Power of Culture Blog
New Cultural Districts Designated in Holyoke, Watertown & Westfield
There are now 58 state-designated cultural districts across the Commonwealth
Timothea Pham, Program Officer
Spring is in bloom and the upcoming warm summer months welcome opportunities to celebrate new, vibrant festivals across the Commonwealth. Congratulations to the recipients of our FY22 Spring/Summer Festivals grants. Mass Cultural Council is pleased to support 181 festivals with grants of $1,500 each, for a total amount of $271,500.
We are thrilled to see many first-time applicants and new festival ideas emerge in communities. At the start of this fiscal year, the Agency increased the grant amount from $500 to $1,500 per festival. In this round, of the 244 applications received, 55% are new applicants to the program. Of the 183 grantees, 57% are first-time Festival grant recipients. The increased grant amount, support from the Agency’s BIPOC Outreach Coordinators, and the work of the Local Cultural Council network have all contributed tremendously to the success of this cycle.
Our Festivals Program is designed to help festival programmers meet the needs of producing, promoting, and developing sustainable audiences. Overall, the program has funded over 320 festivals across the state, including 99 in the Fall/Winter of this fiscal year.
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