The Center for Arts in Natick Receives Performing Arts Grant

Boston – Representative David Linsky (D-Natick) announced today that the Mass Cultural Council has awarded Natick’s Center for Arts $72,400 in grant funding from the FY23 Gaming Mitigation Grant. The Gaming Mitigation program was created in the Expanded Gaming Act and is funded by 2% of casino state tax revenues. As established, this program aims to mitigate a direct threat to the sustainability of non-profit and municipal performing arts centers in Massachusetts by providing capital to preserve their ability to compete with resort-style casinos to secure touring artists. In total, 43 performing arts centers across the Commonwealth have received $3.7 million in funding this round.

“These funds provide capital to preserve local preforming arts centers, like Center for Arts in Natick” said Representative Linsky. “I want to thank the Mass Cultural Council for awarding the town of Natick with this grant that will help protect non-profit and municipal performing art centers.”

Resort-style casinos have the advantage when booking national and international talent because they can cover increasing talent fees, as well as offer luxury housing for the artists themselves. In recent years, nonprofit and municipal performing arts centers have been priced out of the touring market, even with acts they have hosted many times before. This was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which had a tremendous impact on the arts and culture sector in Massachusetts.

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