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January 23, 2009

Louisville Ballet Announces New Executive Director

The Louisville Ballet is proud to announce the appointment of Dwight E. Hutton as the Company’s new Executive Director. Mr. Hutton has over thirty years of experience in the dance world having been both an accomplished dancer and administrator. In his most recent position as the Managing Director of Smuin Ballet in San Francisco, he directed all managerial functions including the revamping of the Company’s Development and Marketing departments, enhancing earned and contributed income culminating in a record fiscal year in 2008. Mr. Hutton will begin his tenure at the Louisville Ballet on January 19, 2009.

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$3 million from Carlos Foundation boosts Atlanta Ballet

by Pierre Ruhe
January 14, 2009
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Hailed as “a new beginning,” the financially troubled Atlanta Ballet has received donations totalling $10 million, including the single largest gift in its 79-year history — $3 million from the Michael C. and Thalia N. Carlos Foundation.

The donations are part of a campaign to raise $14.8 million toward purchase and renovation of a new headquarters on Marietta Boulevard west of downtown.

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Lar Lubovitch and Jay Franke honored as 2008 Chicagoans of the Year

Congratulations to Lar Lubovitch and Jay Franke as they receive the 2008 Chicagoan of the Year. This honor is in recognition of their work with the Chicago Dancing Festival.

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watch the television interview

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Brooklyn Academy Thinks Big, Despite All

by Robin Pogrebin
January 19, 2009
The New York Times

Even as cultural organizations across the city are contracting in a grim economic climate, the Brooklyn Academy of Music has embarked on a $300 million expansion effort that calls for a new theater, three or four spaces for screening films, new festivals for opera and Muslim culture and a shored-up endowment, officials say.

Karen Brooks Hopkins, president of the Academy, acknowledged that the move might seem surprising to donors and to struggling arts institutions.

“Announcing this campaign is not meant to be arrogant,” she said in an interview. “It’s meant to be thoughtful. We cut our budget by $1.4 million this year.” (Last year’s budget was $40 million.) “At the same time, we want to be forward-thinking.”

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EmcArts Innovation Lab for the Performing Arts
Round 1 Grantees Announced and Round 2 RFPs Issued

EmcArts announces the Round 1 grantees of The Innovation Lab for the Performing Arts, a new program supported by a $1.5 million grant from the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation: The Civilians, MAPP International Productions, Roadside Theater/Appalshop, and STREB. The Lab, created and managed by EmcArts, is structured to help producing and presenting organizations in theatre, dance, and jazz design and test innovative strategies to address major challenges. The partnership with DDCF provides funding for three Lab Cohorts, each comprised of four participating organizations. The applications deadline for the second round of the Lab is February 20, 2009.

read Round 1 grantee project descriptions

find details about the program, eligibility, and proposal guidelines

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ExhangesConnect Online Video Contest
"My Culture + Your Culture= Share your Story"
by the U.S Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA)

This contest is a call for engagement and action.Submit videos, no longer than three minutes in length, containing any form of artistic expression including, but not limited to, dance, spoken word, poetry, and song. Videos will be judged on originality, creativity, effectiveness, and production quality. Four winners (two in each of the age categories: 14-17 years and 18+ years; one non U.S., one U.S.) will receive the grand prize: an all-expense-paid, two-week cultural exchange program to the United States (for the non-U.S. winners) or from the United States to a country to be determined (for the U.S. winners). Contest closes January 26, 2009.

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Applications Now Available for 2009 Princess Grace Awards in Theater, Playwriting, Dance, Choreography & Film

The Princess Grace Foundation-USA announces the availability of applications for the 2009 Princess Grace Awards in Theater, Playwriting, Dance Performance, Choreography, and Film. Founded in 1982, in the memory of Princess Grace (Kelly) of Monaco, the Foundation is dedicated to identifying and assisting emerging artists in theater, dance and film and has awarded grants in excess of $5 million to nearly 500 individuals nationwide. Full guidelines and applications are available at www.pgfusa.org.

Executive Director Toby Boshak notes, “Particularly in this current economic climate, the Princess Grace
Foundation-USA is committed to continuing its support of emerging artists in America.”

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Many Foundations Have Lost Almost One-Third of Their Assets, Chronicle Study Finds

by Noelle Barton and Ian Wilhelm
January 21, 2009
The Chronicle of Philanthropy

The steep decline in the stock market last year triggered an erosion of foundation wealth, with many grant makers losing nearly one-third of their assets, according to a new Chronicle survey of some of the nation’s largest philanthropies.

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Everything You Wanted to Know About Online Fundraising in a Bad Economy

by Allyson Kapin
January 21, 2009
Care2's Frogloop Blog

Let's be frank, daily doom and gloom reports about the economy are scary. Nonprofits are facing challenging times with leaner resources.

“The year-end fund-raising results last month confirm what we already suspected: for most people giving is not a luxury but a natural extension of who they are,” said Mark Rovner, Founder of Sea Change Strategies. “Many groups received significant numbers of gifts this past December, but the average size gift amount dropped, especially at the higher end.”

The big question on every fundraiser’s mind these days is this: How can an organization sustain and even increase their online donations in a recession? While there is no magic formula, the best practices for online fundraisers right now lie in a solid communication strategy and philanthropy fundamentals. Two of the biggest takeaways from Obama’s incredibly successful fundraising campaign were to: 1) embrace low dollar donors; and 2) make the case that donors are part of a movement.

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Quincy Jones Leads Chorus Urging a Cabinet-Level Arts Czar

by Jacqueline Trescott
January 14, 2009
The Washington Post

A call for President-elect Barack Obama to give the arts and humanities a Cabinet-level post -- perhaps even create a secretary of culture -- is gaining momentum.

By January 13, 76,000 people had signed an online petition, started by two New York musicians who were inspired by producer Quincy Jones. In a radio interview in November, Jones said the country needed a minister of culture, like France, Germany or Finland has. And he said he would "beg" Obama to establish the post.

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sign the petition!

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General Motors Foundation to Cut Funding for Arts Groups

January 12, 2009
Philanthropy News Digest

The General Motors Foundation has decided to cut its support for metro Detroit's top cultural institutions, putting Michigan's nonprofit community on notice that it could lose millions in funding as the auto industry struggles to survive, the Detroit Free Press reports.

In 2007, the most recent year for which figures are available, the foundation awarded nearly $12 million to Michigan-based organizations — and $31.4 million globally — in areas such as arts and culture, social service, education, and health care. According to GM Foundation chair Rod Gillum, the amount of money the foundation has set aside for charitable causes in 2009 is "nowhere near as big" as the 2007 total, and any nonprofit previously funded by GM should be making contingency plans.

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