For NYC Arts: New Donations For Theatre Sets, Costumes To Materials For The Arts From Phantom Of The Opera, Seussical, Other Productions

NYC Department Of Cultural Affairs

11 months ago

NYC DEPARTMENT OF CULTURAL AFFAIRS’ MATERIALS FOR THE ARTS PROGRAM RECEIVES MORE THAN $7 MILLION WORTH OF DONATED ITEMS FROM NYC’S FILM, TV, AND THEATER INDUSTRY AFTER FIRST YEAR OF AN EXPANDED PARTNERSHIP WITH MAYOR’S OFFICE OF MEDIA AND ENTERTAINMENT

One year after partnering with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment to bolster film, TV, and theater donations, MFTA has received 3.2 million pounds of donations valued at $7.4 million from NYC-based productions like The Marvelous Ms. Maisel , Succession , and American Horror Story

Donations have been made available to over 2,000 MFTA members, including public schools, nonprofits, and city agencies, fueling affordable, accessible arts programming across the city

Editor’s note: MFTA hosted their first-ever fashion designer in residence, and their exhibit “Soaring High” opened recently using supplies and materials from the warehouse including found and antique fabrics and paint. They also recently hosted the “Some part of me lived here before” by their artist in residence.

Queens, NY – Materials for the Arts (MFTA), a program of the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs, and the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment (MOME) today announced that through an expanded partnership between the two agencies, MFTA has distributed 3.2 million pounds of free items donated by film, television, theater, and entertainment productions valued at a total $7.4 million to its members – including cultural nonprofits, public schools, and more – over the past year. MFTA’s partnership with MOME has robustly expanded MFTA’s visibility within the film, television, and theater industry. In 2024, two new, MOME-funded staff positions began working at MFTA to expand engagement with the city’s dynamic film, TV, and theater communities. MOME production coordinators actively encourage the productions they support to donate to MFTA, further encouraging sustainable practices across the sector. Through this collaboration, information about donating to MFTA is now featured on MOME’s resource pages for NYC film, television, and theater productions. Thanks to these efforts, donated props, costumes, and other materials from television shows like Prime Video’s “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” HBO’s “Succession,” and FX’s “American Horror Story,” are now fueling affordable, accessible arts programming across NYC cultural community.

“Film, TV, and theater productions are a huge part of our city’s creative industry and cultural dynamism, tapping into the talents of so many New Yorkers to tell stories rooted in New York. This partnership taps into the incredible resources this sector brings to New York, and showcases the power of collaboration between city agencies and our cultural partners to support NYC’s creative community,” said Cultural Affairs Commissioner Laurie Cumbo. “Through the contributions of New York’s world-class film, television, and theater productions, Materials for the Arts is helping to build a more sustainable and equitable cultural ecosystem—one where resources are shared, and creativity knows no bounds.”

“We are proud of our expanded partnership with the Department of Cultural Affairs to support Materials for the Arts across NYC’s creative sectors, including film, TV and theatre,” said Commissioner of the NYC Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment, Pat Swinney Kaufman. “NYC is a global hub for film & TV production, supporting hundreds of thousands of jobs for New Yorkers, and the Materials for the Arts program allows the industry to give back to local communities and promote a circular economy by reducing unnecessary waste.”

“These materials, props, costumes, and furniture are now fueling creativity in classrooms, community spaces, and cultural organizations across the five boroughs,” said Materials for the Arts Executive Director Tara Sansone. “We’re proud to work with the Mayor’s Office of Media and Entertainment and the film, television, and theater industries who are eager keep these items out of landfill to contribute to a cleaner, greener, more creative NYC.”

While these industries have long donated to and collaborated with MFTA, in 2022, MFTA held its first offsite donation distribution events with film and television production warehouses. Typically, MFTA members visit the program’s warehouse in Long Island City to pick up donated materials. The new offsite distribution events at prop warehouses across the city allowed MFTA to make available the contents of entire production warehouses – where film and television productions store their props, costumes, and other materials between shoots – to its members, while also contributing to zero-waste show wraps, diverting tons of materials from the waste stream and fueling affordable arts programming across the city.

Building on this new approach to make these in-demand items available to MFTA members, the expanded partnership with MOME launched last year has significantly grown MFTA’s capacity to offer such opportunities. From 2023 to 2024, MFTA saw a 14% increase in the number of donations from film, television, theater, and entertainment productions. Materials for the Arts is proud to have worked with popular films and television shows including: HBO’s “Succession,” FX’s “FEUD,” Netflix’s “YOU,” FX’s “American Horror Story,” Hulu’s “Only Murders in the Building,” Bleeker Street’s “The Friend” CBS’s “FBI: Most Wanted,” and Prime’s “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel.”

MFTA members, in turn, use the donated supplies to support a vast range of cultural programming. Examples include:

MFTA member Think!Chinatown, which received a vintage mahjong table set with chairs from “The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel,” and used the item in their Lunar New Year celebrations and the organization’s first ever allyship and solidarity research exchange event. Think!Chinatown also received picture frames and vases from other offsite events which supported a photo exhibition and decor for their space.
The Grace Exhibition Space for International Performance Art’s January 2025 //PIXELMOUTH artist residency program used lumber from a Sony Corporation of America offsite distribution for their “Cult of Consumption” exhibition.
Wardrobe and costumes from HBO’s “Succession” were donated to the NYC Administration for Children’s Services (ACS), where youth in care wore them for job interviews and professional pursuits. ACS also created a unique pop-up ‘shop’ experience – serving youth with lessons on tying a tie and make up tips for every occasion – which distributed MFTA film and TV wardrobe donations for milestone events including proms, graduations, and career-building opportunities.

Materials for the Arts has also received donations from iconic theater productions, like Broadway’s longest running show, “The Phantom of the Opera,” which officially closed last after 35 years at the Majestic Theatre. After a Blue Man Group closed in February 2025, MFTA also received props, clothing, and lighting equipment from the renowned production when it ended its historic, 34-year run.

Looking forward, Materials for the Arts is working with MOME to deepen its engagement with the Broadway and off-Broadway community and further strengthen its partnerships with the film and TV industries to continue promoting sustainability and creativity across the city. MFTA’s MOME-positions align with the Adams administration’s Green Economy Action Plan, announced last year, which aims to create over 400,000 “green collar” jobs in NYC by 2040. Through MFTA’s partnership with MOME, MFTA continues to expand its role in fostering a circular economy within the arts.Film, television, and theater productions interested in donating to Materials for the Arts for the Arts can email filmandtelevision@mfta.nyc.gov for inquiries

Banner Image: Phantom of the Opera donation. Image Credit – MFTA

NYC Department Of Cultural Affairs

The New York City Department of Cultural Affairs (DCLA) is the largest municipal funder of culture in the country and is committed to providing access to art and culture for all New Yorkers.