State Roundup

Saginaw
Mother writes play about son’s unsolved killing
SAGINAW, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan woman whose 18-year-old son was fatally shot in 2009 in what police believe was a case of mistaken identity has written a play about the unsolved killing that she hopes will prompt someone to come forward with information that could help investigators catch the killer.
Tickets go on sale Thursday for the Dec. 8 premiere of “Speak Up! Speak Out! A Mother’s Cry Against Violence” at Temple Theatre, The Saginaw News reported.
Tiffanny Goodman, of Saginaw, wrote and produced the play. Her son, Ste’von, was shot March 12, 2009, after leaving his grandmother’s home. Tiffanny Goodman said she hopes the play will inspire someone to bring information to police. She also wants people to reconsider “no snitch” attitudes in Saginaw and elsewhere.
“I’m running out of things to do as far as reaching out to the community,” she told the newspaper earlier this year. “This is a cry out to the community. I believe someone will see this play and come forward to say, ‘Enough is enough.’”

Detroit
Group investing nearly $20M in Detroit arts
DETROIT (AP) — Arts groups in Detroit will share nearly $20 million donated by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, including $9 million to be awarded through a community-wide contest to boost the city’s best arts ideas, the foundation announced Tuesday.
The foundation plans to provide $19.25 million through the Knight Arts Challenge, which aims to engage and enrich Detroit. That funding includes $10.25 million to be shared by seven area institutions including the Detroit Institute of Arts, which is getting $2.25 million so it can experiment with ways of highlighting its collection in the broader community.
The foundation will use a community-wide contest in March to track down and fund artists, organizations and businesses with the best ideas for arts projects in Detroit or that benefit the city. It is committing $9 million over three years for those projects.
“We believe Detroit’s future will be driven by entrepreneurs, artists and designers, building on an impressive existing infrastructure,” Alberto Ibargüen, the president of the Knight Foundation, said in a statement. “That’s why we’ve adopted a two-tier approach to our investment, supporting some of Detroit’s most distinguished institutions as well as opening arts funding to everyone.”
The foundation said it has already invested $22.5 million in 180 projects in Miami and Philadelphia where earlier Knight Arts Challenges took place.
“The challenge gives the community, the people with the innovative ideas, the opportunity to propose those ideas, and make them a reality. It’s an ideas contest, truly open to everybody,” said Dennis Scholl, Knight Foundation’s vice president for arts.
The seven institutions that will receive funding up front aim to present art and music in unexpected ways, support literacy efforts and offer training for artists.
The Detroit School of Arts is getting $2.25 million to help bring together professionals from cultural institutions to teach and mentor high school students; the Detroit Symphony Orchestra is getting $2.25 million to expand webcasting and mobile content; and the Michigan Opera Theatre is getting $1 million for community performances.