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San Francisco Chronicle
24-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Oakland comedian, ‘Celebrity Jeopardy!' champ steps up to support Bay Area arts amid NEA fallout
Theater and dance fans concerned about the widespread terminations of National Endowment for the Arts grants can now help affected Bay Area organizations by attending a performance by Oakland's own W. Kamau Bell. The polymathic Peabody- and Emmy Award-winning TV host, comedian, podcaster, author, documentarian, Substacker and 'Celebrity Jeopardy!' winner is reprising his 'Who's With Me?' at Berkeley Repertory Theatre from June 17-22. Ticket sales from the stand-up comedy show, which Bell performed at the same theater last month, will benefit more than a dozen organizations whose NEA grants were abruptly revoked under President Donald Trump's administration. More Information 'Who's With Me?': Written and performed by W. Kamau Bell. Performances begin June 17. Through June 22. $35-$250. Berkeley Rep's Roda Theatre, 2015 Addison St., Berkeley. 510-647-2949. 'People think everybody's equally rich in show business, but that is not the case,' he explained with a laugh. 'I live in the Bay Area with three kids.' That's where his Berkeley Rep came in. 'Kamau was the first person to reach out to me in response to the devastating NEA news, with the simple but profound question 'How can we help?'' Berkeley Rep Artistic Director Johanna Pfaelzer said. 'This is what it looks like to stand together, and we are so lucky to do so alongside such a brilliant and generous artist.' 'When I finally got to do shows in the Peet's, I just felt super-like, 'I've made it!'' he said, referring to one of the theater's main stages where he performed an earlier version of 'Who's With Me?' He also workshopped 'W. Kamau Bell Gets His Act Together' at a studio in the theater's school during two separate runs last year. Beneficiaries of his newly announced run include American Conservatory Theater, Berkeley Repertory Theatre, Crowded Fire Theater, Dance Brigade/Dance Mission Theater, Magic Theatre, Marin Shakespeare Company, New Conservatory Theatre Center, Children's Fairyland, Oakland Theater Project, San Francisco Youth Theatre, Theatre Bay Area, TheatreWorks Silicon Valley and Zaccho Dance Theatre. Ed Decker, artistic director of New Conservatory Theatre Center, one of the affected organizations, posted on Facebook the notification he got from the NEA saying his theater's world premiere of 'Simple Mexican Pleasures' by Eric Reyes Loo 'does not align' with the Trump administration's new priorities for the agency. Those priorities, the letter goes on, include historically Black colleges and universities, 'Hispanic Serving Institutions,' tribal communities, Asian American communities; the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence; houses of worship, skilled trade jobs, disaster recovery, the military and veterans. Other priorities include 'make America healthy again' and 'make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful.' Decker told the Chronicle that Berkeley Rep's invitation to be a part of Bell's event was about far more than the proceeds. 'I felt the warm embrace of our creative community standing together to help,' he said. For Bell, who has lived almost entirely in the Bay since 1997, the decision to stage the benefit came down to his own artistic origins. 'I feel very clear that who I am is because of who I met in the Bay,' he said. 'I feel happy to be in a place where my help can be helpful.' Earlier this month, Berkeley Rep received a $40,000 donation in response to the NEA chaos from another artist, Tony Award-winning playwright John Logan, whose 'Red' and 'Swept Away' have both run at the theater.
San Francisco Chronicle
03-05-2025
- Entertainment
- San Francisco Chronicle
Bay Area arts groups stunned by Trump's sweeping grant cancellations
Several Bay Area arts organizations were blindsided after the National Endowment for the Arts abruptly rescinded their federal grants, part of a broader Trump administration overhaul of federal arts policy that has upended cultural institutions nationwide. At least seven arts nonprofits in the region, including San Francisco's New Conservatory Theatre Center, the Oakland Theater Project and Circo Zero, received termination notices Friday stating their projects no longer aligned with the administration's newly defined priorities. The NEA emails cited a pivot toward funding projects that 'reflect the nation's rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President,' including efforts to celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster AI competency, support military veterans and empower houses of worship. 'Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities,' the letter stated. Projects focused on underserved communities or diversity in the arts, once a central pillar of NEA funding, are now excluded. The New Conservatory Theatre Center received notice that its $20,000 grant for the world premiere of 'Simple Mexican Pleasures' has been rescinded. In the message addressed to Executive Director Barbara Hodgen, the NEA cited a shift in agency priorities under the Trump administration, stating that the project no longer aligns with new funding goals. Circo Zero, a dance organization that promotes BIPOC and LGBTQ participation in technical theater roles, saw its $50,000 NEA grant halted. Artistic Director Keith Hennessy said the group had already spent much of the money and is awaiting a final reimbursement. 'Some of us are halfway through a project and have already been partially reimbursed,' Hennessey said in an email to the Chronicle. 'Some were awarded money, signed contracts, and committed to many artists and staff, but have not started it yet, so this announcement is more of a 'pulling the rug out,' destabilizing their upcoming production.' The Oakland Theater Project had been awarded $30,000 for the 2026 world premiere of 'Moby Dick,' by playwright Erik Ehn. Managing Director Colin Mandlin said the company has received only half the funds, adding that plans for the production may need to be scaled back. Meanwhile, Danielle Grant, director of programs at SCRAP, San Francisco's Creative Reuse Depot, lost a $25,000 grant intended to fund sustainable fashion workshops for underserved youth. 'We don't fit any of those 'new priorities,'' Grant told KQED. The NEA confirmed that projects outside the administration's new focus areas are being terminated effective May 31. Organizations have until June 30 to request final payments for completed work. Appeals must be filed within seven days. Uncertainty looms for organizations with pending NEA applications. Andrew Smith, executive director of the Lab in San Francisco, said his organization anticipated the shift and moved NEA-funded programming forward to ensure reimbursement. But like many in the region, he's uncertain about future support. The upheaval extends beyond the NEA. Last month, the National Endowment for the Humanities began informing state humanities councils and grantees that their funding was also being terminated immediately. In some cases, notices were sent from a Department of Government Efficiency email address and signed by NEH acting director Michael McDonald. 'Your grant's immediate termination is necessary to safeguard the interests of the federal government, including its fiscal priorities,' the letters said. 'The termination of your grant represents an urgent priority for the administration, and due to exceptional circumstances, adherence to the traditional notification process is not possible.' The NEH, whose $207 million annual budget is distributed largely through state agencies, had awarded $22.6 million in grants just six days before President Donald Trump returned to office. Those included funding for regional museum exhibitions, inclusive historical programming and local cultural preservation initiatives — many of which have now been nullified. California Humanities, which had regranted NEH funds to several Bay Area groups, is among the affected. These sweeping changes follow Trump's earlier efforts to shutter the NEH, NEA, and then Institute of Museum and Library Services entirely. The administration has also pressured the Smithsonian Institution to alter museum programming, purged political opponents from the Kennedy Center board, and launched a crackdown on diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives across federally funded cultural institutions.
