The Neighbors Awarded $15k Grant From The National Endowment For The Arts

What Will the Neighbors Say? has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) for a Grants for Arts Projects award of $15,000. This grant will support the world premiere production of "At the Barricades" at MITU580 in June 2025. The NEA will award 1,127 Grants for Arts Projects awards nationwide totaling more than $31.8 million as part of the recent announcement of fiscal year 2025 grants. This is the Neighbors' third NEA grant, following two previous awards for their production of "TRACES" at CUNY Queens College in 2023.

"The NEA is proud to continue our nearly 60 years of supporting the efforts of organizations and artists that help to shape our country's vibrant arts sector and communities of all types across our nation," said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. "It is inspiring to see the wide range of creative projects taking place, including "At the Barricades" by the team at What Will the Neighbors Say?"

"At the Barricades" is a documentary theatre play about the international troops who fought fascism in the Spanish Civil War, which will enjoy its world premiere at MITU580 in June 2025. The project has been supported by the DCLA's Cultural Development Fund (CDF), the New York State Council on the Arts and the Brooklyn Arts Council, and the creative team is currently in residence at NYU's Espacio de Culturas at KJCC. Partners include the Abraham Lincoln Brigade Archives (ALBA), the NYU Tamiment Labor Archives and the NYU Production Lab.

Co-Artistic Director James Clements stated, "[W]e are thrilled to have the support of Dr. Jackson and the National Endowment for the Arts behind this challenging and prescient project, more relevant than ever in our current moment." Sam Hood Adrain added "[W]e are proud to have been recognised once again by the NEA, and, with their support, are excited to share this project with audiences in 2025."

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 opportunities for arts participation and practice, the NEA fosters and sustains an environment in which the arts benefit everyone in the United States.For more information on other projects included in the NEA's grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

What Will the Neighbors Say? is an investigative theatre company that provokes questions through untold stories. Led by a collaborative cohort of International Artists, the Neighbors present overlooked social, cultural and historical narratives that challenge the audience to reflect on the current moment. Through a combination of original plays, arts education workshops and dynamic community gatherings, the troupe incites rowdy and rigorous debate at the theatre and throughout the Neighborhood.