For the fifth year philanthropist Donna Wilhelm has stepped up to provide support for the performing arts. Through the TACA Donna Wilhelm Family New Works Fund, Donna has annually awarded $100,000 in grants “to support the development and performance of innovative new works of music, dance and theater in Dallas County.”
The 2016 recipients are the Bruce Wood Dance Project and Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Thanks to Donna’s funding, the two dance groups will be able to produce the following programs:
- “Bruce Wood Dance Project will enlist the creative talents of award-winning music theater composer, arranger, and conductor Joseph Thalken and BWDP Artistic Associate and SMU Meadows School of the Arts alumnus Albert Drake. Their collaborative work will explore the refugee experience across cultures through conversations, music, and dance. The work is scheduled to premiere June 2017 at the Dallas City Performance Hall.
- “Dallas Black Dance Theatre will mount a new work by choreographer, dancer and Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater rehearsal director Matthew Rushing, set to a score developed by world-renowned jazz pianist and composer Ted Rosenthal. The tribute-themed ballet will pay homage to legendary African American dancers and choreographers over the past century, including Talley Beatty, Alvin Ailey, and Donald McKayle. The multi-disciplinary work, utilizing video and live music, is slated to premiere in November.”
Past recipients of the TACA Donna Wilhelm Family New Works Fund have included
- 2012 — African American Report, Cara Mia Theatre Company and Dallas Theater Center
- 2013 — Second Thought Theatre, Undermain Theatre and Voices of Change
- 2014 — Dallas Bach Society, Dallas Children’s Theater, Fine Arts Chamber Players and The Dallas Opera
- 2015 — Dallas Theater Center and Kitchen Dog Theater
The selection of the recipients is made from submitted application that are “reviewed each year by a national panel of distinguished artists and arts managers.” This year’s jurors included
- Matt Albert (Chair, Department of Chamber Music, University of Michigan)
- Laura Barbee (Adjunct Faculty Member, The School for Classical & Contemporary Dance, TCU)
- Stephen Brown-Fried (Theatre Director)
- Roger Brunyate (Director Emeritus, The Peabody Conservatory, Johns Hopkins University)
- Kenneth Foster (Director of Arts Leadership, Thornton School of Music, USC)
- Greg Fulkerson (Professor of Violin, Oberlin College and Conservatory)
- Dean Gladden (Managing Director, The Alley Theatre)
- Andy Grotelueschen (Company Member, Fiasco Theater)
- Emily Hunter (Dance Teacher, Booker T. Washington High School Greg Hustis: Professor of Horn, Meadows School of the Arts, SMU Baba Israel: Artist, Producer, Educator, and Consultant)
- Parisa Khobdeh (Dancer, Paul Taylor Dance Company)
- Emily Lyon (Literary Manager, BEDLAM)
- Patricia McGregor (Theatre Director, Writer, and Playwright)
- Jonathan Moscone (Chief of Civic Engagement, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts)
- Jonathan Norton (Playwright)
- Brian Perry (Bassist, Dallas Symphony Orchestra)
- Roche Schulfer (Executive Director, Goodman Theatre)
For more information about applications and requirements, contact Greg Oertel at 214.520.3930.