About Us
PAL Mission Statement
The Performing Arts League (PAL) is dedicated to promoting and encouraging youth involvement in the performing arts -- Dance, Music, Theater -- through grants to non-profit performing arts organizations and scholarships to individual students located in Hamilton County, TN.
PAL History
Founded in 2011, the Performing Arts League (PAL) is an all volunteer 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to encouraging and supporting youth involvement in the performing arts throughout Chattanooga and Hamilton County. Focusing on the disciplines of dance, theater, and vocal / instrumental music, PAL annually raises funds and awards grants to nonprofit performing arts organizations to support their programs for young people, as well as scholarships to individual young performers for additional intensive training. Since 2014, the Performing Arts League has awarded over $170,000 in grants and scholarships that benefit a wide range of youth arts programs and aspiring young performers in the greater Chattanooga area. Arts and educational nonprofit organizations receiving grants from the Performing Arts League include: Ballet Tennessee, Chattanooga Ballet, Chattanooga Boys Choir (Only Men Aloud), Chattanooga Central High School (Piano Lab), Chattanooga Girls Choir, Chattanooga High School Center for the Creative Arts (Dance Festival), Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Youth Orchestras, Chattanooga Theatre Centre (Youth Theatre), Christian Family Theater, East Lake Expression Engine, Hamilton County Department of Education, Hixson High School (Music Program), The Howard School Band, String Theory (Outreach Programs), and the Kiwanis Club of Chattanooga (Musical Playground). Individual students have been awarded scholarships to attend workshops and advanced study in the areas of ballet, theater, classical and jazz ensembles, as well as vocal and instrumental music.
Sponsors
The Chattanooga Times Free Press is the exclusive print media sponsor.
In Memory of Robert C. Thompson, Jr.
Performing Arts League Grants & Scholarships 2014 to Present
(Partial List)
From 2014 to the present, the Performing Arts League has supported both individuals and organizations through our Grants & Scholarships program, including:
2022 GRANTS
2022 SCHOLARSHIPS
MULTI-YEAR GRANTS
- Awarded grants to the Chattanooga Girls Choir for a commissioned piece by Susan LaBarr for their 30th Anniversary and for the Hamilton County All-Female Choral Festival
- Awarded a grant to the Chattanooga Theatre Centre, in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club, for A Dramatic Arts Experience, summer theatrical arts classes for underserved children in grades 1-3
- Awarded a grant to the Hamilton County Department of Education for Lookout Valley Middle/High School’s “Build the Band of Gold”
- Awarded a grant to the Kiwanis Club for the Clifton Hills Elementary School Outdoor Music Playground
- Awarded grants to the Christian Family Theater for their youth production of Matilda the Musical and for the purchase of sound equipment
- Awarded grants to East Lake Expression Engine for their summer program
- Awarded grants to String Theory to co-sponsor and support introductory musical programs for young children at selected Chattanooga and Cleveland public elementary schools, of which several are Title 1 schools
- Awarded grants to Unity Performing Arts for their Rising Star Summer School Program which offers dance, voice, keyboard, brass, and drum instruction to students at Carver, Avondale, and Washington Hills Recreation Centers
- Awarded scholarships for music lessons and/or music camps for young musicians of the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Youth Orchestras
- Awarded scholarships to dancers to attend the Tennessee Governor’s School for the Arts
- Awarded scholarships to young dancers to attend summer intensive dance programs in New York, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina
- Awarded a scholarship for a young organist to attend Westminster Choir College’s Organ Camp
- Awarded tuition scholarships for summer intensive study to young dancers of Ballet Tennessee
- Awarded tuition scholarship for summer study to a Chattanooga Ballet dancer
- Awarded tuition scholarships to young singers of the Chattanooga Girls Choir
- Awarded a scholarship for a young flutist to attend the Sewanee Summer Music Festival
- Held annual Vocal Competition among aspiring high school classical singers
- Provided funds to help sponsor the Chattanooga Boys Choir’s Only Men Aloud, a weekend choral workshop
- Provided funds for the Chattanooga Clarinet Choir’s Clarinet Concerto Competition
- Provided the Chattanooga Theatre Centre with production funds for their Youth Theatre performances
- Purchased uniforms for The Howard School Band and provided funds for secure storage
- Inaugurated Sunday Showcase in October 2014 to highlight and celebrate school-age talent and the organizations that foster and support that talent. The annual production, open to the public, features performances by Chattanooga’s outstanding young artists, from 40 area schools, in the disciplines of dance, theater, instrumental and vocal music
2022 GRANTS
- Provided funds to the Chattanooga Ballet for a collaboration with Boys & Girls Club
- Provided funds to the Chattanooga Boys Choir for “Only Men Aloud!” tenor-bass festival
- Provided funds to the Chattanooga Central High School Piano Lab to purchase new equipment and sheet music
- Provided funds to the Chattanooga Girls Choir for 2022 summer intensive camp
- Provided funds to the Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Youth Orchestra to purchase recording equipment
- Provided funds for Chattanooga Theatre Centre Youth Theatre 2022-23 productions
- Provided funds to the Center for Creative Arts to host the first Tennessee High School Dance Festival in Fall 2022
- Provided funds to the Christian Family Theater for 2022-23 productions
- Provided funds to Eastlake Expression Engine’s Summer Intern program
- Provided funds to the Hixson High School Band to purchase a new vibraphone
- Provided funds to String Theory for “String Theory Connect” community outreach
2022 SCHOLARSHIPS
- Provided funds to attend Ballet Austin (TX) Summer Intensive
- Provided funds to attend Ballet Met (OH) Summer Intensive
- Provided funds to attend Belmont University Vocal Arts Intensive (TN)
- Provided funds to attend Belmont University Summer Winds Camp (TN)
- Provided funds to attend Chattanooga Ballet Summer Intensive (4)
- Provided funds to attend Hilton Head Chamber Music Institute
- Provided funds to attend Lee University Music Camp (3)
- Provided funds for vocal training in musical theater (private lessons)
MULTI-YEAR GRANTS
- Chattanooga Boys Choir for “Only Men Aloud!”
- Chattanooga Ballet Summer Intensive Program
- Chattanooga Central High School Piano Lab
- Chattanooga Girls Choir Summer Intensive Camp
- Chattanooga Symphony & Opera Youth Orchestra
- Chattanooga Theatre Centre Youth Theatre for Annual Productions
- Christian Family Theater for Annual Productions
- Eastlake Expression Engine Summer Intern Programs
- String Theory for Community Outreach Programs
Testimonials from Scholarships and Grants Recipients
Nena Widtfeldt (Chattanooga Ballet / 2022 Grant)
“Please share my gratitude with all of PAL for the support of our students and their desire to further their dance education this summer. Those who have received scholarships greatly appreciate your efforts and I know they will work diligently in their summer training courses.”
John Farrimond (Chattanooga Ballet / 2022 Grant)
“We are thrilled with PAL’s support of our community-based programs!”
Katheron Latham (Chattanooga Central HS Piano Lab / 2022 Grant)
“Thank you so much for awarding Central's Piano Lab this generous grant! We do so appreciate your encouragement and support of this program. It will make such a difference for our students!”
Rodney Van Valkenberg (Chattanooga Theatre Centre Youth Theatre / 2022 Grant)
“PAL’s support is vital for us to maintain our professional standards to ensure the highest quality of theatre for youth in Chattanooga.”
Center for Creative Arts (Tennessee HS Dance Festival / 2022 Grant)
“Young Artists greatly benefit from PAL’s work in the arts community in Chattanooga”
Libby O'Neil (East Lake Expression Engine / 2022 Grant)
“Thank you so much!! We really appreciate the work you and others at the Performing Arts League do in our community to support us and many others. Please pass along my gratitude!”
Jubilee Elliott (Chattanooga Ballet Summer Intensive / 2022 Scholarship)
“Thanks to the generosity of the Performing Arts League, I am one small step closer to my dreams.”
Elise Giles (Chattanooga Ballet Summer Intensive / 2022 Scholarship)
“Thank you for the scholarship award! I am very grateful to the Performing Arts League for helping me achieve my dreams in dance.”
Nadia Giles (Vocal Studies / 2022 Scholarship)
“Thank you and The Performing Arts League for the generous scholarship! I am very excited to continue my studies this summer.”
Ronaldo Lorenzo (Lee University Summer Music Camp / 2022 Scholarship)
“I would like to say thank you to the Performing Arts League for providing the scholarship to go back once again to Lee University. I had fun with my friends and music, and the staff there. Now I have a different style of Music to grow in.”
Layla Reed (Chattanooga Ballet Summer Intensive / 2002 Scholarship)
“This scholarship has allowed me to continue exploring new dance styles, grow my artistry, and improve significantly.”
Juan Vargas (Lee University Summer Music Camp / 2022 Scholarship)
“My time at Lee university music camp was the best six days. Those lessons, and everything I learned, I will build on and keep learning because that’s the best thing to do with this experience. Thank you, Performing Arts League.”
Harrison Wells (Belmont University Summer Winds Camp / 2022 Scholarship)
This experience opened my eyes to a whole new world of opportunity on the trumpet.”
Board of Directors
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Standing Committee Chairs
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Promoting Youth Involvement In The Performing Arts located in Hamilton County, TN area.
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