Trinity Rep Receives NEA Grant

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced November 28, 2012 that Trinity Repertory Company is one of 832 non-profit organizations nationwide to receive an NEA Art Works grant. Trinity Rep was awarded a $25,000 grant to support the world premiere of award-winning playwright Jackie Sibblies Drury's Social Creatures in March/April 2013 as part of their 2012-2013 mainstage season.

Directed by Trinity Rep's Richard L. Bready Artistic Director Curt Columbus, Social Creatures is set in the aftermath of an international pandemic that has decimated humanity. A motley group of survivors is trying desperately to avoid contracting the illness that turns people into something indescribable. Playwright Sibblies Drury explains it best saying that "of course, at first the news would have dubbed the infected 'zombies', because it sensationalized and articulated what was going on. But after time passed and as more and more people fell victim to it, and as society began to break down, nobody would talk about any of it at all."

Social Creatures was commissioned by Trinity Rep in 2010, and developed through the theater's annual creative workshop to nurture and develop new ideas and artists. It follows in the tradition of several other mainstage productions that have resulted from these workshops, including The Completely Fictional - Utterly True - Final Strange Tale of Edgar Allan Poe, Love Alone, and Some Things are Private.

"I'm proud to announce these 832 grants to the American public including Trinity Rep," said then-Chairman Rocco Landesman. "These projects offer extraordinary examples of creativity in our country, including the creation of new work, innovative ways of engaging audiences, and exemplary education programs." Chairman Landesman has since retired. NEA Senior Deputy Chairman Joan Shigekawa is serving as acting head of the agency until a permanent successor is confirmed.

In March 2012, the NEA received 1,509 eligible applications for Art Works requesting more than $74 million in funding. The 832 recommended NEA grants total $22.3 million, span 13 artistic disciplines and fields, and focus primarily on the creation of work and presentation of both new and existing works for the benefit of American audiences. Applications were reviewed by panels of outside experts convened by NEA staff and each project was judged on its artistic excellence and artistic merit.