What, you say, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, as part of its Knight Arts Challenge, awarded you with SCRATCH? Yes, we say, and we’re happy for it. SCRATCH is a new series created by our Live Arts Brewery (where performing artists develop their work through a growing number of programs). SCRATCH will be a monthly salon night at which artists can present short excerpts of their work. During a moderated discussion audiences will offer feedback and then provide anonymous ratings. Winners from each SCRATCH night will be considered for the Live Arts Brewery (LAB) fellowship program that fosters new works by theater, dance, and you-name-it hybrid performing artists.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation’s Knight Arts Challenge is a $9 million initiative supporting innovative projects that inspire and enrich Philadelphia’s communities. Awards were announced on Monday night, May 9, at a gala at the Philadelphia Museum of Art. Along with the Philadelphia Live Arts Festival & Philly Fringe, awards went to a terrifically diverse number of organizations with impressively inventive projects.

Check out the list of awardees at www.knightarts.org.

Photos courtesy of the Knight Foundation. Top photo: Monday’s awards gala. Bottom photo: Founders John S. Knight and James L. Knight back in the day.