The Chicago Opera Theater has been given a $30,000 grant from the National Endowment for Arts and a $15,000 civic practice grant from Opera America’s Opera Fund.

The grant from the National Endowment is for the company’s upcoming production of “Moby Dick,” which opens on April 25, 2019. The grant was one of 972 that were award from 1,605 applicants.

Meanwhile, the $15,000 award is aimed at expanding existing partnerships with numerous refugee service organizations that help increase access to opera for the refugee community.

“Receiving these two prestigious grants is very gratifying for us,” said Chicago Opera Theater’s Stefan Edlis & Gael Neeson General Director Ashley Magnus in a press release. “We are grateful for the support of the National Endowment for the Arts and OPERA America. Recognition from these particular institutions aligns with our mission of presenting innovative opera and enables the art form to be more accessible and inclusive of all communities, a development that is vital to the advancement of opera in the 21^st century.”

In addition to announcing the grant awards, the company also revealed that Chris Thoren is now the Henry & Frances Fogel General Manager, Strategy and Communications.