West Orange Theater Earns National Endowment For Arts Grant

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Luna Stage in West Orange recently earned a $10,000 Art Works grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for its upcoming work, “Secret Cities: Voting Writes,” a series of plays and songs investigating the roots of voter apathy, marginalization and activism.

The project is created in partnership with the Andrew Goodman Foundation, a nationwide philanthropic group dedicated to promoting voting rights and encouraging civic participation.

Grant funds will help Luna State pay the artists involved in the project, the theater group stated.

Luna Stage launched its “Secret Cities” initiative in 2018, commissioning playwrights and musicians to create work based on oral histories. “Voting Writes” is Luna’s fourth and largest Secret Cities project, and its first collaboration with a partner organization.

According to Luna State, in the wake of COVID-19, it will be altering plans for “Voting Writes” to ensure artist and audience safety. Originally planned to take place on Luna’s stages and in community centers, the program will now be presented both virtually and in person.

Virtual offerings include four short plays written for online performance and three scripted interactive Zoom performances. These Zoom experiences will focus on voting by mail and voter engagement, featuring a “town hall” with a mock candidate. Luna will also release four original songs on its website in conjunction with the project, including one written specifically for community sing-along.

Audiences will also be able to attend an outdoor drive-by live performance, with attendees on foot or in vehicles. Voter registration opportunities and make-a-plan-to-vote strategies will be offered in conjunction with the events, currently scheduled for September.

"We are deeply grateful to the NEA for their support at this pivotal time in our country's history," Luna Stage Artistic Director Ari Laura Kreith said. "Voting Writes explores voter suppression and suffrage through history, examines experiences of apathy and activation in this present moment, and celebrates the power of the individual voter to impact our electoral process and indeed democracy itself. "

"It is our fervent hope that this interactive, virtual and site-specific experience will inspire civic engagement, and ensure that every voice is heard and counted," Kreith said.

Find more information about Voting Writes and Luna Stage here.

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