Short Takes

Short Takes

Veterans Art Exhibit Upstairs

Veterans Art FoundationPlease visit our exhibit from members of the Veterans Art Foundation upstairs in John and Kelly Hartman Foundation Lobby. The Veterans Art Foundation is an organization established in 2008 by Iraq Veteran Michael Hawley with the mission of using art therapy to assist the recovery process for both veterans and their families when dealing with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

The NEA Supports Anastasia

AnastasiaThe National Endowment for the Arts has announced awards totaling more than $27.6 million in its first round of funding for fiscal year 2016, including an Art Works award of $10,000 to Hartford Stage to provide production support for the new musical Anastasia in May.

“We are grateful that the NEA continues to support works of artistic merit,” said Michael Stotts, Managing Director of Hartford Stage. “Our much-anticipated production of Anastasia is an ambitious undertaking requiring additional resources, so we are thankful for this grant.”

In its first 50 years, the NEA awarded more than $5 billion in grants to recipients in every state and U.S. jurisdiction, the only arts funder in the nation to do so. The Art Works category supports the creation of work and presentation of both new and existing work, lifelong learning in the arts, and public engagement with the arts through 13 arts disciplines or fields.

This generous gift from the NEA for Anastasia will assist in continuing Artistic Director Darko Tresnjak’s vision of developing and presenting new plays and musicals at Hartford Stage. Specifically, the Art Works-funded project will span from the initial rehearsal period through the run of the production, enabling the theatre to host a variety of special events designed to directly engage patrons with the cast, artistic staff, and key theatre personnel.

CT Humanities Funds The Body of an American

A $1,500 grant to Hartford Stage, awarded by Connecticut Humanities, will help support four free community events surrounding The Body of an American next month.

“The Body of an American is an important play about the close friendship developed between a writer and a journalist who have observed some of the world’s most recent atrocities,” said Michael Stotts, Managing Director for Hartford Stage. “This play will spark conversations in the community about PTSD and other emotional outcomes of such experiences. We are grateful to Connecticut Humanities for providing a grant that will help support the cost of some of these conversations.”

The Connecticut Humanities award will help Hartford Stage in providing four free events coinciding with the run of the play, including:

  • A Conversation with Paul Watson and Dan O’Brien on Monday, January 11, at 7:30 pm at Hartford Stage;
  • A month-long art exhibit from members of the Veterans Art Foundation at Hartford Stage;
  • After War: What Happens Next, featuring authors David Finkel, Dan O’Brien and Emma Sky, moderated by WNPR’s Lucy Nalpathanchil at The Mark Twain House and Museum on Thursday, January 14;
  • And The Journey Home: A Veteran’s Perspective – a post-show panel discussion following the performance of The Body of an American on Thursday, January 21.

Connecticut Humanities, a nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, supports cultural and historic organizations that tell the state’s stories, build community and enrich lives.