Pink Fang, formerly known as Ping Chong and Company, is proud to announce it has been awarded a general operating support grant from the Mellon Foundation, the nation’s largest funder of the arts and humanities. This major support signals a powerful endorsement of the company’s renewed mission, new leadership model, and long-term vision for creating performance at the intersection of art, community-building, and social change. The grant amount totals $900,000 over three years, with Mellon committing $300,000 annually through a reapplication process each year.

The grant arrives at a milestone moment for the company, which recently unveiled a new name, mission, and identity following a three-year, Mellon-supported strategic transition. After five decades as Ping Chong and Company, in July 2025 the organization stepped into its next era as Pink Fang—a name that embraces transformation, creative irreverence, and radical continuity. The shift honors the legacy of founder Ping Chong—who retired in 2022 after 50 years of groundbreaking artistry as chronicled in this Mellon Foundation profile—while centering the next generation of artists and cultural workers shaping the company’s future.

“We are deeply grateful to the Mellon Foundation for this meaningful investment,” said Jane Jung, Managing Director of Pink Fang. “Mellon’s support over the past three years has been instrumental in guiding our transition and reimagining what the future of this company can look like. This new grant allows us to continue building a sustainable and equitable structure for artist-centered creation, community partnerships, and experimentation. It’s a vote of confidence in both where we’ve been and where we’re headed.”

As part of the company’s evolution, Pink Fang now operates under a shared leadership model reflective of its collaborative ethos:

Mei Ann Teo, Artistic Director, New Work

Sara Zatz, Artistic Director, Engagement

Jane Jung, Managing Director

“The Mellon Foundation has long been a vital partner to the work of performance as a tool for justice, imagination, and community connection,” said the Pink Fang leadership team in a joint statement. “Their continued support affirms that values-driven, artist-led organizations like ours have a crucial role to play in shaping the cultural landscape.”

Originally, founded in 1975 by Ping Chong, the company became known for blending multimedia, movement, and documentary storytelling to explore history, identity, and social justice. Its signature Undesirable Elements series and legacy of site-specific, community-rooted performance laid the groundwork for the company’s current trajectory. As Pink Fang, the organization remains grounded in the belief that theater can be a space for transformation, care, and collective-change

The Mellon Foundation’s Arts and Culture program supports organizations committed to just communities empowered by creativity and knowledge. This grant will provide Pink Fang with critical resources to deepen its programming, support artist partnerships, and continue its archival and education work—all while growing its new identity with integrity and purpose.