The Old Globe Receives Creative Forces® Community Engagement Grant

The Old Globe to Receive a $50,000
Creative Forces® Community Engagement Grant
Activities will Support Military, Veterans, their Families and Caregivers

SAN DIEGO (June 22, 2022) — The Old Globe is pleased to announce that it’s been selected as one of 26 organizations nationwide to receive a Creative Forces® Community Engagement grant. A grant of $50,000 will support The Old Globe/Veterans Village Theatre Initiatives, a series of six year-round theatre-based programs for residents of Veterans Village of San Diego: Community Voices, coLAB, Globe for All, Behind the Curtain, the Veterans Technical Center Apprenticeship, and free tickets to Globe shows. The Old Globe/Veterans Village Theatre Initiatives help veterans express themselves creatively, build social networks, and improve their employment outcomes. In order to meet participants’ needs and goals at any stage of their recovery, each program sets different expectations for the length and depth of participant commitment. Creative Forces Community Engagement Grants are part of the National Endowment for the Arts’ Creative Forces® initiative and are in partnership with Mid-America Arts Alliance.

Creative Forces®: NEA Military Healing Arts Network is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs that seeks to improve the health, well-being, and quality of life for military and veteran populations exposed to trauma, as well as their families and caregivers. Creative Forces Community Engagement grants will increase access to arts activities in more communities and will serve a broad population, including active-duty service members, guardsmen, reservists, veterans, military, and veteran families, as well as caregivers and healthcare workers providing care for military service members and veterans.

“It is inspiring to see how arts programming is being utilized by The Old Globe to support and promote healing for our nation’s military, veterans, and all those who care for them,” said Dr. Maria Rosario Jackson, chair of the National Endowment for the Arts. “Engagement with the arts— the act of doing, seeing, creating, teaching—is crucial to living healthy and artful lives. The expansion of Creative Forces from clinical sites into communities like Veterans Village San Diego provides significant opportunities for this critical work to reach more people and make a difference in their lives.”

“We are extremely grateful to the National Endowment for the Arts and Mid-America Arts Alliance for the generous Creative Forces® Community Engagement grant and for their passionate commitment to heal our military veterans through the power of the Arts,” said Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein. “I’m elated that we will deepen our continuing relationship with our community partner Veterans Village of San Diego by providing additional programs through The Old Globe/Veterans Village Theatre Initiatives. The military is a big community in San Diego, but its veterans are often underserved. These vital funds will aid the Globe’s ongoing mission to make theatre matter and make the artform available to all.”

The Globe’s long-standing partnership with Veterans Village of San Diego, a nationally recognized leader in serving vulnerable military veterans, recognizes that a collaborative, holistic approach is needed to support veterans transitioning back to civilian life, especially those experiencing homelessness, PTSD, or addiction. Globe programs are included in Veterans Village of San Diego’s wrap-around services which cover emergency housing on its campus; mental health services through the on-campus Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic; rehabilitative care at the Veterans Rehabilitation Center; and legal support, employment opportunities, and therapeutic and wellness programs for more than 3,000 veterans annually. Globe programs are available to any resident of Veterans Village of San Diego. Because Veterans Village of San Diego’s residents are in different stages of recovery and transition, the Globe offers a range of flexible programming that offers multiple entry points and levels of engagement throughout the year.

The Old Globe/Veterans Village Theatre Initiatives utilize the uniquely therapeutic possibilities of theatre to improve veterans’ well-being. The Globe’s participatory programs engage residents in learning about and experiencing plays through interactive and creative activities that draw from their own lives, helping them resolve challenging issues they face. The theatre’s training and apprenticeship programs build veterans’ job skills, engage them with social and professional networks, and offer career opportunities. As a whole, the Globe’s programs improve participants’ creative self-expression; strengthen community ties and reduce social isolation; increase resilience and self-confidence; and improve employment outcomes.

Todd Stein, President and CEO of Mid-America Arts Alliance, said “we are excited to support this project with The Old Globe to promote continued healing through the arts for military populations in communities across the country. The art experiences offered show how art can connect and heal.” He added, “Through the Creative Forces Community Engagement Grant Program, we are humbled to have the opportunity to work on this initiative with the National Endowment for the Arts, created in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs.”

For more information on other projects included in this grant announcement as well as resources for arts engagement with military-connected populations, visit creativeforcesnrc.arts.gov.

About The Old Globe

The Tony Award–winning The Old Globe is one of the country’s leading professional not-for-profit regional theatres. Now in its 87th year, the Globe is San Diego’s flagship performing arts institution, and it serves a vibrant community with theatre as a public good. Under the leadership of Erna Finci Viterbi Artistic Director Barry Edelstein and the Audrey S. Geisel Managing Director Timothy J. Shields, The Old Globe produces a year-round season of 16 productions of classic, contemporary, and new works on its three Balboa Park stages, including its internationally renowned Shakespeare Festival. More than 250,000 people annually attend Globe productions and participate in the theatre’s artistic and arts engagement programs. Its nationally prominent Arts Engagement Department provides an array of participatory programs that make theatre matter to more people in neighborhoods throughout the region. Humanities programs at the Globe and around the city broaden the community’s understanding of theatre art in all its forms. The Globe also boasts a range of new play development programs with professional and community-based writers, as well as the renowned The Old Globe and University of San Diego Shiley Graduate Theatre Program. Numerous world premieres—such as 2014 Tony Award winner for Best Musical A Gentleman’s Guide to Love and Murder, Bright Star, The Full Monty, Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, and Dr. Seuss’s How the Grinch Stole Christmas!—have been developed at The Old Globe and have gone on to highly successful runs on Broadway and at regional theatres across the country.

The Theodor and Audrey Geisel Fund provides leadership support for The Old Globe’s year-round activities. Financial support is provided by The City of San Diego.

About the Creative Forces Initiative

Creative Forces®: NEA Military Healing Arts Network is an initiative of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with the U.S. Departments of Defense and Veterans Affairs. The initiative seeks to improve the health, well-being, and quality of life for military and veteran populations exposed to trauma, as well as their families and caregivers. Creative Forces is managed in partnership with Americans for the Arts, the Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, and Mid-America Arts Alliance. More information can be found at arts.gov/creativeforces and creativeforcesnrc.arts.gov

About the National Endowment for the Arts

Established by Congress in 1965, the National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that is the largest funder of the arts and arts education in communities nationwide and a catalyst of public and private support for the arts. By advancing equitable opportunities for arts participation and practice, the NEA fosters and sustains an environment in which the arts benefit everyone in the United States. To learn more, visit arts.gov or follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.

About Mid-America Arts Alliance

Mid-America Arts Alliance (M-AAA) strengthens and supports artists, cultural organizations, and communities throughout our region and beyond. Additional information about M-AAA is available at https://www.maaa.org/.

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