An anonymous donor to the Maine Community Foundation has given $200,000 to 20 community theaters across Maine to help them through the pandemic.

“In addition to its emergency response to COVID-19, the Maine Community Foundation and its donors are working to build resiliency in Maine communities,” foundation President and CEO Steve Rowe said in a news release. “In this case, an anonymous donor has chosen to shine a spotlight on smaller community theaters and how they are a critical part of a community’s identity and creative spirit. We are grateful for the donor’s generosity and vision.”

The cast of “Measure for Measure,” to be presented by the Theater at Monmouth, rehearsing at Cumston Hall before a live taping. Courtesy of Theater at Monmouth

The theaters receiving money include Bagaduce Theatre, Brooksville; Belfast Maskers; Celebration Barn Theater, South Paris; Center Theatre, Dover-Foxcroft; City Theatre, Biddeford; Deertrees Theatre, Harrison; Denmark Arts Center; Eastport Arts Center; The Grand Auditorium, Ellsworth; LA Public Theatre, Lewiston; Lakewood Theatre, Madison; Lincoln Theater, Damariscotta; New Surry Repertory Theatre and Acting School, Blue Hill; Opera House Arts, Stonington; Rangeley Friends of the Performing Arts; Saco River Theater, Bar Mills; Schoodic Arts for All, Winter Harbor; The Theater at Monmouth; Waterville Creates; Wintergreen Arts Center, Presque Isle.

In Boston, the New England Foundation for the Arts awarded $1.8 million to 71 arts and cultural nonprofits in New England through the New England Arts Resilience Fund, part of the national United States Arts Resilience Fund. Six organizations in Maine received money: The Abbe Museum, Bar Harbor, $50,000; Space Gallery in Portland, $30,000; Indigo Arts Alliance, Portland, $25,000; Bates Dance Festival, Lewiston, $20,000; Opera House Arts, Stonington, $20,000; Art at Work, Portland, $10,000.

The fund was made possible by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and created in response to the impact of COVID-19 on the nation’s arts infrastructure.