A Noise Within (ANW), Los Angeles' critically acclaimed classical repertory theatre company, has received a $1 million "Patron To Patron" challenge, a $200,000 Eisner Foundation grant and a $500,000 Ahmanson Foundation grant during the last six weeks for its new theatre under construction in Pasadena, announced Board of Directors President Terry Kay. As the company enters the "home stretch" of its $13.3 million capital campaign, having reached the $11 million mark, it is now offering "Hard Hat Sunday" public tours of the construction site on the second Sunday of every month, Kay added. Additionally, A Noise Within was recently honored with a top Four Star "Exceptional" rating from Charity Navigator, an independent, non-profit organization that evaluates the financial health of American fund-raising organizations. ANW's new state-of-the-art 33,000-square-foot facility, set for completion in fall 2011 for the company's 20th Anniversary Season, is intended to broaden artistic possibilities, offer a greater scope of educational opportunities, meet ticket demand and allow A Noise Within to expand its role as a leader in the presentation and preservation of classical theatre.
The $1 million "Patron To Patron" challenge, effective immediately, has been made by a long-time ANW supporter in Pasadena (who prefers to remain anonymous) to match donations dollar for dollar up to $1 million. "This extraordinarily generous matching gift translates to $2 million in total because every donation from this point forward is doubled in value," said Kay. "The new theatre belongs to all of us in the greater community, and gifts at every level matter and will make a difference. We invite support from donors who've already contributed as well as from those who haven't yet given, from everyone who cares deeply about preserving the classics not only for adult audiences but also for the more than 20,000 students - mostly underserved - who will come to the new facility each year and see great classical theatre, many for the first times in their lives."
The Eisner Foundation's $200,000 grant is committed to capital support for the theatre and the Learning Center and Resource Library for teachers and students in the new facility. According to Michael D. Eisner, founder of The Eisner Foundation, "We believe strongly in high quality arts education and in seeking out excellence in the organizations in which we invest. In A Noise Within, we believe we've found a group that embodies both characteristics."
The $500,000 grant from The Ahmanson Foundation comes in addition to a $2 million lead gift donated by the foundation in 2007 after the capital campaign began. These new funds will be allocated to construction costs.
William Howard Ahmanson, president, The Ahmanson Foundation, noted, "The Ahmanson Foundation is committed to community building - not just building facilities, but building the fiber of the community itself, its culture, its education, and its social fabric. We are pleased to support A Noise Within's creation of a permanent home for classical theatre, as well as much needed arts education for young people."
The "Hard Hat Sundays" program, featuring public tours of the Pasadena construction site, was developed in response to overwhelming enthusiasm for the project from ANW donors, subscribers, neighbors and the community at large. "'Hard Hat Sundays' is also designed to emphasize that the new theatre is truly for the entire community, not just the company's artists and current base of donors and subscribers," note Co-Founders/Co-Artistic Directors Geoff Elliott and Julia Rodriguez-Elliott. Elliott and/or Rodriguez-Elliott will be available at these tours along with ANW board members to meet with guests on Sunday, November 14; Sunday, December 12; and Sunday, January 9; 4 to 5 pm, with additional dates in 2011 to be announced. Refreshments will be served. For free reservations (required), contact donors@anoisewithin.org or call 818-265-7959.
The Charity Navigator rating, the highest possible, was issued in October for sound and efficient fiscal management, indicating that A Noise Within executes its mission in a fiscally responsible manner and outperforms most other charities in America.
"We are extremely grateful for the support of our anonymous 'Patron to Patron' challenge 'Angel,' The Eisner Foundation and The Ahmanson Foundation at this critical stage of our fundraising efforts," said Kay. "As the momentum and excitement for A Noise Within's permanent new home in Pasadena continue to grow, these contributions are of utmost importance in helping to attract additional donors to reach our $13.3 million goal. It is also an honor to be recognized by Charity Navigator as part of an elite group of non-profit organizations to earn a four-star rating for stringent fiscal practices, ensuring donors and foundations that they can be confident their contributions are well managed. And, of course, we recognize and thank every individual, corporation and foundation that has supported A Noise Within since the capital campaign began four years ago."
Observing the construction recently, Elliott observed, "We are literally watching a 19-going-on-20-year dream turn into reality," and Rodriguez-Elliott added, "A permanent home for A Noise Within ensures that the unique blend of classic theatre that we do will be here for adults and students for generations to come." [See video here: http://tinyurl.com/2e3e8a6]
A Noise Within's new facility, which broke ground in July, is located in a Pasadena mixed-use development at the corner of Foothill Boulevard and Sierra Madre Villa Avenue. The theatre, hailed as an anchor in East Pasadena's arts growth and located next to a Gold Line station, is being built in the former Stuart Pharmaceutical headquarters, a historic, mid-century modern masterpiece designed by celebrated architect Edward Durell Stone, known for landmark buildings around the country including
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, and Radio City Music Hall in New York. Constructed in the mid-1950s, the Stuart Pharmaceutical building was listed on the National Register in 1998.
Key gifts previously provided to the project to date in addition to The Ahmanson Foundation's lead gift have been from the Ajax Foundation; David Worrell and Jeff Allen, SMV Technology Partners, LLC (a gift of land); Elizabeth F. Redmond, ANW Board of Directors; The Ralph M. Parsons Foundation; Terry and Jeanie Kay; The
Rose Hills Foundation; the Weingart Foundation; and a member of ANW's board of directors who prefers to remain anonymous. Approximately 1,200 donations have been made to the capital campaign.
A Noise Within (ANW) is the only year-round classical repertory company in Southern California and one of only a handful in the entire country dedicated solely to producing classical dramatic literature in the repertory tradition of rotating productions with a resident company of professional artists. Led by Co-Founders and Co-Artistic Directors Geoff Elliott and Julia Rodriguez-Elliott, A Noise Within has been hailed by critics as "adventurous," "compelling and current," "ingenuity at work," "a bona fide class act," and "what great theatre is all about." Founded 19 seasons ago, ANW quickly established itself as one of the region's key theatre companies, attracting fiercely loyal audiences and consistently high praise from the media for its productions and as a leading force in arts education. The company has presented more than 120 plays from the classics of world literature, each season producing works from authors ranging from Shakespeare and Molière to Ibsen, O'Neill and Shaw to Miller and Williams. ANW's consistent dedication to quality has been rewarded with more than two dozen Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle Awards as well as numerous LA Weekly and Backstage Garland awards.
For more information on A Noise Within, to make a donation or for reservations for "Hard Had Sundays," please call 818 265-7959 or visit www.ANoiseWithin.org.
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