PURE Theatre to Receive $53,600 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts for Expanded Tour of Septima

Charleston, SC (May 17, 2024) – PURE Theatre is pleased to announce that the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) approved a Grants for Arts Projects award of $53,600. This grant will support an expanded tour of PURE’s world premiere show, Septima, telling the story of the Charleston-area civil rights leader. The NEA will award 1,135 Grants for Arts Projects awards totaling more than $37 million as part of its second round of fiscal year 2024 grants. 

“Projects like Septima exemplify the creativity and care with which communities are telling their stories, creating connection, and responding to challenges and opportunities in their communities—all through the arts,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, PhD. “So many aspects of our communities, such as cultural vitality, health and wellbeing, infrastructure, and the economy, are advanced and improved through investments in art and design, and the National Endowment for the Arts is committed to ensuring people across the country benefit.”

“We are thrilled and honored by the NEA’s support. PURE Theatre gratefully accepts the Grants for Arts Projects award. With profound gratitude, we embark on this expanded tour of Septima, empowered to illuminate the legacy of Charleston’s civil rights leader and further our mission of transformative storytelling,” said Michael Culler, PURE Theatre Board Chair. 

In 2024 and 2025, PURE will present Septima to high school students and general audiences across South Carolina and in adjacent towns in neighboring states. Building on PURE’s long experience of presenting and teaching in Title 1 schools, the tour will begin in the Lowcountry and expand to include the Midlands and Upstate regions and adjacent municipalities in North Carolina and Georgia. Each performance, whether at a school or a community venue, will be followed by a facilitated discussion to explore further the ideas presented in the play and opportunities for voter education and registration.

PURE will also present PURE Chautauqua: Septima during the 2024 Piccolo Spoleto Festival. Guided by the songs and script of Septima, six panelists will discuss the importance of Septima’s legacy and the continued fight for voter rights in South Carolina, the South, and beyond. Panelists will include Dr. Patricia Williams Dockery (playwright and principal researcher), Donna Factor (League of Women Voters representative), Georgette Mayo (Septima Archivist), Aaron White (Johns Island Progressive Club), and Zania Cummings (actress playing Septima). The event will be moderated by Sharon Graci (PURE Co-Founder and director of Septima). Performances will include the Charleston Area Senior Center on May 24 and a livestream on May 28 at 11am. Tickets for the livestream can be found at www.puretheatre.org (livestream will be available to view after the performance has ended). 

The SC Humanities Foundation, the SC Arts Commission, the League of Women Voters of the Charleston Area, and the City of Charleston Office of Cultural Affairs support this project.

For more information on other projects included in the NEA’s grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

ABOUT PURE THEATRE

PURE Theatre is a professional regional theatre in Charleston that creates consequential theatre experiences by and for a diverse gathering of artists and audiences. PURE produces work that inspires thought, ignites dialogue, heightens consciousness, and contributes to our community’s urgent exchange of ideas, viewpoints, aspirations, and inspirations.

PURE’s staff includes Sharon Graci (Co-founder and Artistic Director), Rodney Lee Rogers (Co-founder and Director of New Media and Education), David Mandel (Associate Artistic Director), Joy Vandervort-Cobb (Associate Artistic Director), Richard Heffner (Technical Director), Shivam Patel (Education and New Media Associate), Meagan McMahon (Patron Experience and Marketing Manager), and Tippy Trombly (Patron Experience Associate). 

Michael Culler (President), Chris Burgess (Vice President), Peter Calcagno (Treasurer), Brad Erickson (Secretary), Amy Gaffney, Bridget Durkan Laird, Liza Elsner, David Smalls, Stephanie Hunt, and Drew Childers serve on PURE Theatre’s board of directors.