BigShowCity
BigShowCity Non-Profit Performing Arts Organization was founded in 2001 to facilitate the production of a multi-day, multi-venue, performance festival in downtown Olympia, Washington. The BigShowCity Festival ran for three years, focused exclusively on live performance based arts, and highlighted the work of actors, dancers, puppeteers, circus arts, burlesque, storytellers, performance artists, and much more. Although the desire for a festival fell away, the need for artists to have support remained, and so in 2004 BigShowCity altered its mission from festival production to individual artist support.
For many young and up and coming performers the only barrier to presenting one’s work is the means to rent a venue, or purchase materials for costumes and or sets. BigShowCity helps eliminate those financial barriers by offering small grants to artists in need. Since 2004 BigShowCity has given thousands of dollars to numerous artists and theater groups for a variety of performances.
In 2007 BigShowCity, and its president Elizabeth Lord created and produced the first Lord Franzannian Royal Olympian Spectacular Vaudeville Show. A show created to be a fundraiser for BigShowCity, as well as a variety show that provided a stage for local performing artists to highlight their work. Similar to BSC’s earlier mission of a festival, but now condensed to single show performed in one evening.
In June of 2018 BigShowCity granted $500.00 to The String and Shadow Puppet Theater. In the Fall of 2018 String and Shadow Puppet Theater presented a new original show: Esperus The Janitor which toured across the United States.
In October 2023 BSC presented its 18th annual Vaudeville show.
The arts are an important part of every community, however funding for artists is always difficult to come by. It is BigShowCity’s mission to help local Olympia burgeoning artists realize their ambitions, share their talent, and enrich our community by providing financial and emotional support.
For many young and up and coming performers the only barrier to presenting one’s work is the means to rent a venue, or purchase materials for costumes and or sets. BigShowCity helps eliminate those financial barriers by offering small grants to artists in need. Since 2004 BigShowCity has given thousands of dollars to numerous artists and theater groups for a variety of performances.
In 2007 BigShowCity, and its president Elizabeth Lord created and produced the first Lord Franzannian Royal Olympian Spectacular Vaudeville Show. A show created to be a fundraiser for BigShowCity, as well as a variety show that provided a stage for local performing artists to highlight their work. Similar to BSC’s earlier mission of a festival, but now condensed to single show performed in one evening.
In June of 2018 BigShowCity granted $500.00 to The String and Shadow Puppet Theater. In the Fall of 2018 String and Shadow Puppet Theater presented a new original show: Esperus The Janitor which toured across the United States.
In October 2023 BSC presented its 18th annual Vaudeville show.
The arts are an important part of every community, however funding for artists is always difficult to come by. It is BigShowCity’s mission to help local Olympia burgeoning artists realize their ambitions, share their talent, and enrich our community by providing financial and emotional support.
BigShowCity would like to grant you and/or your organization money, but in order to do that we need to know how this small grant will benefit your endeavors. Tell us how you plan to spend the money. Please be specific. Examples:
- Equipment purchase (lighting fixtures, microphones, etc.)
- Purchase of materials for building sets (curtains, backdrops, set dressing)
- Publicity (cost of posters, other online promotional fees, video production)
- Venue rental
- Other