Allied Solutions Center Awards Arts Commission

Winners of the 2026 New Works arts commissions at Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts are (from left) Justin David Sears, Kyle Ragsdale, Mina Keohane, Brandon Meeks and Saki Morimoto.

Four Indiana performing artists and one visual artist have been selected to receive cash awards and public premiere opportunities through Allied Solutions Center for the Performing Arts’ annual New Works commission project, now in its fifth season.

The 2026 New Works Premiere Performances will take place Saturday, May 30, at the Tarkington theater and will be livestreamed on Allied Solutions Center’s website and social media accounts. Free tickets are available now at TheCenterPresents.org and (317) 843-3800. The event also will include the unveiling of this year’s winning visual artwork.

The New Works project is designed to promote and sustain the area’s working artists and artistic communities by supporting the creation of new works in the performing and visual arts disciplines. The proposed performance works are limited to 20 minutes each and must reflect Allied Solutions Center’s organizational core values of integrity, excellence, innovation, collaboration and inclusion. Each winning proposal receives a $2,500 cash award, technical support in adapting the piece for the stage, onstage rehearsal time prior to the performances, and access to the archived event video for promotional use.

The winning performance proposals selected by the judging panel are:

They Knew They Would Dance Again – Mina Keohane, Indianapolis

Keohane is a musician and composer who studied at the Berklee College of Music. Her project is a musical work in three movements for tambourine ensemble and voice, using oversized tambourines designed and constructed by collaborators Fred Erskine and David Melsheimer. Keohane chose to explore the simple instrument because of its mysterious origins and its widespread use throughout history by diverse cultures around the world. The title is drawn from the biblical story of the Exodus, in which the tambourine symbolized hope amid hardship.

Unsung Giants: Clifford Ratliff – Brandon Meeks, Indianapolis

Meeks is a bassist and composer known for blending jazz, soul and hip-hop influences. His project, part of a broader effort to celebrate Indiana jazz history, will pay tribute to legendary Indianapolis trumpeter Clifford Ratliff with an original work for piano trio. The performance will include new compositions and improvisation by Meeks and collaborators William Menefield on piano and Cassius Goens on drums, accompanied by projected images and spoken narrative detailing Ratliff’s achievements and continuing influence on younger generations of musicians.

Neither and Both – Saki Morimoto, Fort Wayne

Morimoto is a professional dancer with Fort Wayne Ballet and will be joined by colleagues for the performance. Her project is a contemporary dance work inspired by her cross-cultural experience of moving from Japan to the United States at age 14, highlighting the contrasts between Japanese values of humility, harmony and community and American ideals of individuality, boldness and self-expression. The dancers’ costumes will reflect the cultural differences, and prerecorded audio will include Western orchestral music and an original collage of everyday sounds from Japan.

Edges of Insanity – Justin David Sears, Indianapolis

Sears is a dancer, choreographer and founder of Justin Sears Dance Foundation. His contemporary dance project explores addiction recovery through embodied storytelling, video projections and recorded testimonials to interpret the real-life experiences of individuals who have journeyed through substance abuse to recovery. Created in collaboration with Margo Korn, Amanda Hoover, Pulse Dance Theatre and Avenues Recovery Center Indianapolis, the piece portrays a progression from isolation and suffering to community and hope, aiming to reduce stigma while highlighting the transformative power of recovery communities.

The four pieces will be performed publicly for the first time at the 7 p.m. May 30 event, and the artists will join in a talkback discussion to close the evening. Tickets are free to reserve at the Fifth Third Bank Box Office at the Payne & Palladium, online at TheCenterPresents.org and by phone at (317) 843-3800. The livestream and recorded video of the performance will be available free on Allied Solutions Center’s website and social media channels.

This event also will include the public unveiling of this year’s winning visual arts project:

Folklorico – Kyle Ragsdale, Indianapolis

Ragsdale is a fine art painter and longtime curator for the Harrison Center in Indianapolis. His project is an oil painting on canvas reflecting his interest in Mexican culture and its contributions to life in the Midwest. The content is inspired by a mariachi and folklorico dance performance he observed last year, reflecting the collaboration among the musicians and dancers. The surface will be manipulated with trowels and palette knives to create textures that accentuate the dancers’ costumes and movements. Following the unveiling, the painting will hang in the Payne & Mencias Palladium’s South Lobby for one year, to be viewed by thousands of patrons and other visitors.

New Works is supported by the Allen Whitehill Clowes Charitable Foundation. More information is available at TheCenterPresents.org/NewWorks.

Photo credit: Joshua Hasty