Photo Courtesy of No Divide KC
It began as a passion project, a reaction to the 2016 election results. Stacy Busch put together a benefit concert with proceeds going to help organizations working with the LGBTQ community, immigrants, and refugees.
Now, that effort has blossomed into No Divide KC—a nonprofit that’s supporting local artists of all kinds. Two of its big programs are the Come As You Are fellowship and the Queer Narratives Festival.
“Of course, we’re interested in having quality artistic opportunities for artists that are paid, but we also are interested in bringing different communities together through these events to be able to bridge some gaps in our community, as our name suggests, and bring art into the daily lives of all Kansas Citians,” Busch says.
The fellowship commissions composers and librettists to create a micro opera in partnership with the Lyric Opera. One of last year’s productions focused on a day in the life of a queer couple, while another was about the CEO of TikTok testifying before the U.S. Senate.
Partnering with other organizations is crucial to Busch.
“Early on, we were working with homeless populations and addiction, which is a personal experience of mine, and so we partnered with different organizations working in homelessness—Free Hot Soup, Care Beyond the Boulevard, other organizations—and put on a story night in the park where those organizations got to attend, got to share their stories, and kind of empower these individuals by sharing stories but also shining a light on organizations that work in these areas,” Busch says.
With the Queer Narratives Festival, No Divide KC works with the community to provide an eight-week exhibition with occasional artist-led workshops, culminating in an event featuring music, dance, comedy, spoken word, and drag performances.
Busch says that she’s heard from many people who came out during the pandemic that the festival was their first LGBTQ event and that they really felt like they were part of the community.
Poet Melissa Ferrer Civil has performed at the festival multiple times.
Photo Courtesy of No Divide KC
“I enjoy it so much. It’s such an amazing experience of people expressing themselves. It always feels like each time I do a festival, I’m reaching a new level of self-expression through the platform that they provide,” Ferrer Civil says.
Beyond those bigger events, there are lots of smaller projects No Divide KC takes on. One is Art Spark—a program providing interactive educational art workshops focused on self-expression.
“To be able to attend some of those workshops and see the kids, the progress they make in that hour or two around their personal identity or their expression or what is troubling them, and the way they move through that within that single workshop is really inspiring to see,” Busch says.
Ferrer Civil leads poetry workshops through No Divide KC’s Bicultural Poetry Program, which focuses on bilingual poetry.
“I love working with students. I used to be a teacher, so any opportunity I can have to return to talking to students about their emotions and basically the use of poetry as a form of expression always feels very rewarding,” Ferrer Civil says.
Sometimes, the organization seems like a bit of an anomaly.
Photo Courtesy of No Divide KC
“Within art institutions or in the art sphere, there is this belief that you are either doing high-level excellent art or you are doing community-based art, and it has been a real challenge to demonstrate that we do both,” Busch says. “We are an organization that artistic excellence is defined in all of our arts programs, and yet we don’t define that by traditional pedigree, and these events are public-facing and for the community.”
Right now, it’s mostly grant-funded but Busch is hoping to diversify the group’s income and focus more on donations, especially because a lot of those grants may no longer be available to them in the current climate.
Last year, No Divide KC devoted nearly half its budget—over $50,000—to paying artists’ fees across all its programs. Busch says that remains a priority.
“To have a queer-based organization that supports queer artists and provides that sort of programming is very pivotal to someone learning to accept themselves, whether it be audience member or artist. I think that what No Divide does is very important, especially now,” Ferrer Civil says.
For more information on No Divide KC’s events or to volunteer to help, visit nodividekc.org.
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