Miami City Ballet tops $55 million goal

Miami City Ballet has reason to brag.

One of the nation’s top ballet companies, the organization says it has exceeded its fundraising goals, bringing in a total of $65 million.

The ballet’s recently completed Transforming Lives Campaign was the largest in the company’s history.

The four-year organizational fundraising campaign had an initial goal of raising $55 million.

Miami City Ballet, which performs a series at the Kravis Center, exceeded that goal, raising $57 million during the campaign period and securing pledges of $8 million for future fiscal periods, bringing the total impact of the campaign to $65 million.

Led by Campaign Chair and former board of trustees Chair Kristi Jernigan, the campaign provided the money for the ballet to aggressively pursue its strategic initiatives. These initiatives fall within the company’s four pillars for delivering the company’s mission: artistic expansion; community building; dance education; and organizational capacity. The campaign also increased the ballet’s donor base with 2,000 new donors.

The repertoire expanded with six company premieres and major productions such as George Balanchine’s “Firebird” and, most recently, Alexei Ratmansky’s “Swan Lake” and four world premieres by emerging choreographers. The company created extensive sets and costumes for these productions, and they were performed to critical acclaim and sold-out audiences. Increased touring also resulted in rave reviews with stops at New York City Center’s 75th anniversary George Balanchine celebration, Music Center in Los Angeles, Chicago’s Harris Theater, two visits to The Kennedy Center, Les Etés de la Danse in Paris, and more. In addition, in 2022 Miami City Ballet will visit the prestigious dance festival Jacob’s Pillow and Cal Performances in Berkeley, California.

The campaign also benefits the next generation of performers.

Miami City Ballet School awarded nearly $2 million in tuition and housing scholarships based on merit and need. Pre-professional students performed in major productions, including “George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” and “Swan Lake.” During the campaign, eight students joined MCB’s professional company and six more joined prestigious international companies.

The company’s community engagement programs also have expanded. Its signature outreach program, Ballet Bus, now in its seventh year, has seen significant growth during the campaign period. By providing children with a longterm commitment to eliminating barriers and providing access to a robust, expert ballet curriculum, 10 students are training on pointe, two were accepted into the New World School of the Arts, and several have appeared in professional stage productions of “The Nutcracker,” “A Midsummer Night’s Dream,” “Firebird” and “Swan Lake.”

Other programs include STEAM+, a program that explores the science and math subjects through dance, now serves 1,800 students from Miami-Dade Title 1 Schools. Palm Beach Summer Dance Camp is entering its third year. And nearly 13,000 students and families have attended a free performance through Ballet for Young People and Ballet for Families, interactive performances committed to eliminating barriers to access to the arts.

Additionally, the ballet said it has sustained a $20 million to $25 million annual operating budget, raised a $4 million Dancer Support Fund to assist dancers and artistic staff during the pandemic, and improved facilities with over $2 million in capital improvements such as new windows, HVAC, floors, studio lighting and a new roof.

The ballet said the campaign allowed it to build a more equitable and inclusive pipeline for students while expanding opportunities for more diverse audiences to experience ballet.

“When the campaign was initiated in 2018, $55 million was an unprecedented goal. Add to it the unforeseeable impact of the pandemic; the thought of reaching our goal, at times, felt like a distant dream. But through hard work and perseverance, we not only achieved our goal, we exceeded it,” Ms. Jernigan said in a statement. “We found a community of supporters, a bonded and expanded Board, and an army of talented employees who rose to the occasion. I could not be prouder of everyone’s efforts and the campaign’s overwhelming success.”

“The Transforming Lives Campaign was appropriately named,” current

Board Chair Jeffrey Davis said in the statement. “By successfully raising this amount of money, we have been able to provide a true difference in the lives of our students, artists, and communities. We look forward to building upon the momentum we have.”

Artistic Director Lourdes Lopez gave credit to Ms. Jernigan and Mr. Davis.

“MCB is stronger and our future brighter than ever. We could not have done this without the support of so many, including Kristi, Jeff, and the countless others who gave so generously and advocated for this art form that I know firsthand has the power to transform lives. I also want to acknowledge the outstanding work of our remarkable development team and the entire MCB family.” ¦