Creative Support for Organizations-Round 1

Project Details by Fiscal Year
2022 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$25,000
Fund Source
Arts & Cultural Heritage Fund
Recipient
Illusion Theater and School, Inc. AKA Illusion Theater
Recipient Type
Non-Profit Business/Entity
Status
Completed
Start Date
March 2022
End Date
June 2023
Activity Type
Grants/Contracts
Counties Affected
Carver
Cass
Crow Wing
Hennepin
Ramsey
Scott
Washington
Watonwan
Carver
Cass
Crow Wing
Hennepin
Ramsey
Scott
Washington
Watonwan
Project Overview

Creative Support for Organizations-Round 1

Project Details

Illusion Theater and School will collaborate with fifteen or more schools and community organizations throughout Minnesota to provide diverse, underserved youth and adults with high quality arts education and access to arts based activities of the highest quality.

Competitive Grant Making Body
Board Members and Qualifications

Peggy Burnet: entrepreneur, art collector, and community volunteer; Uri Camarena: director of business consulting with Metroplitan Economic Development Association (MEDA); Michael Charron: arts educator and an arts and civic leader; Richard Cohen: attorney in private practice and a former state legislator; Sean Dowse: arts advocate, arts practitioner, and civic leader; Emily Galusha, arts and civic leader, former arts administrator; Anthony Gardner: vice president, marketing and communications at CentraCare; Philip McKenzie: team lead with Boutique Air, founder and owner of Bluedoor 74, adjunct college faculty; Mary McReynolds-Pellinen: executive director, Lyric Center for the Arts; Dobson West: retired attorney; Christina Widdess: nonprofit consultant; former managing director, Penumbra Theatre

Advisory Group Members and Qualifications

Lyndel King: King has a PhD in art history and 40 years of museum experience. She has an undergraduate degree in microbiology and worked as a chemist and virology researcher. King worked with architect Frank Gehry to build a new facility for the Weisman Art Museum that opened in 1993 and an expansion in 2011. Prior to her work at the University, she worked as director of exhibitions and museum programs for Control Data Corporation and as exhibition coordinator at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. King served three terms on the board of trustees of the Association of Art Museum Directors, as cochair of the Association of Academic Museums and Galleries committee for the protection of university collections, and two terms as a trustee and as vice president for the American Alliance of Museums (AAM). In 2020, King was awarded one of AAM?S highest honors, the Award for Distinguished Service to Museums. She has also served on several nonprofit cultural organization boards in Minnesota, currently serving on the board of International Council of Museums-United States.; Jessica Lamphere: Lamphere is a visual artist, mentor, and group organizer. Previously working with Key 4/4 Kids, she and her mentee placed their piece of art at the Minnesota Children?s Museum. She has also volunteered with Hands Across the World and the Art League of Ocean City Center for the Arts. Using art as a way to communicate with refugees and children, Lamphere loves to teach and volunteer.; Kathleen Peterson: Peterson is a published novelist and playwright, and a retired arts administrator in Winona with an MA in English literature and language. She has written grant proposals for Winona State University. Her administrative career has encompassed the health care and financial industries. She served as board member and chair of several regional nonprofit organizations in southeast Minnesota. For several years, she was a grant review panelist for the Southeastearn Minnesota Arts Council and is currently on the executive board of the Winona Community Foundation.; Morgen Ruff: Ruff is a freelance film programmer and cinema operations specialist. From 2012 to 2020, he was lead programmer and exhibition program manager at the Northwest Film Center & Portland International Film Festival in Portland, OR, where he programmed contemporary cinema, classics, and experimental film while collaborating with a wide array of community groups and like minded arts organizations. Ruff holds a BA in film studies and philosophy from Portland State University.; Ann Schwartz: Schwartz is a nonprofit director, writer, artist, blogger, and photographer. She is involved in the community and volunteers on the exhibit committee at the Jaques Art Center. She has a bachelor's degree in mass communications and graphic design. She has also judged many art and writing contests.; Sarah Warren: Warren graduated from the Loft Literary Center?s Master Track program. A former preschool teacher and Minnesota Reading Corps tutor, Warren currently connects with scholars across the country as an artist educator. She is an author of picture books; Dolores Huerta: A Hero to Migrant Workers was picked for the 2013 Amelia Bloomer Top Ten Book List and awarded a Jane Addams Peace Association Children?s Book Award honor. Warren has served as a panelist for the Arts Board and the Kate Dopirak Craft and Community Award.

Conflict of Interest Disclosed
No
Legal Citation / Subdivision
Laws of Minnesota 2021, First Special Session, chapter 1, article 4, section 2, subdivision 3
Appropriation Language

ACHF Arts Education

2022 Fiscal Year Funding Amount
$25,000
Other Funds Leveraged
$0
Direct expenses
$25,000
Administration costs
$1,500
Number of full time equivalents funded
0.00
Proposed Measurable Outcome(s)

Minnesota youth and adults will maintain their access to the arts via Illusion Theater's arts education, Peer Education, community and theater programs. We will track the number of:

*Schools and youth in our arts and peer ed programs
*Audience members fro our theater work
*Community programs and their participants

We will use written and oral surveys to track participant satisfaction in these pro

Measurable Outcome(s)

Illusion used its arts education and arts access programs to remain connected with schools, youth and adults in the Twin Cities and greater Minnesota. We know we achieved proposed outcomes based on tracking the number of youth engaged in arts education, as well as adults and youth engaged thru arts access activities. We tracked program satisfaction via social media feedback and/or formal surveys.

Proposed Outcomes Achieved
Achieved proposed outcomes.
Recipient Board Members
Stan Alleyne, John Beal, Anthony Bohaty, Willie Bridges, Barbara Brin, Lisa Cotter, Dani P. Deering, Pat Dunleavy, Keith Halperin, Catherine Ahlin-Halverson, Tim Johnson, Lori Liss, Maureen Long, Christopher Madel, Vivian Martin, Bonnie Morris, Emily Palmer, Jeffrey Rabkin, Michael Robins, Santiago Strasser, Rebecca Schiller, Susan Shapiro, Tracy M. Smith, Robin Stein, Susan Thurston Hamerski, Samantha Westmeyer, Christopher Wurtz
Project Manager
First Name
Michael
Last Name
Robins
Organization Name
Illusion Theater and School, Inc. AKA Illusion Theater
Street Address
528 Hennepin Ave Ste 704
City
Minneapolis
State
MN
Zip Code
55403-1814
Phone
(612) 339-4944x 208
Email
mrobins@illusiontheater.org
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