The National Endowment for the Arts recently approved Upland-based nonprofit theater group Ophelia’s Jump for a Challenge America award.

Worth $10,000, the grant will employ a deaf Latina director for the world premiere of “CJ: a Trilingual Play,” in November and December. The play, written by Mercedes Floresislas, re-imagines “A Christmas Carol” as a Mexican American coming-of-age story.

“Ophelia’s Jump is thrilled and honored to have been chosen for an NEA Challenge Grant,” wrote OJP Founder and Artistic Director Beatrice Casagrán in a statement. “OJP works to produce theatre that sparks conversations and amplifies diverse voices. We are very excited to build a team of Deaf and hearing artists to collaborate under the leadership of an emerging Deaf Latina Director and are raising funds to help pay for the costs of employing Deaf artists, interpreters, and translators for the project, as well as to teach ASL to Hearing actors on the project so that they can better communicate with Deaf cast and perform in ASL as well as in English and Spanish as required by this wonderful script.”

The NEA’s 257 2024 Challenge America awards total $2,570,000.

“The NEA is delighted to announce this grant to Ophelia’s Jump, which is helping contribute to the strength and well-being of the arts sector and local community,” wrote National Endowment for the Arts Chair Maria Rosario Jackson in a statement. “We are pleased to be able to support this community and help create an environment where all people have the opportunity to live artful lives.”

More information is at opheliasjump.org or arts.gov/news.