May 12, 2008 • NEA Recognizes Midwest World Music Consortia

An innovative partnership involving the Lotus Education and Arts Foundation, the City of Chicago Department of Cultural Affairs, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Milwaukee’s Alverno College has recently been recognized with a $30,000 National Endowment for the Arts Consortium Grant.

The festivals presented by these organizations—the Lotus World Music and Arts Festival, the World Music Festival / Chicago, the Madison World Music Festival, and Global Union, respectively—have aligned under the umbrella of the Midwest World Music Consortia in order to improve their ability to attract exemplary multicultural performing artists to the Midwest region.Citing the consortia’s “strategic vision,” NEA grant reviewers went on to note that this “innovative project . . . offers multiple presentation opportunities that will open up the region to artists.”