BENTON TOWNSHIP — The Mendel Center at Lake Michigan College has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs. The Mendel Center is using the grant to support its presentation of the nationally touring production of Jersey Boys on May 16, 2019.

The Mendel Center grant was awarded through a peer review process and was one of 598 applications to compete for MCACA fiscal year 2019 funding. Organizations receiving a MCACA grant are required to match those funds with other public and private dollars.

“Funding from the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs is crucial to The Mendel Center’s continued ability to offer quality performing arts opportunities to the residents of southwestern Michigan,” states Grace Kelmer, director of The Mendel Center Mainstage. “It is an honor to receive this competitive grant. We thank the State of Michigan and our elected government officials for valuing and supporting the arts and the resulting connections that add to the quality of life in our community.”

The Mendel Center has presented nationally recognized performing arts programming to the residents of southwestern Michigan and surrounding areas through its annual Mainstage performance series since 1992.  Jersey Boys has been selected to be part of The Mendel Center Mainstage 2018-2019 season based upon requests from patrons and for the show’s award-winning history. Whirlpool Corporation and 1st Source Band are sponsoring Jersey Boys, and The Mendel Center receives significant volunteer support from the community through its team of more than 100 Mendel Center volunteers.

The MCACA peer review process allows for each grant application to be competitively considered by a panel of in-state and out-of-state arts and cultural professionals. This ensures the taxpayers, who support this project through legislative appropriations, and all other visitors and residents in Michigan will have access to the highest quality arts and cultural experiences, according to LMC officials.

A complete list of grant awards around the state is available by contacting MCACA at (517) 241-4011, or by visiting the MCACA website at michiganbusiness.org/community/council-arts-cultural-affairs.

Tickets for Jersey Boys and all other Mendel Center Mainstage season performances are available at TheMendelCenter.com.

The 1,559-seat Mendel Center Mainstage Theatre offers state-of-the-art acoustics and comfortable seating in elegant surroundings, said officials, Amenities include free parking, handicap accessibility, and an array of services including catering and bar service for private pre- and post-show events, child booster seats, assistive listening devices, non-spill cups for beverages inside the theatre, and premium seats in the Stage Side section.

The Mendel Center is 30 minutes from Niles and 40 minutes from the Kalamazoo and South Bend areas. It is located on the Lake Michigan College campus at 2755 E. Napier Avenue, Benton Harbor, Michigan, one mile east of I-94 (Exit 30) and one mile west of the US 31 Bypass (exit 24). Its GPS mapping address is 1100 Yore Avenue, Benton Harbor.