Rio Navarro, cello student in the Young Musicians program at the Pasadena Conservatory of Music (Photo – PCM)
The City of Pasadena’s Cultural Affairs Division has announced the recipients of its FY 2025–2026 Annual Grants Program. On July 9, 2025, the City’s Arts & Culture Commission approved a total of $191,490 in funding, supporting 35 awardees across Pasadena’s vibrant arts landscape. This includes 25 Pasadena-based arts and cultural organizations and five individual artists.
By News Desk
The grants will fund a wide range of creative projects, including visual art, poetry, music, writing, dance, theatre, workshops, and in-school education programs. Awardees span from established cultural institutions to emerging individual artists, underscoring the City’s commitment to a dynamic and inclusive creative community.
Among the featured projects is the Light Bringer Project’s 2026 Pasadena Chalk Festival, which will celebrate both the 100th anniversary of Route 66 and the 150th anniversary of Colorado Boulevard. Theatrical productions receiving support include Joe Turner’s Come and Gone by August Wilson at A Noise Within, Brigadoon at Pasadena Playhouse, and a series of radio theater-style performances at Parson’s Nose Theater.
Grants for music and cultural performance include Artes Vocales’ Voices United concerts and the Pasadena Youth Symphony Orchestras’ 2026 spring performances. In education, the Pasadena Conservatory of Music’s “Young Musicians” program will engage 550 PUSD students over a 32-week period. Meanwhile, the Armory Center for the Arts’ “See Art, Make Art” initiative will provide field trips for all PUSD 5th graders.
Individual artist grantees include Shagane Barsegian for a Batchelder-inspired tile workshop; Deb Rosen for her dance piece Zehut; Ginko Lee for an Earth Day postcard project; and Russell Mark for his symphonic rock opera Pasadena, Right Here, Right Now. Additional highlights include Silent Voices, Susie Tanner’s tribute to dementia patients, and Play House, Austyn de Lugo Liston’s conceptual costume installation.
The Annual Grants Program supports proposals across several categories, including Arts & Culture, Arts Education, Festivals & Parades, and Individual Artist Projects. This year, all applicants were required to submit a Cultural Equity and Inclusion (CEII) Statement, Plan, or Policy in alignment with the LA County Cultural Equity and Inclusion Initiative.
For more information and a complete list of grantees and funded projects, visit cityofpasadena.net/arts or contact Rochelle Branch, Cultural Affairs Division Manager, at (626) 744-7062.
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