Multicultural Arts Center
About
The Multicultural Arts Center is a nonprofit arts center in East Cambridge, next to Kendall Square, founded in 1978 to help diverse communities better understand one another. Artists and performers use its theater and gallery to share stories through music, dance, poetry, theater and visual art, sparking conversation about identity, race and equity. It also opens its professionally equipped facility to artists and groups who might otherwise lack access to such space.
The center moved into its historic home in 1985, and its programming and staff have long reflected the community’s diversity. The 2026-27 season includes a BIPOC play festival, an artist-in-residence showcase, a Día de los Muertos celebration, a celebration of Black fashion and a festival of movement artists. Gallery exhibitions rotate through the year, with calls for wall-mountable fine art that encourage BIPOC artists to apply. Performers can rent space for shows, rehearsals or workshops on a sliding scale.
What to Know
- The building has an accessible entrance and elevator, and the gallery serves as a quiet room during performances.
- Many events include ASL interpretation, multilingual interpretation or captioning.
- The center plans to celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2028 with a multimedia history project called Past Forward.
- A renovation project aims to upgrade the theater’s technical infrastructure and add accessible, all-gender restrooms.
- It is a women-led nonprofit.
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