Northern Nevada Arts Council

 

Northern Nevada Arts Council ("NoNAC") was incorporated under Nevada business law as a non-profit corporation and became the leading arts organization in Winnemucca, originally as a presenting organization for the area. Art presentations were held in the Nixon Opera House from 1906 to 1984 when the Nixon was closed due to earthquake protection standards. "Friends of the Nixon Opera House" was formed to renovate and re-open it. The Winnemucca Civic Chorus ("WCC") was formed in 1977 as a subsidiary organization within NoNAC, presenting at least two choral performances a year; and White Sage Theater was created in June 2003 as a subsidiary organization to bring theater performances to Winnemucca.  The NoNAC Board of 
Directors began sponsoring local presentations of traveling art shows provided by the Nevada Arts Council in 2001.  The Board of NoNAC began sponsoring summertime performances the Missoula Children's’ Theater in 2004.  In 2014, Winnemucca Presents Live! was added as a presenting group for live performances, including school musical outreach programs, ballet performances and classical musical recitals. NoNAC is a Nevada not-for-profit corporation and has been determined by the IRS to be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable organization that is not a foundation.
 
For 32 years, NoNAC has provided the City of Winnemucca, its artists and especially its musicians and actors, sponsorship of arts performances. The number of arts organizations in Winnemucca has proliferated in recent years, and NoNAC's role has changed. There is a need to provide coordinated development for an alliance within the arts community.
 
Arson completely destroyed the Nixon Opera House, Winnemucca's performing arts venue, in 1992. At that time, Great Basin Arts and Entertainment ("GBA&E", gbae.com) was formed by a group of former NoNAC members to maintain the function of a presenting organization in Winnemucca.
 
NoNAC relies entirely on a volunteer staff, including the Board members, the officers of its constituent organizations, directors, actors, singers and community assistants. US Bank has generously provided a grant every year for the past several years to help fund the Missoula Children's Theater ("MCT") workshops, and Nevada Arts Council has approved our grant requests for the past two years. Local merchants donate services and materials, and community members assist with theater setup, MCT events and publicity.
 
And now the plea: NoNAC owns no facilities of its own. The Winnemucca Civic Chorus performs at the First Baptist Church. White Sage Theater plays are performed in the banquet room of the Martin Hotel, located across the street from the Southern Pacific Railroad depot. GBA&E's performances are also held in the banquet room of the Martin Hotel. The Winnemucca Grammar School has graciously offered the use of their gymnasium and classrooms for the summer productions of Missoula Children's Theater plays. We are in the process of researching and funding a new performing arts center for our community. This is quite a challenge, if you care about arts and entertainment in Winnemucca, please donate what you can to the new center. Please contact Jean Kinney at shelbersjean@gmail.com or 775-304-5955 for more information or to donate. Thank you!