East West received $100,000 grant

East West Players (EWP), the nation's first and foremost Asian American theatre, has been awarded a $100,000 grant from Edison International. The grant, funded by Edison International's Arts for the Community program, is designated for operational support and outreach. Relocated to the Union Center for the Arts in Little Tokyo in March 1998, East West Players is key to the development of a downtown based nonprofit arts complex. "This grant from Edison will help us to continue and expand our mainstage programs, workshops, and performances," said Tim Dang, East West Players' Producing Artistic Director. "East West Players' performances reach over 70,000 people each year and this support will help us expand to an even broader audience."

Based in Rosemead, Calif., Edison International is the parent company of Southern California Edison, Edison Mission Energy, Edison Capital, and Edison Enterprises. Through its Arts for the Community program, Edison International is distributing $4 million in grants over a three-year period beginning in 1998. Grants are offered to non-profit organizations in three categories: community-based arts education and outreach, college- and university-based arts education and outreach, and capital projects.

Edison's support for the arts complements the corporation's other grants that advance education, economic development and the environment. "East West Players has given a voice to Asian Pacific American stories for the past 33 years," said Wes Tanaka, SCE's public affairs director. "We are proud to support East West Players in bringing multicultural arts to diverse audiences throughout Southern California."