Back in December, Congress passed a $2.3 trillion spending bill that included more than $900 billion in pandemic relief known as Save Our Stages (Shuttered Venue Operators’ Grant). But no sooner did the Small Business Association (SBA) portal open on April 8, it shut down, leaving venues frustrated and confused, to say the least. The situation seems ever-changing and fluid and to help us make sense of where we go from here, I spoke to Arts North Carolina’s Executive Director Nate McGaha.
About the Guest
Nate McGaha has served as the Executive Director of Arts North Carolina, the statewide advocacy organization for the arts, since 2017 where he works for public funding and policy for the arts (including SVOG and Save Our Stages) and arts education. He helped to create the Joint Caucus on Arts and Arts Education at the NC General Assembly, shepherded the NC Arts High School Graduation Requirement into law, and has led several statewide initiatives for relief, reopening, and recovery during the COVID-19 pandemic. Prior to his work in advocacy, Nate was the Executive Director of Carolina Ballet in Raleigh for five years with Artistic Director Robert Weiss. Before coming to the Raleigh area he was the Director of Operations at Charlotte Ballet under the Artistic Direction of Jean-Pierre Bonnefoux and Patricia McBride for seven years after serving as that company’s Resident Lighting Designer since 1996. Nate was also the Production Manager and Lighting Designer for the Chautauqua Ballet Company in the summer months from 1997 through 2009 and toured internationally with Dwight Rhoden and Desmond Richardson’s Complexions Dance Company. He is a graduate of UNC School of the Arts where he received a BFA in Design and Production with a concentration in Lighting Design.
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