Why Give?
Why Give?
With a rich history of 60 years, the WFBT has been a cultural arts presence in bringing and keeping the art of dance alive and growing in Wichita Falls.
Only 25% of the WFBT operating budget is covered by ticket sales. The rest comes from generous donations and sponsorships from supporters of the Wichita Falls Ballet Theatre.
Dance has no boundaries. It reaches across policital, racial, and social lines to connect a community through beautiful pieces and timeless performances that lift and inspire its audience.
WFBT strives to be a valuable asset to the community arts scene in Wichita Falls. We look for opportunities to collaborate with other arts organizations to bring fresh and exciting productions to Texoma.
Dance helps students learn to use their bodies in motion and to move gracefully, improving posture, balance, and self-confidence.
Dance engages all the senses, wires the brain for successful learning, develops gross motor skills and coordination, and enhances emotional well-being.
The arts are a sign of a community’s true prosperity. They are fundamental to our humanity; ennobling, inspiring, and healing us; fostering expressions of creativity, beauty, and freedom.
According to researchers from UCLA, students highly involved in the arts watched fewer hours of TV, participated in more community service, and reported less boredom in school.
Students with an education rich in the arts not only have higher GPAs and standardized test scores (by an average of 100 points in both verbal and math portions), but they have lower drop-out rates, regardless of their socio-economic status.
Ballet teaches teamwork. Dancers learn individually and may be cast in differing roles, but each dancer knows they are all equally important in the whole performance. Working as a team to synchronize movements, coordinate partnering lifts, line up formations and spacing on stage, and create a moving performance requires each dancer to not only put forth their best individual effort, but to rely on each other to put together a polished production.
Supporting the WFBT means supporting our local economy. Not only are we a company comprised of local artists and aspiring artists, we hire local crew members, use local print agencies and other local small businesses for goods and services for our productions when possible.
WFBT is growing! This year, we are preparing three shows for our community to enjoy. That means our dancers have three opportunities to be challenged performing new roles, to strengthen their skills, and polish their performance technique.
The arts are essential to the health and vitality of our communities and our nation. They improve the quality of life in our cities and towns. They enhance community development; spur urban renewal; attract new businesses; draw tourism dollars; and create an environment that attracts skilled, educated workers and builds our third millennium workforce.
Ballet training conditions students both physically and mentally. It requires strength and builds lean muscles promoting healthy bodies, but it also requires a mental capacity for determination, focus, and self-discipline.
WFBT’s annual Afternoon with the Arts is a free performance school children attend during the spring each year. Many times, this is a first-exposure opportunity introducing live, classical ballet to children who might not otherwise have the chance to experience it.
Dance gives its students the ability to think freely and creatively, connecting music and movement with emotion and senses.
Studies have shown that servicemen and women, and their families, benefit significantly through involvement in the arts and arts programming.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, children and adolescents should have at least 60 minutes of exercise per day, with at least 3 days incorporating vigorous activity.Ask any of our Company members or WFYB students, and they’ll tell you their dance training definitely meets that recommendation!
50% of the American public wants to attend more dance performances, and more Americans attended a live arts event (39%) than a sporting event (35%) in a recent survey conducted by the National Endowment for the Arts.
Arts involvement and arts education, including dance education, produces individuals who can create and innovate in a professional setting. U.S. employers rate creativity/innovation among the top five skills that will increase in importance over the next five years, and rank it among the top challenges facing CEOs.
Government and private-sector support are essential to promote full access to and participation in performances, arts education, and other cultural events regardless of family income.
Research from the National Dance Education Organization reveals that students with dance training perform better in many areas in school from math and science to reading and writing. Studies have also shown that “students who participated in dance demonstrated more persistence and had higher grades than those involved in non-dance activities.”
Arts have social impact, and a strong arts scene within a community leads to higher civic engagement, more social cohesion, higher child welfare, and lower crime and poverty rates.
A strong arts and culture sector and a creative workforce are critical factors in attracting and keeping businesses within our community. It also encourages people to stay local and attend cultural events within our community, boosting our local economy.
Supporting the Wichita Falls Ballet Theatre preserves both the history and future of dance in Wichita Falls. Many dancers have reaped the benefits of ballet in our community, and many more are just discovering their love of ballet. Your donation makes it possible for us to keep the passion, creativity, and excellence of the WFBT alive for generations to come.
