Whitefish Theatre Co. receives national grant
The National Endowment for the Arts recently announced awards totaling more than $27.6 million in its first funding round for fiscal year 2016, including a Challenge America award of $10,000 to the Whitefish Theatre Co. to host the award-winning Ukrainian music ensemble DahkaBrahka on April 28.
The grant is providing a free concert for several organizations that work with at-risk youths in the Flathead Valley, as well as free transportation for those groups who need travel assistance to this show.
“With the generous support of the National Endowment of the Arts, this is the first year that the Whitefish Theatre Company has been able to offer a free outreach concert to organizations working with at-risk youth,” said Whitefish Theatre Executive Director Gayle MacLaren. “It is exciting to be able to offer this unique cultural experience to this select population, most of whom don’t have the means or opportunity to see live music.”
The Whitefish Theatre Company has contacted several groups and homes locally that work with young people, but it is asking the public to contact MacLaren at 406-862-5371 with tips about organizations that may be interested in this free concert.
DakhaBrakha, which derives its name from the old Ukrainian words “give-and-take,” is a world-music quartet from Kiev.
Performing folk melodies and rhythms that are both sacred and modern, DakhaBrakha creates a sound of powerful new music, all driven by propulsive drums, accordion, cello, mouth harp and layered vocals. The group mixes everything from punk-pop to traditional Ukrainian songs in cool yet beguiling textures, often with the close harmonies usually associated with Balkan music.
Recent venues include the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the Bonnaroo Music Festival where they were named “Best Breakout Band.”
The band will perform a free concert for youths in the afternoon, and the public is invited to purchase tickets to the evening performance on April 28.
For more information or to purchase tickets, call the Whitefish Theatre Company at 406-862-5371 or visit www.whitefishtheatreco.org.
“The arts are part of our everyday lives — no matter who you are or where you live — they have the power to transform individuals, spark economic vibrancy in communities, and transcend the boundaries across diverse sectors of society,” National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu said. “Supporting projects like the one from the Whitefish Theatre Company offers more opportunities to engage in the arts every day.”
The Challenge America category supports projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations, whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability. Challenge America grants are comparatively small investments that have a big impact in their communities.