Chutzpah! Festival set to run a scaled-down event this year to cope with financial pressures
Festival changes to an approximately weeklong event, as organizers cut back by two-thirds in the wake of public grant losses
Hadar Galron performed Whistle at Chutzpah! in 2023. Photo by Nathan Yakobovitch
THIS YEAR’S Chutzpah! Festival will be a scaled-back event, as organizers adjust to losing 30 percent of its public grant funding. A recent update sent out by Chutzpah!’s board said the upcoming festival would be shortened by two-thirds, running as an approximately weeklong event from late October through early November.
“Over the last several months, our Board of Directors has reworked the budget to identify cost efficiencies and opportunities to maximize revenues,” read the update, in part. “This was not an easy decision, but unfortunately there is no other way. Sadly, other arts organizations have been forced to make similar decisions. But thanks to our community’s generosity, we’ll be able to bring outstanding Jewish and intersectional talent to our stage once again this year. We’re thinking big in everything except budget and duration, of course.”
As covered by Stir, the festival launched an emergency appeal in May after losing four of its project-based grants that it had historically received every year. While the festival has reached its fundraising goal of $60,000, it is not enough to run the event at the same scale of previous years.
“Moving forward, we’ll focus on increasing and diversifying all possible sources of revenue—government grants, private foundations, sponsorships, individual major gifts, and theatre rentals,” the update said. “Multi-year operational funding would help us grow our capacity and revenue. These plans are crucial to securing our financial future.”
Details about the lineup for Chutzpah! 2024 will be announced later in the summer. Stay tuned to Stir for updates.
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