National Performance Network

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National Performance Network As an artist-centered, field-generated network, the National Performance Network is unique in its structure.

The National Performance Network (NPN) supports artists in the creation and touring of new work, and advances racial and cultural justice in the arts presenting field. Its active and engaged network of presenters form an interconnected web or relationships through which support and services are strategically designed, effectively distributed, and successfully leveraged.

Each month, NPN’s staff and board engage with a reading that deepens our understanding of how to embed liberatory practi...
10/13/2026

Each month, NPN’s staff and board engage with a reading that deepens our understanding of how to embed liberatory practices throughout our work. Our latest reading, “Y’all Stopped Saying Black. How’s That Working For You?” by New Orleans-based artist and organizer Lauren Turner Hines is an examination of the suppression of language in philanthropy as an expression of authoritarian control.

Join us in this reading: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/yall-stopped-saying-black-hows-working-you-lauren-turner-hines-ezvpc/

The Collective Learning Series is organized by NPN’s Department of Racial Justice and Movement Building (DRJaM). ⁠

⁠Pictured: Lauren Turner Hines.

After over 15 years of support for artist-led, ensemble, and devised theater work, New England Foundation for the Arts’ ...
10/06/2026

After over 15 years of support for artist-led, ensemble, and devised theater work, New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Theater Project (NTP) has awarded its Sunset Grants. In an experiment with community grantmaking, NTP asked their family of artists and Advisors to nominate grantees to receive unrestricted $9,000 grants. Among the 60 recipients are 16 NPN-supported artists and organizations. Congratulations to all!

Learn more about NTP's Sunset Grants and to see the full list of grantees:
https://www.nefa.org/news/national-theater-project-awards-540k-artists-ensembles-and-community-partners

Mondo Bizarro Productions (New Orleans, LA)
paris cian (New Orleans, LA)
Dahlak Brathwaite (Brooklyn, NY)
Martha Redbone (Brooklyn, NY)
Junebug Productions (New Orleans, LA)
Clear Creek Creative (Bighill, KY)
Ty Defoe (Brooklyn, NY)
The Civilians (Brooklyn, NY)
TeAda Productions (Los Angeles, CA & Micronesia)
Teo Castellanos D-PROJECTS (Miami, FL)
Daniel Banks/DNAWORKS (New York, NY)
Rudi Goblen (North Hollywood, CA)
Arab American National Museum (Dearborn, MI)
Pangea World Theater (Minneapolis, MN)
Bunnell Street Arts Center (Homer, AK)
Live Arts Miami (Miami, FL)

“How do we build new systems that create value for the community and provide space, respect, and income for artists?” Th...
10/01/2026

“How do we build new systems that create value for the community and provide space, respect, and income for artists?”

That was one of many questions artists expressed and explored earlier this month at the “Creative Labor, Creative Conditions: Artist Oasis” workshop, hosted by NPN in partnership with the Doris Duke Foundation Doris Duke Foundation and Artists U (Andrew Simonet and Michaela Pilar Brown Michaela Pilar Brown), and held at CANOA’s Canoa New Orleans event space in New Orleans.

Grounded in the frameworks of artists’ labor and artists’ care, the convening brought together Southern artists to engage in invigorating peer-to-peer conversations, personal sharing and collective learning on sustaining artistic practices, prioritizing self-care and health, and navigating the balance of time and labor.

Arts organizations of color and rural arts organizations experience disproportionate systemic devaluing, divestment, and...
09/29/2026

Arts organizations of color and rural arts organizations experience disproportionate systemic devaluing, divestment, and undercapitalization. Card 4 of the Mixed Metaphor Liberatory Learning Deck, “Detoxify Systems of Oppression,” addresses how arts organizations can dismantle white supremacy culture and racial capitalism while building new pathways to equity.

Explore the full Mixed Metaphor Learning Deck and its companion, the Mixed Metaphor Workbook: https://npnweb.org/field/resources/lane/mixedmetaphor/learning-deck/

Pictured: Card 4 of the Mixed Metaphor Liberatory Learning Deck, “Detoxify Systems of Oppression”

Today we announced that Sage Crump and Caitlin Strokosch will lead our organization as Co-Executive Directors, marking a...
09/28/2026

Today we announced that Sage Crump and Caitlin Strokosch will lead our organization as Co-Executive Directors, marking a new chapter for National Performance Network. The co-leadership model recognizes the complexity of the moment facing artists and cultural organizations and reflects our longstanding commitment to collective responsibility and cultural power.

For full press release: https://npnweb.org/sage-crump-and-caitlin-strokosch-co-executive-directors/

Pictured: Caitlin Strokosch (left) and Sage Crump (right), NPN’s new Co-Executive Directors. Photo by Daniel Pruksarnukul.

Miles Labat is a filmmaker and musician from New Orleans, LA. In his Take Notice Fund interview, Miles talks about his e...
09/22/2026

Miles Labat is a filmmaker and musician from New Orleans, LA. In his Take Notice Fund interview, Miles talks about his early exposure to great films, why every filmmaker should read good books, and his previous career as a touring jazz musician. “Every great art has an inner melody,” Miles says. “I think every art at its core, whether it’s painting, singing, dance, film, I think if it’s done really well, it’s as close to music as it can get.”

Read the full interview on our Voices from the Network blog: https://npnweb.org/an-interview-with-miles-labat/

Pictured: Miles Labat

Each month, NPN’s staff and board engage with a reading that deepens our understanding of how to embed liberatory practi...
09/22/2026

Each month, NPN’s staff and board engage with a reading that deepens our understanding of how to embed liberatory practices throughout our work. Our latest reading, “When to Talk and When to Fight” by Rebecca Subar and published by PM Press, gives us a model for “talking across the modalities of negotiation and resistance.”

Join us in this reading: ⁠https://commonslibrary.org/when-to-talk-and-when-to-fight-the-strategic-choice-between-dialogue-and-resistance/
⁠
The Collective Learning Series is organized by NPN’s Department of Racial Justice and Movement Building (DRJaM). ⁠
⁠
Pictured: Rebecca Subar with her book, "When to Talk and When to Fight: The Strategic Choice between Dialogue and Resistance"

“UNDOXX: Artists Untangle Censorship!” is a podcast miniseries that explores how to safeguard freedom of expression thro...
09/15/2026

“UNDOXX: Artists Untangle Censorship!” is a podcast miniseries that explores how to safeguard freedom of expression through collective action in an era of risk and surveillance. Co-created by artists and activists zavé martohardjono, maura nguyễn donohue, Maya Simone Z, and Yanira Castro, the series is a part of Hope Mohr’s podcast “the body is the brain.” Castro and Mohr have both been part of NPN’s network as artists, commissioners, and colleagues, and the miniseries represents the contributors’ deep practices at the intersections of art and social change.

Listen to UNDOXX: Artists Untangle Censorship! episodes: https://www.podpage.com/thebodyisthebrain/

Design justice breaks down the hierarchies that white supremacy creates about knowledge and expertise. It reminds design...
09/08/2026

Design justice breaks down the hierarchies that white supremacy creates about knowledge and expertise. It reminds designers and consultants to find pathways that align with how people are already moving forward, then build from there through co-creation and shared leadership. The “Design Justice” section of the Mixed Metaphor Workbook (pages 62-65) offers resources and reflections to support your exploration of design justice.

Explore the Mixed Metaphor Workbook and its companion, the Mixed Metaphor Learning Deck: https://npnweb.org/field/resources/lane/mixedmetaphor
⁠
Pictured: The “Design Justice” section of the Mixed Metaphor Workbook.

Geeta Dave is a painter from Prairieville, LA, whose work incorporates the wildlife and culture of her childhood in Indi...
09/01/2026

Geeta Dave is a painter from Prairieville, LA, whose work incorporates the wildlife and culture of her childhood in India. In her Take Notice Fund interview, Geeta talks about growing up surrounded by animals, how she was drawn to art from an early age, and the evolution of her artistic career after she moved to the United States. "I don’t want to lose my Indian touch," Geeta says. "My question is how can I incorporate it? That is a wonderful, but challenging, opportunity.”

Read the full interview on our Voices from the Network blog: https://npnweb.org/an-interview-with-geeta-dave⁠

Pictured: Geeta Dave with one of her paintings.

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70118

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