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Cultural Council

The Nahant Cultural Council (NCC) promotes excellence, education, diversity, and inclusion in the arts, humanities, and science by awarding grants funded by the Mass Cultural Council. Over the past few years, this funding has supported a variety of programs in Nahant, such as:

  • Art, Nature, Nahant: Celebrations of arts and crafts, music, poetry, and dance
  • Ellingwood Chapel Concert Series
  • Christmas Concerts
  • Nahant Music Festivals
  • Forty Steps Dance
  • Bridging the Divide – Respectful Conversations, an initiative of the Nahant Village Church
  • Programs in collaboration with the Nahant Council on Aging, the Johnson School, the Nahant Historical Society, and the Nahant Library

The NCC awards grants based on review criteria. An applicant should be a Nahant resident or work with a sponsoring Nahant organization, such as the NCC, the Nahant Council on Aging, the Nahant Historical Society, etc. Applications open in early September, close in mid-October, and are announced by the NCC in mid-January. More information is available at: https://www.nahantarts.org/

Nahant Cultural Council Activities:

FY25 Grant Awards:

  • Nora Kory: Fairy Tales: Lullabies and Legends ($930) A chamber music concert featuring a mezzo-soprano, violist/violinist and pianist collaborating on classical/romantic chamber music by Brahms, Britten, Dowland and Schumann When: March 30, 2025
    • Johnson School: Dying and Weaving with Natural Fibers ($825)
      Students and staff, under the direction of the instructor, will collect plant parts from the Johnson School gardens that will be used to dye raw spun wool. They will dye the wool, soaking it for a period of 2 weeks, and then use it to create bracelets and woven squares.
      When: Spring, 2025
    • Nahant Public Library: Owls Up Close, a Live Owl Program ($750)
      Teacher and naturalist Marcia Wilson and author/photographer Mark Wilson will share their knowledge of owls up close. The show starts with an interactive reading of a big book version of “Owl Babies.” The magic continues when everybody sees each of 6 live owls up close, as they perch safely on Marcia’s glove close to the audience. And everyone gets to practice the owls’ calls during lively hooting lessons! The Wilsons highlight the owls’ unique adaptations, habitats and behaviors in the wild, while sharing tips on how you can find owls near you.
      When: April 22, 2025
    • David Sparr: Smack Dabs in Concert ($2150)
      The Smack Dabs, a 6 piece band specializing in the Chicago-style Swing and Blues of the 1930’s, will present a 2 hour concert for listening and dancing.
      When: April 13, 2025
    • The Delvena Theatre Company: Mangia, Meatballs and Murder ($795)
      An exciting, live comedy murder mystery performance, set in Luigi’s Ristorante, that can be performed in conjunction with a lunch, dinner, tea – or nothing at all! “Mangia, Meatballs and Murder” features three actors in multiple roles interacting with audience members so as to help the audience become informed as to who the “murderer” or “murderers” might be. Complete with costumes, props, information packets and prizes, the audience will become super sleuths, having much fun along the way.
      When: January, 29 2025
    • Matt York: Johnny Cash: Songs & Stories ($500)Songs and Stories – Johnny Cash is a musical presentation in which I perform songs and tell stories about the country music icon Johnny Cash. This is a free performance that would be open to the public. The performance combines some of Cash’s most famous songs with some stories about his career and how he not only changed the course of popular music, but did so in a very dynamic and powerful way.

    FY24 Nahant Cultural Council-Sponsored Event:
    NAHANT COMMUNITY PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION:
    “Celebrate Nahant: Images of Our Town, Past and Present”
    A photo exhibition, celebrating photos of Nahant, taken by Nahanters, past and present will take place July 5th through July 7th in the Serenity Room at the Nahant Community Center.  Share your favorite Nahant photos, memories and moments! All subjects are welcome.  Deadline for photo submission is April 29, 2024.  More information is available at: https://nahantarts.org/celebrate. If you have any questions please email us: webmaster@nahantarts.org.

    FY24 Grant Awards:

    1. Nahant Open Space and Recreation Committee: Winter Waterfowl of Nahant
      A lecture and an outdoor tour around Nahant to learn about and observe the ducks, geese, cormorants, gulls and other birds found in our waters
      When: January 25 and 28, 2024
    2. Katharina Radlberger: String quartet ‘Fin de Siècle’: 1893: Looking East / Looking West
      Fellow Nahanter Katharina Radlberger and three colleagues will perform 2 string quartets by Anton Dvorak and Claude Debussy.
      When: March 2, 2024, Serenity Room, Nahant Community Center
    3. Nahant Library: Bird Buddy
      The library will purchase and install Bird Buddy, a smart bird feeder that takes photos and videos of birds that come to it, providing bird identification and other information to patrons who visit the library.
      When: Ongoing
    4. Johnson Elementary School: Origami, Math, and Marine Science
      Richard Alexander and Michael Lafosse are the proprietors of Origamido Study, out of Haverhill, Massachusetts. They offer classes on origami and mathematics to schools. The project would have them come to our school, and teach several classes to our students in a small workshop setting. All students in grades K-5 will be served. In addition, their teachers will receive information on these topics.
      When: October, 2023
    5. Susan Cadigan: Organ Harmony Qi Gong
      In-person classes on Qi Gong will be offered to improve wellness and fitness. 
      Qi Gong is based on an ancient Chinese tradition.
      When: This program has not been scheduled yet.

    Funding Priorities:

    • Programs with a focus on humanities, local art/artists, music/musicians, culture, history, or nature/environment.
    • Community wide events, including festivals, concerts, plays, performances, exhibits, lectures, fairs, etc.
    • Opportunities for local residents, children, youth, and seniors to participate
    • Programs to expand local support and understanding of diverse or underserved populations
    • Projects that demonstrate artistic or creative merit, good design, documented qualifications, accessibility, and community benefit/involvement.

    Guidelines:

    • Only programs developed by a Nahant resident or programs developed by a non-resident with sponsorship by a Nahant organization will be funded.  Applications sponsored by a Nahant organization should include a letter of support from them for the project.
    • All funded projects must take place in Nahant, benefit Nahant residents, and be accessible to the general public. Please refer to Mass. Cultural Council Guidelines at https://massculturalcouncil.org/documents/lccguidelines.pdf
    • Applicants are encouraged to blend additional funding for their projects.
    • Applications must provide financial details and detailed planning for their project.
    • Applicants who have received funding for multiple years will have a lower funding priority.
    • Funded programs must credit the Nahant Cultural Council & the Mass Cultural Council on all advertising, promotion materials and on the day of the program (via social media or at the venue, etc.). Grant applicants are responsible for all promotions of their event with the collaboration of the venue or organization.
    • The Nahant Cultural Council (NCC) will not accept applications for grant funding where an NCC member is the principal applicant or has a financial interest the proposed project.  The NCC welcomes the contributions of its members to support a proposed project on a volunteer basis and be named in an application as such.  In accordance with the Massachusetts Cultural Council, all NCC members will abide by Massachusetts conflict of interest policies.

    NCC meetings are held monthly in the Town Hall and are open to the public.  We welcome you to share your ideas on cultural programs here in Nahant. Contact us at: culturalcouncil@nahant.org