Arts Midwest

Arts Midwest promotes creativity, nurtures cultural leadership, and engages people in meaningful arts experiences, bringing vitality to Midwest communities and enriching people’s lives.

From school workshops, to professional theater performances, to workshops for arts leaders, our programs support and engage the entire arts community throughout our region and the world.

One of our flagship programs, Arts Midwest World Fest, connects small and mid-sized Midwestern communities to world cultures through week-long residencies with global performers. Through this program we offer high-quality arts experiences, educational materials, and social opportunities that stimulate creativity and cultural understanding, break down barriers, and encourage appreciation for diversity.

Participating artists conduct intensive residencies in each community which include educational workshops for K-12 students; outreach activities for youth, adults, and seniors; and public performances.

Karen Wagner, a teacher at Carlos Elementary in Alexandria, Minnesota, and participant in the program, remarked:

"What a phenomenal program for our students!!! My first grade class can’t stop talking about [Beauty and Melody]… we love to go to their website and listen to the various instruments that we were able to see and hear. We have also done multiple writing assignments in connection with the program... Thank you for giving our kids and community this cultural opportunity!!!”

Arts Midwest also serves audiences and communities across the Midwest, nation, and the world through:

• The Performing Arts Fund, a program that encourages performing arts touring by providing financial support to arts presenting organizations in the Midwest

• The Midwest Arts Conference, the preeminent annual booking & educational conference for the Midwest performing arts industry

• Caravanserai: A place where cultures meet, a series of community-based performing and media arts programs featuring artists and art forms from Muslim cultures

• Touring visual arts exhibitions, such as Identity and the American Landscape: The Photography of Wing Young Huie

• A series of national initiatives managed on behalf of the National Endowment for the Arts, including Shakespeare in American Communities, The Big Read, and NEA Jazz Masters Live.