BalletMet
Who We Are: BalletMet is an innovator of dance, embraced by our community and beyond. We serve Central Ohio as a cultural and educational resource by engaging the best and brightest dancers and choreographers to live and work in Columbus, attracting audiences to Central Ohio and educating the next generation of dancers, audiences and supporters. With $6.3M annual operations, BalletMet is one of the nation’s top-ranked ballet companies, and our Dance Academy is among the largest affiliated with a professional U.S. dance company.
What We Do: BalletMet entertains, educates and inspires 100,000 community members and students each year, hailing from 79 Ohio counties and 38 states. 70,000 audience members attend 60 performances in Columbus and on tour. DanceReach education and community engagement programs reach 30,000 dance students, school students and life-long learners – many from underserved and special needs populations within our community. Our Dance Academy enrolls1,500+ students in weekly classes throughout the school year, a Summer Intensive and recreational classes, camps and workshops. BalletMet teaching artists deliver sequential Dance-in-Schools programs that align with Ohio Department of Education standards in nearly 100 classrooms.
Why We're Important: As a best-in-class Ohio performing arts organization, BalletMet exemplifies artistic excellence. We attract and retain exceptionally talented dancers by offering full-time employment within a state-of-the-art facility. We create exciting dance by engaging the world’s leading choreographers to set new work on BalletMet dancers. We initiate collaborations with noted artists, companies and designers, sharing production costs to create innovative new works that can reach broad audiences. We build unique audience engagement methods to take dance outside of traditional venues and enthuse new individuals who attend our performances.
How We Impact The Community: BalletMet is an anchor in the Columbus cultural community, providing unmatched dance experiences and elevating the quality of life for Central Ohio audiences. BalletMet aggressively seeks new places for “unexpected art” – taking dance out of traditional venues and creating intriguing experiences that leave individuals wanting to know more. We break barriers to the arts by providing free or discounted performance tickets – and the joy and inspiration of the arts – with thousands of non-traditional audiences that do not have the resources to attend. Our education programs in schools integrate movement-based learning with traditional teaching methods to help improve students’ cognition, behavior and academic skills.
How You Can Help: BalletMet believes the arts serve a critical human need for self-expression and quality of life. To contribute to the arts in our communities, BalletMet relies on donors, volunteers and advocates like you. We invite you to help us continue to bring the best dance experiences to central Ohio, year after year. We welcome gifts at all levels from individuals, corporations and foundations. We also welcome special events partners with our corporate community. We always treasure our volunteers and social media followers that help us by contributing time, talent and spreading the word!
Connect with BalletMet
322 Mount Vernon Avenue Columbus, OH 43215 614-229-4860 www.balletmet.org
Executive Director: Sue Porter
Email: sporter@balletmet.org
Board Chair: Susan Douglass
