The National Endowment for the Arts is offering the American Masterpieces: Presenting grant to support high-quality multidisciplinary arts presentations celebrating American artistic genius.

• Meet the Arts Endowment’s "Legal Requirements," including nonprofit, tax-exempt status, as detailed in the FY 2010 Grants for Arts Projects guidelines, at the time of application.
• Have a three-year history of programming that includes presenting activity prior to the application deadline.
• Have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all Arts Endowment award(s) previously received.

For projects that involve multiple organizations, one organization that meets the eligibility requirements above must act as the official applicant, submit the application, and assume full responsibility for the grant.

Organizations are limited to one American Masterpieces: Presenting application per year.

An application in response to this announcement does not preclude an organization from applying under other Arts Endowment funding opportunities including Grants for Arts Projects. In each case, the request must be for a distinctly different project. There also should be no overlapping project costs with other federally sponsored projects such as NEA Jazz Masters Live.

The designated fifty state and six jurisdictional arts agencies (SAAs) and their regional arts organizations (RAOs) are not eligible to apply under the American Masterpieces: Presenting guidelines.

American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius is a major initiative to acquaint Americans with the best of their cultural and artistic legacy. Through American Masterpieces, the National Endowment for the Arts will sponsor performances, exhibitions, tours, and educational programs across all art forms that will reach large and small communities in all 50 states.

This component of American Masterpieces will celebrate the extraordinary and rich contribution that presenting organizations make in American communities. Through American Masterpieces: Presenting, presentations of the performing, visual, media, design, and literary arts of the highest quality will be experienced by Americans in communities across the nation.

This category is for projects that embrace multiple arts disciplines. Projects must consist of either a single multidisciplinary project or a multidisciplinary series comprised of several different single-discipline presentations. Projects with components that primarily feature or support a single discipline (e.g., dance, music, musical theater, opera, visual arts) will not be considered. If you have questions as to whether your project qualifies as multidisciplinary, consult with the Presenting staff before preparing an application.

Presenting organizations of all sizes, genres, and aesthetics are encouraged to apply. Projects may be initiated by:

• Networks of presenters.
• College or university presenters.
• Local, regional, or national presenters.
• National service organizations and their networks.

The Arts Endowment plans to support a variety of multidisciplinary presentations that are artistically, historically, and culturally significant and that reflect the full breadth of genres. Presenters may define master artists or masterworks within their own context, community vision, or goals.

Projects or series may focus on but are not limited to:

• Masterpieces from the American classical canon.
• Revivals, reconstructions, or restagings of collaborations of master artists.
• Revivals, reconstructions, or restagings of works by master artists.
• Masterworks of historical or cultural significance.
• Masterworks representing newer works or art forms.
• Lesser known masterworks or works by master artists unique to the nation, region, or community.

Commissions and new works are not eligible.

Projects must be accompanied by related educational, interpretive, or contextual components. These may include discussions, master classes, seminars, exhibitions, program material, or cooperative learning projects with educational or community institutions. Curriculum-based educational components for children and youth must ensure the application of national or state arts education standards.