The Dayton Ballet is a ballet company based in Dayton, Ohio .
37-499: The Dayton Ballet was founded in 1937, making it the second oldest regional ballet company in the United States. Dayton Ballet seasons typically comprise four works—familiar traditional ballets, such as The Nutcracker , as well as new and innovative works—and over 40 performances. The Dayton Ballet performs in the historic 1,139-seat Victoria Theatre (Dayton, Ohio) and the 2,300-seat Schuster Performing Arts Center . Part of
74-463: A bumpy and tumultuous time for the company, and a time of considerable change. Clouser was the first outside, non-Daytonian director, the Dayton Ballet had ever seen, and was a considerable break from the company's past directors. Many dancers and staff from the previous era left, and many new dancers and staff were hired. According to Dayton Daily News articles written during the transition,
111-619: A full slate of entertainment offerings for 2022. Dayton Opera Dayton Opera is an American opera company based in Dayton, Ohio . The company makes its home at the Schuster Performing Arts Center in downtown Dayton where it annually produces three operas and an operatic concert and has an annual budget of approximately $ 2 million. Kathleen Clawson is the Artistic Director. The Dayton Opera
148-749: A new, single entity on July 1, 2012. This new organization was named the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance. It is the largest performing arts organization in the community. Dayton Performing Arts Alliance performances are made possible in part by Montgomery County and Culture Works. The organization also receives partial funding from the Ohio Arts Council . The new organization has one administrative and operational core with one CEO and executive director, with each performing arts unit retaining its own artistic director. The company's dependent dance school, Dayton Ballet School,
185-561: Is an umbrella name covering all four venues, The Victoria Theatre, The Schuster Performing Arts Center , Loft Theatre, and the PNC Arts Annex, and also includes Ticket Center Stage. Its tagline is "Bringing you the best theatre and event experiences in the Dayton Region, Your Home for Arts, Culture & Entertainment". "Dayton Live evokes the energy of live events while boldly declaring that our thriving downtown community
222-609: Is the oldest dance school in Dayton and one of the oldest in the US. It is the only school in the Miami Valley that is linked to a professional dance company. Notable Alumni Victoria Theatre (Dayton, Ohio) The Victoria Theatre is a historic 1,154-seat performing arts venue located in downtown Dayton, Ohio . The Victoria hosts a variety of events including theatre, music, dance, film, and comedy. The Victoria, one of
259-591: Is the region's home for the arts, culture, and entertainment," said Ty Sutton, president, and CEO. With new branding just weeks before COVID-19 shut down venues nationwide, Dayton Live managed to keep operations afloat while laying off hundreds of personnel. In 2021 while awaiting the Small Business Administration Shuttered Venue Operator Grant, Sutton says on April 26, 2021, Dayton Live was finally able to submit its application, nearly four months after
296-820: The Dayton Performing Arts Alliance , which also oversees the Dayton Opera and the Dayton Philharmonic , the ballet receives administrative and operational leadership and support from its parent organization. Karen Russo Burke has been the Artistic Director of the Dayton Ballet since 2011. Dayton Ballet had its beginning when Josephine (Jo) Schwarz and her sister Hermene opened The Schwarz School of Dance in 1927. Jo Schwarz later studied ballet and danced in Chicago, in New York at
333-1020: The Victoria Theatre Association ) is the non-profit arts organization that owns and operates the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center, Victoria Theatre, the PNC Arts Annex (opened in 2018), and the Metropolitan Arts Center (home of The Loft Theatre) for the benefit of the community and the arts organizations that use them. They also own and operate Starbucks at the Schuster and The Arts Garage. Dayton Live presents over 300 performances for all ages each year, including touring Broadway, stand-up comedy, concerts, films, and family shows, as well as educational programs. Independent not-for-profit arts organizations that call Dayton Live venues home include
370-561: The "Victoria Opera House", and in 1903, it became the Victoria Theatre, two years after the death of Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom. Damage again befell The Victoria during the catastrophic Great Dayton Flood of 1913 which severely damaged the Dayton region along with the ground floor of the theater. The theater's interior was rebuilt and remodeled. But on January 16, 1918, fire struck again and gutted portions of
407-460: The 1970s, the theater was operated as "The Victory Theater". It staged legitimate theatrical shows, rock concerts and movies. The theatre was also home to the nationally known Dayton Ballet Company. A mainstay through the period was its screening of "Midnight Movies", offered by a local independent producer, on Friday and Saturday nights that drew a, largely, teen audience for films with counter-cultural themes. During revitalization efforts in
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#1732779800906444-658: The Associations larger Broadway productions as well as large acts. The Dayton Philharmonic, the Dayton Opera, and the Dayton Ballet also rent the building for their performances. These two venues along with the Metropolitan Arts Center , which is a renovated former department store building next to the Victoria Theatre, are able to hold a variety of performances of any size and is the heart of the performing arts district in Downtown Dayton. Dayton Live (formerly
481-570: The Dayton Ballet back in 1984. In the Fall of 1993 Dermot assumed the dual role of executive and artistic director of the company. Under Dermot Burke, the company took on a more American flavor in the tradition of the Joffrey Ballet , embracing distinctly American dance literature, dancers and choreographers. There was also a shift to a "repertory company with lots of choreographic voices," as Burke stated. This repertory includes and has held onto
518-435: The Dayton Ballet for 10 years, in which time the company rose in stature and status. Sebastian brought in new dancers and created the company's first full-length ballet, The Sleeping Beauty . He choreographed over 25 new works. Of those, six were full-length ballets, including Swan Lake and Dracula. Under Sebastian, the Dayton Ballet toured more than 75 cities and took its first international tour to Jerash, Jordan. In 1988,
555-599: The Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Dayton Dance Initiative, Dayton Performing Arts Association (Dayton Ballet, Dayton Opera, Dayton Philharmonic), Muse Machine , and The Human Race Theatre Association. The Victoria Theatre Association and Ticket Center Stage unveiled its new name, Dayton Live , at an open house event on March 10, 2020, at the Schuster Center. The organization also debuted its new website, DaytonLive.org. Dayton Live
592-594: The School of American Ballet, and in Europe. She danced on Broadway , but was forced to return home to Dayton after being injured while performing there. In May 1938, Jo and Hermene gathered together the school's finest dancers, named the troupe "The Experimental Group for Young Dancers," and staged a performance at the Dayton Art Institute . This was the first performance of what is now the Dayton Ballet. Jo
629-549: The Victory Theatre was outfitted for talking pictures, in its effort to continue as a full-service cinema house. In the 1950s and 1960s, it was the home of pictures from Walt Disney's company, as well as other studios' family fare. By the late 1960s, Dayton's changing business patterns Downtown and the proliferation of freeways and suburban shopping malls threatened the Victory Theater's existence, and in 1975 it
666-533: The Victory as a try-out venue for various productions before taking the material to the East Coast. A popular vintage film series drew patrons during the summertime and featured pipe organ house music and silent film accompaniment, thanks to the acquisition of an NCR-donated Estey pipe organ. The 1989 the theatre was closed due to the extensive renovation. It involved razing the interior commercial space within
703-401: The Victory, which was renovated and installed by aficionados. In 1986, Virginia Kettering donated $ 7 million to fund a downtown arts center, conditioning her donation on the requirement that the center include the Victory Theater and be located within the same one-block area. All the while, it continued to be visited extensively by traveling theater companies. Choreographer Twyla Tharp used
740-579: The board of trustees was looking for change and that is why they brought in someone from the outside. In the fall of 1992 an executive director was brought in for the very first time in the company's history: Dermot Burke. Dermot Burke was a star principal dancer with the Joffrey Ballet in New York and had been artistic director of the American Repertory Ballet in New Jersey for 10 years. He knew and choreographed for Sebastian and
777-564: The building. Reconstruction was delayed due to material shortages during World War I. Thus, after Armistice, The Victoria saw extensive interior remodeling and in 1919 re-opened as "The Victory Theatre" – a name commemorating the victorious American war effort. For decades, the theater was a major national embarkation point for traveling theater and stock companies. This included performances by Al Jolson, The Marx Brothers, Helen Hayes, Fannie Brice, George M. Cohan, Lynn Fontayne, Gertrude Lawrence, Alfred Lunt, Harry Houdini, and many others. In 1930,
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#1732779800906814-587: The company appeared on national television while performing in the opening ceremonies of the Pan American Games . Following the departure of Stuart Sebastian in 1990 and his subsequent death in January 1991 after a lengthy battle with AIDS, the company entered a period of transition. James Clouser, former artistic director of the Houston Ballet , was brought in on a three-year contract. It was
851-495: The company dropped the "Civic" designation and became the fully professional Dayton Ballet. Stuart Sebastian, a student of Josephine and Hermene Schwarz, assumed directorship of the company in 1980 at the invitation of Josephine Schwarz. He had danced professionally for the Dayton Ballet and the National Ballet of Washington before assuming the role. He had also choreographed in New York, Germany and England. Sebastian led
888-442: The company has encouraged new talent in opera through a professional training program and an artist-in-residency. Since 1998 the company has maintained a partnership with Dayton's Victoria Theatre under which the two companies share administrative and management functions. The Dayton Opera is a not-for-profit organization funded by individual and corporate contributions as well as county and state support. The Opera Guild of Dayton
925-505: The day, the theatre had a network of access tunnels stretching out beneath the city's streets for several blocks. It was said that, during Vaudeville times, the tunnels allowed circus animals to be unloaded from railroad cars blocks away from the theatre, and held underground until showtime. As late as 1979, much of the tunnel network was accessible to employees, although some sections were blocked off by city steam pipes. The stage also bore remnants of its original gas footlights . Throughout
962-464: The forward, Main Street-facing section of the building as well as the stage house, while carefully preserving and restoring the 1866–71 facade and the 1919 auditorium. At the same time, the interior auditorium portion of the structure was completely renovated. All of the commercial space at street level was reclaimed for a grand, new lobby. The result was an extensively-new Victoria Theatre (as it
999-448: The general director Thomas Bankston. The late 1990s saw the company grow in stature and independence, culminating in a move to the new Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center in 2003. Over its history the Dayton Opera has produced a wide repertoire of Italian, French, American and German opera. It has presented many prominent guest stars, including Plácido Domingo , Martina Arroyo , and Deborah Voigt , among others. Since 1987
1036-625: The late 1970s, the stage manager, Gary Kuzkin, overhauled much of the stage's technical capabilities. Crews from the Stagehands Union (IATSE) local restored much of the theatre's ancient hemp-and-sandbag fly galley, replacing several hundred thousand feet of rope—along with miles of electrical wiring. In 1978, the theatre was greatly benefited by the donation of a cache of equipment and stage draperies from National Cash Register 's (NCR) auditorium, which had been slated for demolition. NCR also donated its historic five-rank Estay pipe organ to
1073-510: The legislation was passed. But since then, venue owners are struggling to get the money partly due to rigorous fraud checks between the SBA and IRS . “They’re worried about fraud at the expense of giving the money back to the people that rightly deserve it,” Sutton said. “We have to let legislators know they have to do this and they have to do it quickly.” [1] As the pandemic has waned, operations have been building back up to full capacity with
1110-654: The oldest continually operated theaters on the continent, was opened to the public as the Turner Opera House on New Year's Day, 1866. The first performance was the James Sheridan Knowles play Virginius , starring Edwin Forrest – the play was strongly associated with the famous actor. According to press clippings of that era, the theater was referred to as "the best theater west of Philadelphia". The theater's presence in Dayton even inspired
1147-482: The orchestra, and 519 in the balcony. The proscenium measures 37'7" wide by 29'0" high by 39'3" deep. A full-sized orchestra pit lies just below the stage lip. Ten dressing rooms, accommodating up to 18 people, are off-stage left, in the basement and at stage level. In 2003, the Benjamin and Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center , under the operation of The Victoria Theatre Association, opened as another venue to house
Dayton Ballet - Misplaced Pages Continue
1184-539: The publishing of a musical march by Edward Spoth named after the opera house. Arson was suspected of having caused an all-consuming fire May 16, 1869, which destroyed the theater at a loss of $ 500,000, of which insurance covered only $ 128,000. In 1871, the edifice was re-opened – its rebuilding based, in part, on a portion of the surviving facade, although built to three stories instead of six. The opera house resumed operations as "The Music Hall". It in 1885 it became "The Grand Opera House". On September 18, 1899, it became
1221-555: The work of Sebastian and the company's past, while at the same time including the work of outside choreographers. In 2011 Karen Russo Burke became Artistic Director of the Dayton Ballet before it merged with the Dayton Opera and the Dayton Philharmonic to form the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance in 2012. Following more than two years of planning, the Dayton Ballet, Dayton Opera , and Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra —Dayton’s three classical performing arts organizations—became
1258-690: Was a pioneer of the American regional ballet movement of the mid-20th century. Through years of persistence, she made Dayton a center of dance. In 1958, the company restructured as the Dayton Civic Ballet, with a board of directors, and federal tax-exempt status. In 1959, the Dayton Civic Ballet became a chartered member of the Northeast Regional Ballet Association. The Schwarz sisters organized many regional dance festivals and choreography conferences. In 1978,
1295-642: Was founded in 1960 by the opera impresario Lester Freedman , who also led the Toledo Opera company. For 20 years under Freedman, the company produced opera at Dayton's Memorial Hall. From 1981 to 1993 the company operated in partnership with the Michigan Opera Theatre under artistic director David DiChiera and other administrators. In 1996 Dayton Opera entered into a partnership with the Cincinnati Opera , sharing staff including
1332-434: Was now so renamed) designed expressly for the performing arts. The auditorium retained its original appearance with completely restored plaster work, drapery, marble work, gilding, and fresco detailing. Additionally, the house received state-of-the-art upgrading to its wiring, lighting, and sound systems and now accommodated infrared sound transmitters for headphone use. The current theater accommodates 1,154, with 635 seats in
1369-494: Was slated for demolition, in favor of a proposed parking lot. A public outcry for the theater's preservation that year helped to earn the building its listing in the National Register of Historic Places and, thus, it escaped demolition. However, portions of the building were in poor or fading condition. A group of young volunteers raised funds and did the early renovation work themselves to prevent demolition. Back in
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