The Marblehead Cultural Council has awarded grants for 2026, including funding for live music, historical performances and programming, art installations, and workshops.
“Our council enjoyed reviewing 20 broad and varied applications from members of our local arts and culture community,” said MCC Chair Jeanie Stahl. “We are pleased to announce that we have awarded nine inspirational grants to enliven, enrich and deepen Marblehead’s creative arts scene throughout 2026.”
The MCC places an emphasis on new, emerging and established artists and programs in local venues, as well as racially and culturally diverse programming.
To learn more, visit massculturalcouncil.org/local-council/marblehead.
Here is a list of this year’s grant recipients:
Ipswich River Wildlife Sanctuary
Nature in Your Neighborhood: All About Birds in Marblehead
A Mass Audubon teacher-naturalist will lead a two-hour nature walk at Marblehead Neck Wildlife Sanctuary highlighting the many birds living in the neighborhood.
Date: May 2026
Marblehead Museum and Historical Society Inc.
Resistance and Resilience: Slavery and Freedom in Marblehead
The Marblehead Museum was awarded funds to support an inaugural, semi-permanent (three-plus years) exhibit in the accessible Jeremiah Lee Brick Kitchen & Slave Quarters building. The exhibit will examine and share the stories of individuals enslaved in Marblehead during the colonial period. Through stories, artifacts, images and documents, visitors will learn how these individuals, despite being oppressed, sought and found ways to express their humanity.
Location: Jeremiah Lee Brick Kitchen & Slave Quarters, 157 Washington St.
Date: Beginning June 1, 2026
Marblehead Festival of Arts
This grant will support the live music portion of the festival, featuring more than 20 bands over four days and nights.
Location: Crocker Park
Date: July 2
Salem Sound 2000 Inc./Salem Sound Coastwatch
School to Sea: Connecting Marblehead Families to Salem Sound
Salem Sound Coastwatch will bring hands-on marine science education to Marblehead through its School to Sea program, a series of family-friendly events designed to deepen residents’ connection to Salem Sound and local coastal ecosystems. Through partnerships with Marblehead Recreation and Abbot Public Library, preschool- and elementary-age children and their families will explore intertidal habitats, encounter live marine animals such as crabs and sea stars, and participate in age-appropriate stewardship activities. Led by experienced educators, each session combines storytelling, games and hands-on science to inspire curiosity, build early STEM skills and foster lifelong ocean stewardship.
Location: Marblehead Community Center and Abbot Public Library
Date: Various dates in 2026
AgeSpan Inc.
Community Murals for Senior Residents of Marblehead Public Housing
AgeSpan’s resident services coordinator and residents of Farrell Court have been awarded funds for a communal mural project to revitalize concrete planters in the common green space at the Farrell Court Apartments. SPUR North Shore, a service organization, will contribute in-kind support by preparing the planters for painting.
Location: Farrell Court Apartments, Marblehead Housing Authority
Date: April 2026
Donna Cotterell
Three Heroic Revolutionary Captains From Marblehead
This three-part public history lecture series, led by Marblehead Town Historian Don Doliber, will explore the courage and sacrifice of three local sea captains who helped shape the American Revolution. Each month from April through June will highlight one figure: Captain Michael Corbett and the Pitt Packet incident, Captain James Mugford’s early Revolutionary heroism, and Captain Samuel Trevett’s leadership at Bunker Hill. The April program will feature selected readings from a companion play by Donna Cotterell.
Location: Gerry Five/VFW and Abbot Public Library
Date: April–June 2026
Lanes Coven Theater Company Inc.
Romeo and Juliet at Marblehead High School
Working with the Marblehead High School English Department, Lanes Coven Theater Company will bring guest teaching artists to English classes during the Romeo and Juliet unit in February and March and present a professional performance of the play in the school auditorium. Lanes Coven is an actor-driven professional theater company producing Shakespeare and classical plays for Cape Ann and the North Shore.
Location: Marblehead High School
Date: February–March 2026
Windy Pham, founder of Little Ant World
Voices of Heritage: AAPI Art and Education Workshops
Pham will host an educational workshop featuring bilingual book readings, free book giveaways, live cultural performances, hands-on arts and crafts, and food tastings. Designed for children and parents, the program highlights Asian American and Pacific Islander traditions, history and culture while promoting awareness, celebrating heritage and strengthening community connections.
Location: Abbot Public Library
Date: To be announced
Friends of North Shore Children’s Museum Inc.
Marblehead Free Days
The museum will offer several free admission days for Marblehead residents at the North Shore Children’s Museum. The museum provides accessible, hands-on learning through play in inclusive and welcoming spaces designed to nurture imagination, engage families and strengthen community connections.
Location: North Shore Children’s Museum, 10 Main St., Peabody
Date: Various dates in 2026
In addition, the following program from last year’s awards is now scheduled:
Nick Zaino
The ’80s Comedy Boom: A Boston Comedy History
Veteran arts journalist Nick Zaino will guide audiences through Boston’s comedy boom of the 1980s, from the lack of clubs in the late 1970s to the city’s heyday with comedians such as Steven Wright, Lenny Clarke, Jimmy Tingle, Steve Sweeney, Barry Crimmins, Paula Poundstone, Bobcat Goldthwait, Janeane Garofalo, Marc Maron and David Cross.
Location: Abbot Public Library
Date: Feb. 25, 6–7:30 p.m.
