On Sunday, March 12, 2017 at 3 p.m. in the Centerville High School Central Theater, 500 E. Franklin Street, Centerville, Ohio, the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance will present “A Taste of the Arts.” This performance has been made possible by generous funding from the City of Centerville and the Centerville Arts Commission. This concert is free and open to the public.
This exciting program is a collaboration of Dayton Opera, Dayton Ballet, and Dayton Philharmonic and will showcase all three art forms in the intimate setting of the Centerville High School Central Theater. In July 2012, leadership of these three art forms announced a groundbreaking and innovative merger, forging the three iconic Dayton performing arts companies into one organization named the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, the first merged arts organization of its kind in the nation.
This afternoon performance will shine a spotlight on the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance and its offerings, bringing the talent and musicianship of its artists from each art form 
out into the community of Centerville. Dayton Opera Artistic Director Thomas Bankston, Dayton Philharmonic Artistic Director and Conductor Neal Gittleman, and Dayton Ballet Artistic Director Karen Russo Burke have collaborated to assemble a wonderful afternoon of music, dance, and song.
The program will begin with a beautiful selection of chamber music, including Mozart’s lovely Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, performed by Dayton Philharmonic Orchestra string quartet comprising violinist Aurelian Oprea, violinist William Manley, violist Sheridan Currie, and cellist Christina Coletta.
The afternoon continues with a delightful performance by Dayton Ballet dancers Margot Aknin, Peter Kurta, Annalise Woller and Case Bodamer, with a captivating trio from Leonard Bernstein’s Divertimento, including “Mazurka,” “Samba,” and “Turkey Trot.” Choreography for these engaging musical selections was created by Case Bodamer.
To conclude the program, young artists from Dayton Opera’s prestigious 2017 Artists-in-Residence program – soprano Chelsea Friedlander, mezzo-soprano Elizabeth Frey, tenor Brian Skoog, and bass-baritone Vincent Grana – will perform a selection of favorite opera arias, with accompaniment by Dayton Opera Artists-in-Residence Music Director Jeffrey Powell.
Directly following the performance, the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance will hold a friendly, casual “Community Conversation” to hear what residents of the greater Dayton community think about the arts and cultural scene in general and the Dayton Ballet, Dayton Opera and Dayton Philharmonic in particular.
