(SUMMIT, NJ) -- Vivid Stage, in residence at Oakes Center at 120 Morris Avenue in Summit, was the recipient of several grants over the past months. Vivid Stage is a vibrant, small professional theatre that is in its 28th season. Vivid’s professional ensemble of actors builds community by presenting contemporary work that stimulates thought, encourages reflection, and connects people with humor and heart.
The Citizens Philanthropic Foundation granted Vivid Stage $500 for our summer theatre program for tweens and teens. The Vivid Dreamers is a three-week theatre experience in Summit, NJ. It combines building skills through study with theatre professionals in a variety of subjects with the opportunity for students to create and perform their own play. This grant will support scholarships for students in need. The Citizens Philanthropic Foundation provides support to nonprofit organizations that are addressing the bank’s primary giving areas of fighting hunger, fostering financial empowerment and strengthening communities through economic and workforce development.
Impact100 Garden State selected Vivid Stage for a Merit general operating support grant of $1,000 at its 10th anniversary celebration last month. Founded in 2013 by Carole R. Rogers, Impact100 Garden State was inspired by a growing national trend in women’s collective giving. Through the power of collective giving, one woman’s donation, joined with many others’, results in the ability of awarding life-changing grants to local nonprofits. Impact100 Garden State’s grants have addressed needs in the areas of Arts & Culture; Children & Families; Education; Environment, Preservation & Recreation; and Health & Wellness.
The Union Foundation, a private foundation based in Warren County, supported Vivid Stage in the amount of $1,400 for computer equipment. Vivid’s staff works remotely, so supplementing and refreshing its technical infrastructure is essential. This grant has allowed the Artistic Director to purchase a new laptop computer that will make working in a variety of locations possible.
Finally, the New Jersey Arts and Culture Renewal Fund awarded Vivid Stage $7,500 for its work in bringing performing arts to the community during this time of transition. Vivid Stage never stopped producing during the pandemic, shifting from in-person to virtual events and classes. But participation is still rebounding, and a new audience must be cultivated to return to pre-pandemic levels. This fund provides support to nonprofits that will use the funds to help artists, teaching artists and history professionals recover from the financial devastation of the pandemic.
Vivid’s season is in full swing, with productions, improv comedy, cabaret, play readings, education and outreach programs that run year-round.
Vivid Stage was founded in 1994 as Dreamcatcher Rep, and is a non-profit professional ensemble of actors who build community with the audience by sharing contemporary, life-affirming stories that challenge, energize and entertain. Our work has at its heart a belief in the essential goodness of people and the power of live performance to connect people through our shared humanity. We expose theatregoers to ideas and lives like and unlike their own with the intention of awakening their imaginations and creating empathy for others. We deepen the experience of all our patrons with personal contact through receptions, talkbacks, and interactive programs.
The company’s activities include mainstage productions, improvisational comedy and cabarets, new play readings and a variety of educational and senior outreach programs.
Vivid Stage’s programs are funded by the New Jersey State Council on the Arts/Department of State, a Partner Agency of the National Endowment for the Arts, and many other corporations, foundations and individuals. Vivid Stage is an Equity Producing member of the New Jersey Theatre Alliance.
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