Center Stage receives $50,000 NEA grant in support of 'Jazz' world premiere

Included in more than $30 million of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts announced this week is $50,000 to help with the world premiere of "Jazz," Nambi E. Kelley's play based on the Harlem-centric historical novel by Toni Morrison, to be produced in the spring at Center Stage.

In a press release, Center Stage artist director Kwame Kwei-Armah, who will direct "Jazz," said:

"We're thrilled that the NEA has chosen to support our world premiere ... which will not be a typical 'page-to-stage' literary adaptation, but rather an experimental artistic endeavor, combining the elements of literature, poetry, storytelling and theater with music, movement and spoken word."

"Jazz" will run May 19 to June 25.

Speaking of Center Stage and grants, the NEA also awarded $40,000 in support the company's CS Mobile Unit, a touring enterprise that brings free productions to prisons, juvenile detention facilities, homeless shelters, and assisted living facilities in the Baltimore area.

CS Mobile Unit, a collaborative venture with Johns Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health, also recently received a $10,000 grant from the nonprofit organization Maryland Humanities.