Pointe Shoe Fund, which helps underwrite the expense of purchasing over 1,500 pointe shoes annually for our female dancers.
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Did you know that every Pennsylvania Ballet ballerina uses 50 to 110 pointe shoes per season, at a cost of $70 a pair? Some ballerinas go through a pair of pointe shoes in a single performance! Our pointe shoes are handmade by cobblers in England who know the precise foot measurements of the dancers. Each dancer has a favorite cobbler who knows exactly how to build her pointe shoes to maximize comfort and performance. With 22 female dancers in the Company, we spend between $100,000 and $140,000 annually on pointe shoes.
Support your favorite ballerina with a gift toward her pointe shoes or make a gift to the Pointe Shoe Fund as a whole. A gift of $70 will underwrite one pair of pointe shoes; a gift of $140 will underwrite two pairs; and so on. Each pointe shoe donor will receive an autographed pointe shoe from her favorite dancer.
For a gift of $5,000, donors also may choose to sponsor a particular dancer's pointe shoes for an entire season.
Pointe Shoe Sponsors receive the following benefits:
- Pair of autographed pointe shoes, with a personal thank-you note from your dancer
- Opportunity to take a photograph backstage with your dancer
- Opportunity to have lunch or tea with your dancer (great for kids or grandkids)
- Opportunity to watch a performance from the wings of the stage (note that you must stand when watching from the wings)
For more information, please contact Hilary Alger, Director of Development 215.587.6912 or at halger@paballet.org.
Louise H. Reed Repertory Fund, which supports the acquisition of new work each season. Click here for more information.
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Established in 2005 in honor of Chair Emerita, Louise H. Reed, gifts to the Repertory Fund enable Pennsylvania Ballet to commission major new productions, acquire full-length productions, refurbish treasured favorites and existing masterpieces, and commission new works by emerging and established contemporary choreographers. Your gift enables these artistic initiatives to showcase our Company and perform important works of distinction.
For more information, please contact Christina Freeman, Annual Fund Manager 215.587.6913 or at cfreeman@paballet.org.
The Children's Enchantment Fund provides free ticket vouchers to low-income children and their families each year.
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We believe that a child's opportunity to experience excellence in the arts should not be limited by individual economic circumstances. Providing such opportunities is an important part of the mission of our outreach and education program. To help us achieve our goal of making ballet accessible to all, we established the Children's Enchantment Fund in 1996. During the last 13 years, over 10,000 children and families have attended Pennsylvania Ballet performances, free of charge, through this very special giving opportunity.
The distribution of ticket vouchers (one for every $30 donated to the Children's Enchantment Fund) is coordinated by our outreach and education department in conjunction with various social service agencies and community organizations. Children receiving ticket vouchers are also provided with workbooks created for our school-based ballet education program, Accent on Dance.
For more information, please contact Christina Freeman, Annual Fund Manager 215.587.6913 or at cfreeman@paballet.org.
Accent on Dance, our outreach and education program.
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Since its inception in 1996, Pennsylvania Ballet's outreach and education program has introduced the art form of ballet to over 125,000 elementary, middle and high school students in the Philadelphia area. Not satisfied with merely providing exposure to the art form, Pennsylvania Ballet seeks to engage schools and community organizations in long-term relationships that maximize the inherent benefits of arts education through curriculum integration and multi-disciplinary participation.
Programs and services include:
Dress Rehearsal Matinees.
Approximately 5,000 students attend dress rehearsal performances each year from city and suburban school districts in Philadelphia, Camden, and the surrounding communities. Participating teachers receive supplementary teaching materials to help prepare students for their theatre experience.
Ticket Giveaways.
Through special drawings at each dress rehearsal, students from participating schools receive premium seating tickets to a regular performance. Additionally, with the assistance of the Children's Enchantment Fund, approximately 1,000 ticket vouchers are distributed each year through a variety of educational, cultural and social service agencies.
Studio Tours and School Visits.
Guided studio tours are offered to selected Accent on Dance participants. Tours include a behind-the-scenes look at the day to day operations of a professional performing arts organization, a presentation by a member of the artistic or administrative staff, a mini class, and an opportunity to observe the Company in rehearsal.
Pennsylvania Ballet II.
An eight-member troupe of pre-professional dancers established in 2002 through the generosity of Joyce and Herbert Kean, Pennsylvania Ballet II is available to perform at your location, offering a one hour performance-based program that includes audience participation, a demonstration of ballet exercises dancers use to build strength, stamina, and flexibility and excerpts from the Company's repertoire.
Delphi Project.
Our thirteenth year of funding from Reliance Standard Life Insurance Company's Delphi Project Foundation to provide unique after school programming for selected Philadelphia middle schools.
School Partnerships.
Our school partnerships with Loesche Elementary and Henry School are now in their sixth year. Our outreach and education department will work with you to identify programming opportunities and design service delivery options that meet the unique needs and interests of your school and students.
After School Ballet Classes.
Offered in three Philadelphia elementary schools in cooperation with Communities in Schools After School Enrichment Academy.
Happy Feet!
Developed specifically for PNC's Grow Up Great program, Happy Feet! introduces pre-school children to the art of dance through a structured, yet playful exploration of creative movement and self-expression. The program has been expanded to three pre-school centers in 2009-2010.
For more information about supporting Accent on Dance, please contact Hilary Alger, Director of Development, at 215.587.6912 or halger@paballet.rog.
To view the benefits of being a donor, please see our complete list of donor benefits at various gift levels.
