Ballet Arizona was awarded $600,000 dollars from Gov. Doug Ducey’s office as a part of the American Rescue Plan Act.
The organization was devastated by the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ballet Arizona says the funds will aid the organization in overcoming financial burdens it experienced during the pandemic.
A majority of its budget comes from audience ticket purchases. While Ballet Arizona could see about 90,000 people in one year, it only saw about 8,000 virtual audience members during lockdown.
Jami Kozemczak is the group’s executive director.
“When you add up the past 2 1/2 years and the impact of COVID, I would say we are totaling revenue losses near $10 million overall,” she said.
Kozemczak said it saw record breaking audience numbers in December and hopes to see the trend continue into the new year.
