The Schuster Center is the home of two of Dayton’s arts treasures, Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra and the Dayton Opera. Dayton Ballet and Victoria Theatre Association present select performances at the Schuster Center as well.
Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra
Founded in 1933, the Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra holds a distinguished place in the Gem City’s history as one of the community’s oldest and longest-standing cultural institutions. Today, rich in artistic tradition and under the leadership of Music Director Neal Gittleman, the Orchestra makes its new home at the Schuster Center. Under Gittleman’s direction, the Orchestra has received the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers (ASCAP) award for Adventurous Programming of Contemporary Music three times. More than 85,000 school children are reached by the Orchestra’s extensive education programs—more children than any other orchestra of their budget size in the United States.
Dayton Opera
For more than 50 years, Dayton Opera Association productions have mirrored the full spectrum of human experience to a diverse regional audience. With each production, Dayton Opera strives to assemble the finest artistic personnel and highest quality voices from the esteemed U.S. and international opera houses. A new era in Dayton Opera history began with the opening of its new performance home, the Benjamin & Marian Schuster Performing Arts Center, which provides an opera experience like nothing Dayton has previously experienced. In addition, Dayton Opera presents and produces a growing number of education programs, as well as a popular opera preview program.
Dayton Ballet
Founded in 1937, Dayton Ballet is one of the oldest professional dance companies and schools in the United States, with an ever-increasing regional impact. The Dayton Ballet has become widely known for presenting American dance classics and for premiering new works by emerging American choreographers. Dayton Ballet reaches more than 17,000 Miami Valley children each year, through the Young Audience Program and The Muse Machine, in addition to the more than 400 students through the Dayton Ballet School and Dayton Ballet II, a pre-professional training and performing company of talented young dancers.
Victoria Theatre Association
Victoria Theatre Association is one of Dayton’s premier arts organizations, presenting the Premier Health Partners Broadway Series, the PNC Family Series, the Cool Films Series, Star Attractions, the Projects Unlimited Variety Series, and The Frank M. Tait Foundation Discovery Series, which features curriculum-enhanced live theatre productions for school children.
