Community Arts

Project Details by Fiscal Year
2016 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$5,000
Fund Source
Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund
Recipient
On Time Circus
Recipient Type
Non-Profit Business/Entity
Status
Completed
Start Date
December 2015
End Date
November 2016
Activity Type
Grants/Contracts
Counties Affected
Hennepin
Hennepin
Project Overview
Community Arts
Project Details
Funding to tour The On-Time Circus, a puppet/clown show for children and adults, to eight St Paul Parks and Recreation passive parks. Performances will take place in summer of 2016.
Competitive Grant Making Body
Board Members and Qualifications
Julie Andersen: Eagan Art House Executive Director; Jill Anfang: Roseville Parks and Recreation Program Director; Bethany Brunsell: Music teacher and performer; Shelly Chamberlain: Minnesota Council of Nonprofits Operations Director; Marisol Chiclana-Ayla: Artist, Board Chair El Arco Iris; Anthony Galloway: Actor, storyteller, West Metro Education Program; Jamil Jude: Theatre artist; Tricia Khutoretsky: Public Functionary Curator and Co-Director; Peter Leggett: Walker West Music Academy Executive Director; Dayna Martinez: Ordway Center for the Performing Arts; Coleen McLaughlin: Arts Midwest Director of External Relations; Tom Moffatt: Silverwood Park Supervisor; Kathy Mouacheupao: Twin Cities Local Initiatives Support Corporation Cultural Corridor Coordinator; Adam Napoli-Rangel: Artist; Heather Rutledge: ArtReach Saint Croix Executive Director; Andrea Sjogren: Hopkins Public Schools Youth Programs Coordinator; Dameun Strange: Composer and performer; Melissa Wright: Twin Cities Public Television.
Advisory Group Members and Qualifications
Oskar Ly: Artistic, community service, volunteerism; Tiernan Warner: Artistic, youth programming, education; Stanton Wood: Fundraising, general management, artistic; Erin Lauderman: Artistic, youth programming, audience development; Zhen Zou: Education, general management, artistic; Jennifer Wood: Fundraising, disabilities specialist, general management; Monica Murray: Artistic, education, general management; Jonna Kosalko: Fundraising, audience development, general; Jean McElvain: Artistic, Community Education, organizational development.
Conflict of Interest Disclosed
No
Legal Citation / Subdivision
Laws of Minnesota 2015 Special Session, chapter 2, article 4, section 2, subdivision 3
Appropriation Language

ACHF Arts Access

2016 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$5,000
Other Funds Leveraged
$4,150
Direct expenses
$9,150
Administration costs
$0
Number of full time equivalents funded
0.00
Proposed Measurable Outcome(s)

We will perform eight shows in designated Saint Paul "passive parks" to audiences of at least 50 adults and children. Audience written surveys will show high levels of engagement, and the "sticker survey" will reveal at least 30% of our audience is experiencing live puppet theater for the first time. We will take a count of audience ten minutes into the show. We will pass out ten written surveys to random audience members, and also run a quick "sticker survey" on a graph to discover how many puppet shows th

Measurable Outcome(s)

We did it!! We performed in 8 "passive parks" to lively audiences who responded enthusiastically to our show. 1. Our written survey indicated that 63% were "very engaged" 28% were engaged, and one person was "sort of engaged," and one "not engaged." We got a variety of comments that touched upon many aspects of the show: the music, the acting, the variety of puppets, the creativity, the solar power, the fact that children were so engaged, the fact that adults liked it too, the allowance for participation, etc… 2. Community organizers who were present at the shows were most enthusiastic about the community response. Lily Shaw at Hamline Park said that the ethnic diversity at the show was higher than ever at 20% and she expressed interest for next year. Patti Schwartz has contacted me about the possibility of doing shows in the passive parks again next year with the possible addition of puppet workshops with the children ahead of time to enhance their understanding of puppetry. Eric Thompson of St. Paul Park and Recreation is also interested in repeating our project. My Survey Monkey evaluation was a bust for some reason, but I have contacted the organizers I worked with and they have expressed satisfaction with the outcomes of our tour. 3. The artists felt satisfied with the shows and how we performed. Performers and musicians actually improvised some new material that came out through interactions with the audience or the particular location which keeps the show fresh for all. We were gratified by audience response. 4. Our audiences average out at more than 50 in size for the 8 sites, but we did not manage to have every audience with 50 participants. Two of our shows had to be moved indoors because of rain, so we assume that we lost numbers because of people's assumption that the show was not taking place. Ofir Germanic, director at Conway Park was expecting up to 100 audience members, but moving it into the gym curtailed our numbers. He was disappointed. I was expecting to serve children and adults with little emphasis on teens, and that is who we served. Our audiences were diverse ethnically, and that was especially true in the three shows where Patti Schwartz organized bringing children from other rec centers, where our audiences were majority children of color. Though I did outreach on some of the list serves for hearing impaired people, and people with developmental disabilities, we had no one who required our ASL services (we had 2 shows interpreted), and only a few kids with developmental disabilities. We did have a few people in wheel chairs attend with no problems in accessibility. The written surveys indicate that 55% of our audience was seeing a puppet show for the first time. From our other evaluation that specifically targeted children, we found that we were playing to 44% first time viewers. All but 2 of our audience members reported being "very engaged" or "engaged."

Description of Funds
Source of Additional Funds

Other, local or private

Recipient Board Members
Shari Aronson, Heather Brands, Zaraawar Mistry, Paul Robinson, Katherine Werner
Project Manager
First Name
Margo
Last Name
McCreary
Organization Name
On Time Circus
Street Address
3617 Architect Ave
City
Minneapolis
State
MN
Zip Code
55418
Phone
(612) 735-7296
Email
mcc@earpop.com
Administered By
Administered by
Location

Griggs Midway Building, Suite 304,
540 Fairview Avenue North,
St. Paul, MN 55104

Phone
(651) 539-2650 or toll-free (800) 866-2787
Email the Agency
Location

PO Box 14106
Saint Paul, Minnesota 55114 

Phone
Project Manager: Kathy Mouacheupao
651-645-0402
Email the Agency