Valhalla Arts, Music, and Theatre Festival Receives Federal Economic Stimulus Funding

The Tahoe Tallac Association has received word that it is a recipient of a Nevada Arts Council’s “Save Nevada Arts Projects” (SNAP) Grant to support the position of Festival Director for the 2009 Valhalla Arts, Music, and Theatre Festival. From a total of 61 applicants, SNAP Grants were awarded to 39 Nevada-based arts organizations. The funds were allocated to the National Endowment for the Arts as part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The NEA then distributed the funding to the states, awarding Nevada over $250,000.

Nevada Arts Council’s Executive Director Susan Boskoff said, “We are extremely pleased that Congress and the Obama Administration considered the arts as an essential national industry when creating the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009. The work of Nevada’s arts sector is critical to the health of the state’s communities, school and economy. We had a goal to distribute our stimulus funding to our partners in the arts workforce by the start of the new fiscal, and indeed, we met our goal.”

Grant applications were evaluated by a panel of current and past Nevada Arts Council Board Members during a day-long hearing. NAC Board Chair commented, “The SNAP applications revealed the remarkable breadth of arts and cultural programming the Arts Council grantees provide to communities throughout our state. The Arts Council Board certainly could have awarded funding many times over the amount available. In the end, we recognized those applicants that presented a clear and compelling case, and a commitment to employ these precious dollars judiciously.”

Tahoe Tallac Association Executive Director Steve Farnsley stated, “ARRA and NEA economic funding could not have come at a better time. Like businesses in general throughout Nevada and the nation, nonprofit organizations are facing challenging economic times with shrinking state-based grant funding available. We are pleased that TTA’s Valhalla Arts, Music, and Theatre Festival was selected to receive funding through the Nevada Arts Council to underwrite the crucial Festival Director position. This position is vital to our mission to promote Artistic Engagement, Cultural Enrichment, and Historic Preservation.”

Steve Farnsley is the executive director of the nonprofit Tahoe Tallac Association. The Tahoe Tallac Association was formed in 1979 as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization with the goal of assisting the Forest Service in restoring the three estates on the Tallac Historic Site, developing the site as a historic center, and sponsoring/producing the Valhalla Arts, Music, and Theatre Festival held annually on the Heller Estate of the Tallac Historic Site.