Native Performing Arts Fellowship (NPA) Fellowship Grant

The Native Performing Arts Fellowship (NPA) supports Native artists in enhancing their craft through grants of up to $10,000. This fellowship prioritizes personal artistic development over project-based funding, encouraging applicants to focus on growth through classes, workshops, and professional mentorship. Eligible candidates must be U.S.-based, 18 years or older, and enrolled members of recognized tribes. The program emphasizes Indigenous values in performing arts, fostering resilience and cultural expression.

The Native Performing Arts Fellowship (NPA) supports Native performing artists, emerging and established, to develop and enhance their skills and knowledge of their craft.
The FPF’s Native Performing Arts Fellowship provides grants of up to $10,000 for Native individuals who practice/work within the performing arts landscape (theater, dance, music, etc.). This is not a project based grant. Developing or completing a creative project can be a component of the fellowship, but does not need to be the primary goal or outcome of your fellowship year.
Consider the resources you will need to start or grow your artistic career or skill set, and what you will be able to accomplish with funding.
Any proposals for performance-based project(s) that involve multiple performers or require high production demands are not a focus of this fellowship.
Examples of artistic growth needs or career goals can include (but are not limited to):
Taking classes, seminars, workshops, private lessons with professional experts or coaches in any field of performing arts, consulting legal, and financial professionals (agent, publicist, tour manager, etc.), creating a website to showcase your performance work, getting professional headshots, building a marketing strategy for your performances, or strengthening relationships with cultural bearers and teachers to maintain cultural knowledge and values.
How We define "Performing Arts"?
Native Performing Arts is a time-based performance or experience that honors, exposes, educates, challenges and celebrates the multifaceted stories of Indigenous peoples. Native Performing Arts centers Indigenous beliefs and values in funding, developing, creating, and presenting performative works. It is a platform for collaboration, discourse, intergenerational engagement, and living resistance, in which Native performing artists from all disciplines of performing arts (theater, music, dance, etc.) can create innovative work for audiences worldwide.

Eligibility

Applicants must be at least 18 years of age at the time of application.
Applicants must reside and be based within the U.S.Applicants must be an enrolled member of, or provide proof of lineal descendancy from, a U.S. federally-recognized or U.S. state-recognized tribe, or be able to provide proof of ancestry as an Alaska Native or Native Hawaiian.
For more information about acceptable documents, please click here.Native practitioners of all performing arts mediums, both traditional and contemporary, are welcome to apply. This includes theater, music, dance, live performance, spoken word and more.

Ineligibility

Applicants may not be enrolled in any academic, degree-granting program.Applicants who reside outside of the U.S. are ineligible to apply.Artists whose primary mediums are not within the performing arts field are not eligible to apply for the NPA Fellowship.
Any performance based project(s) that involves multiple performers or requires high production demands will not be eligible.
Activities that are part of the applicant's coursework at an institution of higher learning will not be considered, i.e. senior or thesis exhibitions, juried student shows, etc.
Film projects, short or feature length, are not eligible at this time.If you received a Performing Artist fellowship, Artist in Business Leadership or Cultural Capital fellowship in 2025, you will not be eligible to apply for the 2026 NPA Fellowship. Any previous fellows must wait a year before applying to any First Peoples Fund (FPF) fellowship programs.