, organizations, and individual supporters who believe that working together as a pan-ethnic, multidisciplinary community is essential to nurturing the development of artists and arts organizations, and to providing a political voice for this community. For further information, please call (212) 941-9208 or email A4@aaartsalliance.org