Meadows Receives $10,000 Grant from TACA, the Arts Community Alliance

The Meadows School was awarded $10,000 by TACA (The Arts Community Alliance) during a grant presentation on Jan. 25 at the Wyly Theatre.  TACA provided a total of $1.3 million to 48 local performing arts organizations and programs at its annual awards ceremony. The guest speaker at the event was dance alumna Parisa Khobdeh, a member of the Paul Taylor Dance Company in New York.

The release follows:
TACA Distributes $1.3 Million to Local Performing Arts Community at 2016 Grant Awards
Parisa Khobdeh, Nationally-Renowned Dancer with Local Roots, Served as Grant Awards Guest Speaker

On Monday, January 25, 2016, TACA (The Arts Community Alliance) distributed grants ranging from $5,000 to $100,000 to forty-eight local performing arts organizations and programs at the annual TACA Grant Awards Presentation. The event, sponsored by Bank of Texas, took place at the Dee and Charles Wyly Theatre with more than 250 local arts managers, patrons, and volunteers in attendance. In total, TACA provided $1.3 million to organizations representing various budget sizes and artistic genres, including theater, music, dance, and spoken word.

Parisa Khobdeh, Plano native and dancer with the Paul Taylor Dance Company in New York, served as the 2016 Grant Awards Guest Artist-Speaker. Ms. Khobdeh is a graduate of SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts. Over the course of her career, she has worked with many notable choreographers and has lent her talents to benefit human rights organizations.

“For the ninth consecutive year, we are proud to provide more than $1 million in grants to the arts community,” said Becky Young, Carlson President and Executive Director of TACA. “We are so fortunate to have such a vibrant local arts community. The Grant Awards Presentation is our opportunity to celebrate what local arts leaders and supporters accomplish each year.”

TACA’s distinct granting process is driven by community volunteers, including local business and civic leaders and performing arts experts and enthusiasts. Each year, approximately forty volunteers of varying ages and backgrounds attend performances, review grant applications, and allocate funding based on artistic merit, community impact, and organizational health.

In additional to general operating support, TACA provides grants through two Artistic Excellence Funds. The TACA Donna Wilhelm Family New Works Fund supports the creation and performance of new works in Dallas, and the TACA Bowdon and Embrey Family Foundations Artist Residency Fund supports for the development of local artistic residency programs.

2016 TACA Grant Award Recipients

Musical Ensembles

• Chamber Music International – $5,000
• Dallas Bach Society – $8,000
• Dallas Chamber Music Society – $5,000
• Fine Arts Chamber Players – $29,000
• Orchestra of New Spain – $15,000
• Sammons Center for the Arts – $11,000
• Texas Winds Musical Outreach – $12,000
• Tuesday Nite Jazz – $10,000
• Voices of Change – $10,000

Symphonic Arts

• Dallas Chamber Symphony – $13,000
• Dallas Symphony Orchestra – $100,000
• Dallas Winds – $35,000
• Lone Star Wind Orchestra – $13,000
• Plano Symphony Orchestra – $10,000

Operatic Arts

• The Dallas Opera – $100,000

Choral Arts

• Arts District Chorale – $5,000
• Orpheus Chamber Singers – $15,000
• Plano Civic Chorus – $6,000
• Vox Humana – $5,000 *

Dance

• Avant Chamber Ballet – $12,500
• Bruce Wood Dance Project – $15,000
• Dallas Black Dance Theatre – $85,000
• Dallas Neo-Classical Ballet – $5,000 *
• Texas Ballet Theater – $70,000
• TITAS – $65,000

Theater Arts

• African American Repertory Theater – $12,500
• Cara Mía Theatre Company – $15,000
• Dallas Theater Center – $100,000
• Echo Theatre – $12,000
• Kitchen Dog Theater – $35,000
• Lyric Stage – $30,000
• Second Thought Theatre – $18,000
• Shakespeare Dallas – $35,000
• Teatro Dallas – $10,000
• Theatre Three – $30,000
• Undermain Theatre – $25,000
• Uptown Players – $33,000
• WaterTower Theatre – $40,000

Spoken Word

• WordSpace – $5,000

Youth Arts

• Big Thought – $15,000
• Children’s Chorus of Greater Dallas – $37,000
• Dallas Children’s Theater – $75,000
• Greater Dallas Youth Orchestra – $45,000
• Junior Players – $38,000
• Lone Star Circus Arts Center – $5,000

Collaborative Partners

• AT&T Performing Arts Center – $5,000
• Nasher Sculpture Center – $10,000
• SMU Meadows School of the Arts – $10,000

* Denotes a first-time recipient of TACA funding