Why Local Cultural Organizations Matter - Even If You’re Not A Fan

You may have heard that Canton, Ohio has a ballet. If not, we do. The organization is celebrating 60 years this season, and the scope of what they produce rivals many professional companies in larger cities. Hundreds of thousands of people over the years have enjoyed annual traditions and productions like The Nutcracker or cheered on a child in a performance.

I’ll admit, I’m not a ballet guy. I’m definitely more at home at a rock concert. I’m betting many people reading this would say the same. So, why keep reading? Because very few of us stop to consider why cultural organizations like the ballet matter, or what it actually takes to keep them alive.

What’s not obvious is that Canton Ballet is a school at heart. It has a profound impact on kids and families. It isn’t just teaching dance; it’s shaping lives. Advanced-level students in the pre-professional division train 20 to 30 hours a week while maintaining an average GPA of 4.4. They learn discipline, time management, and resilience at a level that sets them apart. They gain exposure to global artists and ideas, often traveling internationally for festivals and workshops.

Alumni go on to succeed in ballet, Broadway, film, and television, but also in law, medicine, business, and education—carrying with them skills and confidence from being part of something bigger. Indirectly, this impacts our community. This impacts you.

For parents, the ballet becomes a second home. Kids find mentors who challenge them, friends who understand their passion, and experiences that shape their lives.

For our community, it’s proof that Canton has invested in producing artists, innovators, and leaders of the highest caliber. In a city where sports dominate headlines, arts organizations can feel like they’re playing from behind. Yet, they’re just as essential to a thriving community.

Running a regional ballet school and pre-professional company is hard. Running one at Canton Ballet’s level is even harder. Twenty performances are on the calendar. Guest choreographers are brought in from around the world, like Zarina Stahnke from Semper Ballet in Dresden, Germany. Collaborations with the Canton Symphony Orchestra, Summit Choral Society, and Canton Museum of Art enrich the season. That doesn’t happen by accident. It happens with long nights, high costs, and a constant push for funding and support.

Take The Nutcracker. It’s not just a holiday show, it’s a cornerstone event that costs $125,000 to $150,000 to stage. Professional sets, costumes, lighting, and guest artists elevate the production. Ticket sales alone don’t cover those costs. Only about 50% of the ballet’s budget comes from tuition and tickets. The rest depends on grants, donors, and sponsors willing to invest in something that benefits the entire community.

Canton Ballet has endured challenges most organizations wouldn’t recover from. An arson fire destroyed their building, sets, and costumes in 1981. They’ve faced shifting cultural priorities, dwindling funding, and the challenge of bringing suburban families downtown. Still, they’ve grown in size and ambition, trained dancers who performed at the highest levels, and brought global artistry into our backyard.

All of this requires more than passion. It takes resources, leadership, and community buy-in. Co-founders Suanne Ferguson and Jane Bingham Fawcett were told it wouldn’t be possible to have a ballet school in a football town. Leaders like Jennifer Catazaro Hayward, the executive artistic director, carry forward this legacy built by visionaries like Jeanne Coen and Cassandra Crowley. Local foundations have sustained the organization because they understood that investing in the ballet was also an investment in Canton itself.

The truth is, organizations like Canton Ballet exist because people fight for them. They exist because donors give, boards govern, teachers mentor, and audiences show up. This improves all of our lives.

The arts don’t survive on talent and dreams alone. They survive on the willingness of a community to say: We’re not one-dimensional, and this too is an important part of who we are.

Even if you’ve never set foot in a theater, Canton Ballet directly and positively impacts your life. It shapes the culture of the city for the better. It attracts talent that fuels the economy. It raises the next generation with discipline and creativity. It shows the world that Canton values more than Friday night lights—we invest in the arts because they lift the human spirit, enrich daily life, and weave the cultural fabric that holds our community together.

And in times like these, that’s not just nice to have. That’s essential.