New York, N.Y., July 12, 2025— 4A Arts (American Alliance of Artists and Audiences) mourns the passing of its visionary founder and Board Chair Emeritus, Charles (Charlie) Reinhart. His death follows complications from a stroke suffered a week ago.
Not a dancer himself, Charlie frequently spoke about the awe he felt watching the works of dancers and choreographers. He fostered the careers of Paul Taylor, Alvin Ailey, Merce Cunningham, and Shen Wei, winning achievement awards including Dance/USA’s Lifetime Achievement in Dance (1994), an Emmy Award for the 3-part PBS series, “Free to Dance, the African American influence on modern dance,” and the title of Officier dans l’Ordre des Arts et des Lettres for his efforts to introduce French modern dance to the United States.
Because he felt arts, culture, design, and craft still were not appreciated sufficiently by elected officials at the local, state, and federal levels, Charlie founded 4A Arts at the age of 85, with the goal of building a membership organization of millions to bring greater prioritization of American creativity through grassroots organizing.
4A Arts Board Chair Luis R. Cancel said, “Charlie’s determination to establish a broad base of support for American arts was what attracted me to 4A Arts, and the full Board of the organization that he founded will continue to advance his vision – making the arts an integral part of maintaining healthy communities.”
“Since I joined 4A Arts as Executive Director, I’ve spoken with Charlie twice a week regarding strategy and to collaborate on the growth of 4A Arts,“ said 4A Arts Executive Director Gavin Lodge. “Even at age 94, Charlie was detail-oriented and focused on bringing greater celebration of the arts through the citizenry. He remained steadfast in the belief that leveraging the emotional connection between an institution and its audience is the way to change the narrative for arts in America. Our work is proving that what he envisioned is possible, and in his honor, the 4A Arts team is determined to meet his goals. I will miss his guidance, passion, humanity…and our check-ins.”
For further information on how you can support the arts in your community, visit 4AArts.org.