Five organizations – The Cabaret, the Athenaeum, Big Car Collaborative, The Hi-Fi Arts and Entertainment Venue and the Indianapolis Cultural Trail – are among those who will benefit from $65 million dollars in grants via the READI 2.0 Arts & Culture Initiative.
The funds come from the Regional Economic Acceleration and Development Initiative, which in total is making a $1.25 billion investment in many fields across the state.
The effort in the area of arts and culture is supported by $250 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc. The investment in the state’s creative economy is described as a first-of-its-kind, statewide initiative recognizing arts and culture as powerful drivers of regional growth.
Those organizations in the Urban Times zone are:
– THE CABARET, which is awarded $1 million toward an $8.9 million expansion project of the historic Metzger building to create a Creative Campus for American Cabaret and Piano – a national creative hub advancing cabaret and classical/jazz piano through artist development, innovative performance and educational engagement.
The expansion will repurpose the 110-year-old building into a cultural anchor and destination at the intersection of several Indianapolis cultural districts and the Indianapolis Cultural Trail. The expansion will house the headquarters for both The Cabaret and the American Piano Awards, increase The Cabaret’s award-winning indoor theater by 45%, create a new outdoor public/performance plaza, and establish The Cabaret Museum and Listening Room as free public amenities all while retaining the historic Pennsylvania Street marquee.
– THE ATHENAEUM, awarded $1.5 million toward an $8.9 million project to create the Athenaeum Lab. The project would expand and formalize a long-standing collaborative arts ecosystem at the Athenaeum, transforming the historic Basile Theatre into a shared hub for performance, education and creative development in Central Indiana.
The Athenaeum Foundation envisions the renewed Basile Theatre becoming a catalyst for artistic excellence, creative collaboration, and community connection. Designed to support ambitious performances, emerging artists, arts education, and cross-disciplinary partnerships, the theater will empower multiple organizations to expand what is possible on stage and beyond. As one of the only mid-sized performance venues in Indianapolis, it will strengthen the region’s cultural ecosystem, attract new audiences, inspire artistic innovation, and ensure that transformative arts experiences are accessible to people of all ages and backgrounds for generations to come. Anchored by Asante Art institute, React Theatre and NoExit Performance, The Athenaeum Lab also connects school day learning, youth-driven creative work, and professional production into a unified pipeline, engaging students in immersive experiences and connecting developing artists to career pathways within the local creative economy.
– BIG CAR COLLABORATIVE, awarded $1.5 million toward an $8.74 million project to furthering work on its five-acre adaptive reuse cultural campus on the city’s near Southside. The Contemporary Art Museum of Indianapolis (CAMi) — owned and operated by Big Car — will expand artist production and education spaces; enhance public access to Bean Creek through new decks, landscaping and removal of barriers; and improve site connectivity, parking and wayfinding to support increased visitation and public use. The project also continues development of affordable artist housing, including sustaining improvements to existing artist homes, a new accessory dwelling unit prototype, and three more housing units for artists. Additional efforts will support activation of a performance and event venue, growth of creative businesses, and expansion of culinary and workforce development programs. Together, these investments complete a decade-long transformation into a nationally relevant creative campus that supports artists, attracts visitors and advances quality of place for Central Indiana.
– THE HI-FI ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT VENUE, awarded $1 million toward a $5.25 million project to expand the Fountain Square venue, resulting in a new all-weather entertainment complex. The development includes a new 1,100-capacity performance space, a 200-capacity artist development room, and the expansion of the existing HI-FI venue, forming a connected campus that supports artists at all stages of growth. Located within one of Indiana’s most active arts and entertainment districts, the project builds on a strong existing foundation as a hub for live performance and cultural activity. Building on more than 15 years as an independent, Indiana-grown business, HI-FI has helped attract national touring artists to Indiana through its flagship venues in Indianapolis and relationships with partners in Fort Wayne, Bloomington, Fishers, Plainfield and Terre Haute. This expansion will create jobs, support local artists and small businesses, increase community access, and attract regional and national visitors – strengthening Indiana’s competitiveness as a destination for live music and cultural experiences.
– The INDIANAPOLIS CULTURAL TRAIL — the nonprofit organization that stewards the 10-mile Indianapolis Cultural Trail: A Legacy of Gene and Marilyn Glick – has been selected to receive $2 million through the READI 2.0 Arts & Culture Initiative to activate Central Indiana’s cultural corridor. The grant will support three components that uplift arts and culture across the region and activate the Central Indiana creative economy: (1) An expanded Indianapolis Cultural Trail wayfinding system that helps people discover place-based arts and culture experiences. (2) A multi-faceted public art initiative that highlights both the city and emerging Indiana artists, and gateway artworks. And (C) an arts and culture festival that showcases Indianapolis talent and brings the Cultural Corridor to life along the 10-mile linear park that serves as the Downtown hub for the region’s trail network.
Cultural Trail officials said that together these efforts will redefine how residents, visitors and students experience and see downtown Indianapolis as a connected cultural corridor. The project expands access to arts and culture and showcases uniquely Indianapolis experiences, with the Cultural Trail acting as the connector that drives visitation, supports local artists and businesses, and attracts people to live, work and spend time in the city and central Indiana region.
