Stories

Each month, SHARE Charlotte provides a series of highlights on local nonprofits who are doing great work for a cause that may be close to your heart.  We call this series #SpotlightOnCLT and we hope it helps you get involved in ways that matter most to you - you can attend events, donate, or volunteer! Most of all, our goal is for you to be more educated about issues in our city and region. 

This March, SHARE Charlotte is highlighting nonprofit partners who bring arts and culture to Charlotte  - as teachers, performers, artists, curators, promoters, collaborators and creativity-encouragers! Charlotte is SO LUCKY to be home to a thriving arts scene, and they need our support!

View upcoming arts events!

We're grateful to Cain Center for the Arts for sponsoring this month's #SpotlightOnCLT. Located in the heart of Old Town Cornelius, the Cain Center provides exceptional visual arts, performing arts, and social experiences to the Lake Norman Region. We look forward to sharing more about their work throughout the month!

Note: By clicking the buttons for each organization, you can access contact information, volunteer interest forms, social media pages, and upcoming events. We hope you will! 

🧑🏽‍🎨👨‍🎨 Artist Collectives and Support

Charlotte Art League
Charlotte Art League (CAL) serves local artists by creating exhibit, working studios, and classes for artists. 2025 is our 40th anniversary serving the Charlotte community. Located in the Sugar Creek corridor, a 5 minute walk from the Sugar Creek light rail, CAL has something for everyone. Whether you're an artist looking to display your work, a forever student looking for classes to hone your skill, or an art enthusiast looking for work to purchase at fair prices, we're the spot for you. 

Charlotte Street Art Collaborative
Our mission is to assist artists to attain and maintain a sustainable living in the arts. We facilitate this via free to low cost workshops, art markets, & events where the Artists are paid and art vending is free. Although we have a decidedly street vibe, we collaborate with any and all art genres as we believe in the space of community creativity blooms!

ArtPop Street Gallery
ArtPop Street Gallery an arts organization in its 12th year.  Showcases local artist and equips them achieve sustainable success.  We work to make art accessible to all people in the communities we serve because everyone deserves access to the arts.

The Arts & Science Council (ASC)
The Arts & Science Council (ASC) is Charlotte-Mecklenburg’s cultural leader delivering vital access to funding, capacity building, and entrepreneurial resources for local creatives and cultural organizations. The resources we provide drive economic growth and strengthen community retention. As champions of artists, educators, students, and organizations, we expertly steward resources, oversee local programming, and create public art to empower our communities, foster connection and nurture an identity of belonging. ASC serves as a cultural catalyst elevating Charlotte’s creative community, ensuring that arts and culture remain a driving force for innovation, inclusion, and progress.

Upcycle Arts
Upcycle Arts is Charlotte's first creative reuse center! We accept donations of gently used arts and crafts supplies from Charlotteans and local businesses to divert their materials from the landfill. Instead, those materials are made available to the community for use in new ways such as mixed media arts.

McColl Center
McColl Center champions contemporary artists, providing the space, support, and opportunities they need to create and thrive. As a place where art, artists, and the community meet, we remove barriers and create space for connection, inviting the public into the creative process. Through our artist residency program, exhibitions, open studios, and artist-led experiences, we foster dialogue, inspiration, and transformation, ensuring that artists remain at the heart of everything we do.

💃🏾 Dance

Baran Dance
Baran Dance is a nonprofit contemporary dance company committed to elevating bodies and creative voices from diverse histories, particularly minority and female identifying dance artists. Known for creative collaborations with local musical, visual, and literary artists, Baran Dance utilizes bold physicality and poignant nuance to craft a uniquely human experience for existing and unrealized dance fans alike. Through multidisciplinary performances and mentorship programs, we further accessibility, inclusion, and equity in contemporary dance throughout the Southeast. We move to move you. 

Barre Belle
Barre Belle is dedicated to to ensuring that every child has the chance to dance. We take the studio into the community offering complimentary ballet classes at community centers and after school programs. Our students receive free ballet shoes, leotards and tights, allowing them to move more freely while embracing the look and feel of ballet dancers. Additionally, we have the opportunity to attend a pre-professional dance performance at no cost to participants.

Caroline Calouche & Co.
Caroline Calouche & Co. is the Southeast's only professional dance and circus company located in Charlotte.  Their school is the Charlotte Cirque & Dance Center located on Monroe Road.  Their mission is to create opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to see and participate in dance and circus arts.

🎹 Music

Charlotte Chorale
Our mission is to Make Great Music and Give Back.  Our creatively themed concerts offer a variety of styles of music for the audience.  Our Buy A Biscuit for a Soldier program has fed over 45,000 soldiers.

We Rock Charlotte
Our organization empowers allies and advocates through music and arts, creating a nurturing and inclusive space where all voices are heard. We offer music lessons, workshops focused on arts and social justice, a summer rock camp, and adult workshops to foster creativity and social change. Through these programs, we aim to cultivate a more just and equitable society by promoting artistic expression and community engagement.

Tosco Music
Tosco Music is a nonprofit organization that presents a wide variety of music through performances and outreach programs; fosters a sense of community among listeners and performers; and connects professional and amateur musicians to share and inspire one another. From concerts and open mic nights to youth music scholarships and outreach, Tosco Music is dedicated to helping the community explore, develop and share their passion for music in all its forms. Annually, Tosco Music brings music into the community at approximately 100 activities and 30 locations across Charlotte, with half of those provided for older adults in the communities where they live.

Charlotte Choir School
Charlotte Choir School is an auditioned community choral program for children and youth offering accessible and rigorous music education and performance opportunities to talented young people from every background and every corner of the Charlotte region. Originally founded in 1993 as a boys choir in the classic English tradition, the now-independent school has grown to include five distinct choirs of boys and girls whose members range in age from seven to eighteen, in residence at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church. Every year the choirs of Charlotte Choir School perform for thousands of audience members, offering three concerts in Uptown Charlotte as well as performances in secular and sacred settings throughout the Charlotte region. 

7th Street Concerts
7th Street Concerts is a new concert series that’s fresh, classical and a little unexpected.  Our lineup includes world-renowned classical musicians who have played in music venues around the world including Carnegie Hall, Lincoln Center, Carmel Bach Festival and more. We perform in residence at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church (at the corner of 7th Street and Tryon, thus our name) in the parish hall where audiences are seated just a few feet away from these extraordinary musicians. We also offer a unique take on community service by providing free access to our top-tier music to those in our community (through schools, hospitals, and shelters) who embrace the uplifting power of music and for those often overlooked by society. Info at 7thStreetConcerts.org

Opera Carolina
Opera Carolina is the largest opera company in the Carolinas; annually serving more than 55,000 people in 17 counties in the Carolinas each year through our Grand Operas, Education programs and Community programs. We believe in the power of opera to make a positive impact across our region by strengthening our communities while empowering learning and leading professional artistic development. 55% of our total impact comes from our Family and Learning programs: Opera Xpress Educational Touring Company, pARTnership Residencies in local schools, Student Night at the Opera and our Youth Academy.

🎭 Theatre/Performing Arts Centers

Three Bone Theatre
Three Bone Theatre is Charlotte's home for the best of adult contemporary theatre. Our mission is to use theatre as a catalyst for conversation and change in the Charlotte community. Currently in their 13th season, Three Bone Theatre has consistently presented a slate of regional and national premieres of award-winning plays that focus on social justice. Each season we partner with four community organizations and hire around 50 local artists. We were recently named the 2024 North Carolina Professional Theatre Company of the Year by the North Carolina Theatre Conference. Our mainstage season is presented at The Arts Factory, located in Historic West End. Three Bone Theatre is committed to being an anti-racist, inclusive and accessible theatre company.

Cain Center for the Arts
Our mission at Cain Center for the Arts is to provide exceptional visual arts, performing arts, and social experiences to the Lake Norman Region. The art made here is for all ages and backgrounds, with space and resources to express and explore our experiences with the world and each other. We invite you to learn more about our exciting performing arts series, innovative visual art exhibits, robust education program, and community impact initiatives. We encourage members of the community to get involved as audience members, artists, students, or volunteers!

Matthews Playhouse of the Performing Arts
About Matthews Playhouse of the Performing Arts has been enriching the lives of children and adults in the Charlotte area for nearly 30 years, providing high-quality, affordable theatrical experiences to the community. From classic productions to educational programs, Matthews Playhouse is committed to fostering a love for the arts in all generations.

The Lotus Project
The Lotus Project builds community and inspires change by providing accessible, inclusive, and affirming theatre and creative experiences that explore the hardship and beauty of the human condition. Using the arts as a vehicle, we focus on self empowerment, relationship building, and community advocacy. Our programs include community theatre productions, corporate/educational workshops and in-school residencies, summer intensives, and a touring production designed for children ages 2 - 8 with their caregivers.

Blumenthal Arts
Blumenthal Arts is best known for bringing top tier performing and immersive arts to the Charlotte region, driving economic growth. However, equally important is the not-for-profit work we provide across the Charlotte region. With the help of generous donors, we provide programs for students in every stage of their education journeys, teachers, artists, and the community at large.

🎨 Arts Education

Arts+
Arts+ provides an outlet for creativity and brings joy, confidence, and a sense of accomplishment to its students through private lessons, group classes, workshops, camps, Studio 345, and Charlotte Youth Choir. We model equality and inclusion in arts education by striving to welcome and encourage every student, regardless of financial status. Outstanding arts education should be available to everyone. That’s why Arts+ offers free or reduced rate music and visual art programming to over half of its 4,500 students. 

Charlotte African Drum and Dance Collective
Charlotte African Drum and Dance Collective offers weekly West African dance classes for youth and adults within Charlotte and the greater Charlotte Metro area. Programming also includes a regular children's dance initiative, drum instruction for all ages, drum circles, and specialized programs for senior dancers and drummers. Additionally, we provide performance opportunities for community members to celebrate holidays such as Black History Month, Juneteenth, and Kwanzaa.

Grooming Greatness Foundation
Grooming Greatness educates, enriches and empowers youth from underserved communities, ages 9-16yrs old, through exposure to cultural experiences, literacy and the arts. We engage the youth through excursions to the theatre, museums and historical spaces. Our in-person programming provides life skills centered around the importance of image, etiquette, healthy habits and utilizing the arts as a therapeutic way to cope with the stress factors in life. 

Arts For Life
Arts For Life is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting pediatric patients and families through arts education and engagement. By providing educational arts programs in hospitals and clinics, we enrich patients’ lives, nurture their minds and spirits, and encourage positive healthcare experiences for children and their families. Each year, we serve thousands of children and families navigating illnesses and disabilities—no matter who they are, no matter where they are from.

🖼️ Museums

The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art
The Bechtler Museum of Modern Art is committed to enriching the lives of the entire community and is devoted to extending programming beyond its walls. We are proud to partner with several community groups and organizations to highlight how the arts can play a vital role in everyone's life. By providing active and hands-on learning experiences through visual art-based programs, our museum staff aims to create and broaden communities within the museum and the local population. Our community partnerships are tailored to fit the different needs within each organization. These community programs are offered free of charge as the museum believes there should be no barriers to access for audiences that have been underserved by the visual arts community.

The Mint Museum
The Mint Museum, North Carolina’s oldest art institution, is committed to making art accessible to all. We provide opportunities for people of all ages to engage with art, art education, and creative expression, recognizing the lifelong benefits of early exposure to the arts. Through free access for children and programs designed to reach communities in need, we strive to inspire, educate, and enrich our diverse community.

The Schiele Museum of Natural History
The Schiele inspires curiosity and understanding of science and the natural world by highlighting how nature and human culture interconnect, and sharing that connection through exceptional programs, research, and exhibits. Visitors of all ages can explore dinosaur fossils, wildlife displays, American Indian artifacts, gems and minerals, and a state-of-the-art planetarium at The Schiele Museum of Natural History. In addition, a replica Catawba Indian Village, life-size mazes, and a working farm are located just outside the front doors on a beautiful Nature Trail. 

🎞️ Film

The Independent Picture House/Charlotte Film Festival
The Independent Picture House (IPH) is Charlotte’s only nonprofit arthouse cinema, dedicated to bringing diverse, thought-provoking films to our community. We showcase independent, international, and local films, providing a platform for underrepresented voices in cinema. Through filmmaker Q&As, educational programs, and partnerships with local artists and organizations, we foster meaningful conversations and cultural engagement. IPH also offers affordable rental space and community programming, ensuring the arts remain accessible to all.