On Friday, May 2, the Trump Administration released its 2026 budget proposal to Congress, which included eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Humanities, and other smaller agencies. Trump also proposed a 13-percent increase to defense spending, totaling $1.01 trillion. By contrast, the NEA budget is just $207 million.
That same evening, not-for-profit theatres across the country received letters that stated the grants they had been previously scheduled to receive had been rescinded. The NEA funds projects across many disciplines including dance, theatre, visual arts, and film鈥攚ith grant funding ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. The agency had been expected to provide ; it is not yet clear how many theatres had their funding revoked.
In the form letter, which was consistent across the many theatres that received them, officials said that the agency was prioritizing projects that "reflect the nation's rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President. Consequently, we are terminating awards that fall outside these new priorities. The NEA will now prioritize projects that elevate the Nation's HBCUs and Hispanic Serving Institutions, celebrate the 250th anniversary of American independence, foster AI competency, empower houses of worship to serve communities, assist with disaster recovery, foster skilled trade jobs, make America healthy again, support the military and veterans, support Tribal communities, make the District of Columbia safe and beautiful, and support the economic development of Asian American communities. Funding is being allocated in a new direction in furtherance of the Administration's agenda."
This letter is in line with previous new NEA guidelines, which eliminated funding for projects that support diversity and gender expression (the latter requirement after four arts group sued the NEA).
But the elimination of grant funding that had previously been approved was met with shock by many theatres, which had depended on that money to help cover the cost of upcoming productions. Classical Theatre of Harlem, which provides free summer theatre productions in northern Manhattan, was set to receive $60,000 from the NEA for its upcoming production of Memnon in July. The loss of that grant puts the production, and the artists working on it, in jeopardy.
"This isn鈥檛 just a line item鈥攊t鈥檚 a devastating blow to the working artists, small businesses, and Harlem families who count on this production every year,鈥� said Ty Jones, Producing Artistic Director of The Classical Theatre of Harlem, in a statement. 鈥淭his is a fight for cultural equity, artistic freedom, and the soul of Uptown.鈥� The theatre, which serves around 30,000 audience members annually, is currently in the middle of an emergency fundraiser to fill the funding gap.
Classical Theatre were not the only theatre that sent an emergency fundraising appeal to their supporters over the weekend. HERE Arts Center, which operates an Off- and Off-Off Broadway space, was set to receive $75,000 from the NEA. In a letter to supporters, HERE leaders Annalisa Dias, Jesse Cameron Alick, Lanxing Fu, Lauren Miller said they intended to appeal the decision, while pointing out that this move to eliminate the NEA comes as Trump has taken over the Kennedy Center: "It鈥檚 not lost on us that these actions on NEA are just one minor tactic among an onslaught of anti-immigrant, racist, anti-indigenous, transphobic policy changes. All of this chaos is designed to distract us all from the important work we have to do together. We are artists and storytellers of building abundant futures, weaving powerful communities of care, and freeing our bodies, voices, and fugitive dreams to create the world we know we deserve. We will not abandon this mission." HERE is currently hosting a puppet festival: Puppetopia and in June, it will co-produce the Criminal Queerness Festival with National Queer Theater (another organization that has had its NEA grant revoked).
For many not-for-profit theatres, which work on modest budgets and is dependent on grant funding and donations to stay alive, the loss of NEA funding is a severe blow. Increased production costs and decreased grant revenue has made creating theatre a challenge the past few years.
Said the Public Theater in a : "This move is more than just a budget cut, it鈥檚 a blow to the heart of our cultural life. The loss of these grants will inflict real and lasting harm on arts organizations across the country, many of which are already struggling. But this isn鈥檛 just about funding. It鈥檚 a clear signal: an attempt to silence the voices of artists and to strip away the idea that art belongs to all of us, that it is a shared, public good at the core of our democracy." The Public was set to receive $35,000 for its free Shakespeare in the Park production this summer.
Trump previously proposed eliminating the NEA during his first term. But bipartisan support for the agency kept it running. So it will take a majority vote in Congress to eliminate the NEA and the other small agencies currently on the chopping block.
Actors' Equity Association also released a statement supporting the NEA, with Equity's executive director Al Vincent, Jr. saying in a statement: "The National Endowment for the Arts supports arts programs in every congressional district in the country, including many underserved rural communities. The economic value is huge鈥攚hen someone goes to see a live arts show, they generate another $38.46 in economic activity per show鈥攐ften spending at local restaurants, and on everything from parking to childcare. We will fight to protect this critical funding that generates a huge return on investment in local communities.鈥�
It's not just artists fighting. In its statement, the Public encouraged audience members to "raise our voices, write, call, and rally. We must remind our elected officials, whom we chose to represent us, that the arts matter. That the NEA matters."
