{photo: Julianna Jaffee makes quite the entrance in 2007’s A Christmas Carol.}

In the brief bit of quiet after the creative flurry of the JAW festival (well, quiet if you don’t count the clash of steel and violent cries coming from the students in the Stage Combat class), there comes the occasional yelp from the Development department, signifying that a grant proposal labored over in the (generally damp) days of spring has yielded a happy harvest.  Here are a few of our recent causes for celebration:

• The Kinsman Foundation – a $35,000 grant in support of JAW: A Playwrights Festival.  The Kinsman Foundation has been a key player in the festival’s growth, especially in our ability to make all festival events free to the public the past two years.

• The Regional Arts & Culture Council and Work for Art – an $85,003 grant (love that last 3 bucks!) in three parts, with $66,181 for basic program support, $6,530 for the Visions & Voices student playwriting program, and $12,292 from the Work for Art workplace giving program (you can learn more about Work for Art here:  www.workforart.org).

• The Oregon Arts Commission – a $17,000 operating support grant.  OAC’s continuing partnership is greatly appreciated!

• The Oregon Cultural Trust – an $18,000 grant in support of PCS’s programs to nurture new plays, including the JAW festival, our “Now Hear This” readings series, and development workshops.  This is the largest grant PCS has received from the Trust, thanks to the significantly increased donations Oregon citizens and corporations made to the OCT this year.  (Learn more about how you can support our state’s arts organizations at www.culturaltrust.org!)

Our sincere thanks go out to all the public agencies, foundation trustees, panelists, and workplace givers who’ve made these grants possible!