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Ellis Finger, director of Lafayette’s Williams Center for the Arts, has been selected by Association of Performing Arts Presenters as the recipient of the association’s 2002 William Dawson Award.
The award is being given “for the quality, innovation and vision of your program design, audience building, and community involvement efforts,” wrote Sandra Gibson, the association’s president and chief executive officer, in letter congratulating Finger. The selection came via a unanimous vote by the association’s awards committee, Gibson said.
Finger will receive the award Jan. 14 during the association’s 45th annual national members conference at the Hilton New York Hotel and Towers. He also will be featured in the March 2002 issue of Inside Arts magazine.
Finger recently received notice of another honor. The New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA) has chosen the Williams Center as a “hub site” for the third phase of the National Dance Project (NDP), recognizing it as one of the most outstanding performing arts programs in the nation for the presentation of dance.
Lafayette has been actively involved in the National Dance Project since its founding in 1996 with the support of the National Endowment for the Arts and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation in addition to NEFA.
“The review committee is impressed with your organization’s commitment to the creation and presentation of new dance work, the strength of its partnerships and alliances, and its continuing dedication to the art form,” stated Samuel A. Miller, executive director of NEFA, in a letter to Finger. “Additionally, the committee recognizes your capacity as a leader in the field, and values the knowledge and experience that you contribute to the project’s efforts.”
The hub site designation is effective through 2004. Hub site representatives help identify projects for production support, recommend projects for funding, serve as presenter partners in the development of certain dance projects funded by NDP, serve as an advocate for NDP projects to other presenters, advise tour coordinators on tour development, and make recommendations on the allocation of available touring support.
Lafayette is among a dozen hub sites, which include the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the Joyce Theater in New York, and the Washington Performing Arts Society in Washington, D.C.