‘Trump won't stop us': Bay Area arts groups vow to fight back after NEA cuts
Jessie Amoroso, costume director at the American Conservatory Theater. left, and Costume and Scenic Designer David Zinn, right, adjusts a costume on cast member El Beh during a fitting ahead of the musical 'The Wizard of Oz', at the theater's costume shop in San Francisco, May 16, 2023. Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Stephen Lam/The Chronicle
Ravi Coltrane performs during the 2023 SFJAZZ gala on May 4, 2023 in San Francisco. Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Michaela Vatcheva/Special to The Chronicle
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi greets well wishers after the concert while attending the SFJAZZ Gala 2019 at the SFJAZZ Center in San Francisco. Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Laura Morton/Special to The Chronicle
Jarvis B. Manning sings and dances with fellow cast members Derrick Baskin (center) and Jared Joseph (left) during a rehearsal for 'Ain't Too Proud: The Temptations Musical' at the Berkeley Rep rehearsal studio in Berkeley, on Aug. 2, 2017.
Paul Chinn/The Chronicle
Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
The abrupt move, which stripped local theaters, festivals and nonprofits of vital financial support overnight, reflects a shift in federal priorities aligned with President Donald Trump's vision for national identity — one that seeks to eliminate what he terms 'woke' influences.
Dozens of organizations, including some of the Bay Area's most prominent cultural institutions, were notified Friday evening that their grants have either been rejected or canceled. In addition, an NEA official reported on Monday that staff members have been asked to either resign or retire.
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For many in the local arts community, the cuts have created deep financial and creative uncertainty.
Jason Veasey, foreground, and Ana Yi Puig, from background left, Seth Hanson, Molly Hager, A.J. Holmes and John-Michael Lyles in American Conservatory Theater's 'Nobody Loves You.' Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Kevin Berne/American Conservatory Theater
Among the organizations affected are the American Conservatory Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre and SFJazz.
ACT, which had been awarded $40,000 for its world premiere of 'Co-Founders,'a hip-hop musical, now faces an uncertain future with its funding in jeopardy.
'We are incredibly disappointed to receive notice that the NEA is changing funding priorities mid-year,' said Jennifer Bielstein, executive director of the theater, in a statement Monday. 'These changes not only hurt ACT. but also have far-reaching consequences for arts organizations throughout the country. NEA funding supports jobs in arts organizations and among artists, as well as indirectly in adjacent businesses such as restaurants, parking, transportation, and retail....the redirection has an expanded impact on the entire arts ecosystem.'
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Berkeley Repertory Theatre, which had secured $40,000 for its Ground Floor program, a nationally recognized incubator for new works, also finds itself grappling with the fallout.
The company's Managing Director Tom Parrish expressed concern about the future of American theater.
'This move represents not merely a funding cut, but an attempt to undermine the very existence of the NEA and the shared civic value it embodies,' he said in a statement Monday. 'The loss of this support endangers not just Berkeley Rep's pipeline of new work but the future of American theatre writ large.'
Cast members of the upcoming American Conservatory Theater production 'A Whynot Christmas Carol' are seen during a rehearsal in San Francisco, Oct. 30, 2024. Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Stephen Lam/The Chronicle
The impact extends beyond major institutions.
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Smaller organizations like Circo Zero, which promotes BIPOC and LGBTQ+ participation in theater, and Frameline, which has showcased LGBTQ+ films for nearly five decades, are also feeling the weight of the changes.
'To lose the NEA is to concede that the arts no longer matter in this country,' Parrish added. 'We refuse that premise and remain steadfast in our commitment to creative ambition, cultural relevance, and broad access.'
Frameline's Executive Director Allegra Madsen criticized the move as 'nothing short of an attempt to censor our art, control our history, and erase our lived experiences.'
Organizers shared a letter from the NEA, saying grants are redirected toward projects with more narrowly defined goals that prioritize 'the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster AI competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs' and 'make America healthy again,' among other things.
President Donald Trump speaks with reporters as he signs executive orders and proclamations in the Oval Office of the White House, Monday, May 5, in Washington. Bay Area arts organizations are reeling after the National Endowment for the Arts rescinded crucial funding as part of the Trump administration's sweeping cultural overhaul.
Alex Brandon/Associated Press
The agency has also redirected resources to fund Trump's proposed 'National Garden of American Heroes,' a monument featuring statues of historical and contemporary figures like Benjamin Franklin and Kobe Bryant.
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The move is part of a broader agenda to reshape cultural funding under the Trump administration, which previously advocated for defunding the NEA during his first term. But Congress ultimately restored the agency's budget at that time.
Despite the setbacks, Bay Area arts leaders remain resolute.
'Trump will not stop us,' Andrew Wood, executive director of the San Francisco International Arts Festival, which also lost funding just as international artists were set to arrive, said in an email Sunday. 'The show will go on.'
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