Finish your holiday shopping early this year and support the arts and dance. The North Shore Civic Ballet (NSCB), a nonprofit dance company based in Marblehead, is holding its annual holiday online auction from now through Dec. 3. The auction’s proceeds provide dancers with the resources and training they need to study ballet in the North Shore region.
The auction website page, www.biddingforgood.com/ballet, opened for bids on Friday, November 19 at 6:00 p.m.
With the COVID-19 pandemic, the arts and dancers in the area are experiencing hardships.
“This year, especially, we ask the public to support the holiday auction by donating items and placing bids to raise much needed funds for resources aspiring dancers in the region require to study ballet. Businesses, as well as patrons, benefit from participating in the online auction because people have an opportunity to try restaurants and other experiences they might never have done previously,” explained Judy Moynihan, member, NSCB board of trustees.
From spa days to sweatshirts
Bidders will find a range of items to purchase, including gift certificates and gift cards from retail shops. With the holidays upon us, the time is right to relax and rejuvenate at Beverly Day Spa or get a haircut at Maurizi Salon & Day Spa in Peabody. Spruce up an outfit with a silk scarf from Bus Stop in Marblehead or relax in a Marblehead sweatshirt available in various sizes and colors.
Gift certificates are also available for a Reiki session or a 60-minute massage with Kelley Newton, a licensed Massage Therapist/Physical Therapy Assistant at Beverly Holistic Health Center. Give someone special the gift of dance or exercise from the Marblehead School of Ballet or piano lessons for a beginner, child, or adult with Tana Chandler in Marblehead. Other opportunities include gift certificates to Frank Restaurant and Market and Soall Viet Kitchen in Beverly and Marblehead and Shubie’s in Marblehead. Take a walk down memory lane with a Staffordshire plate of Old Town Hall in Marblehead, Massachusetts. More items will be added throughout the auction.
“Now, more than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic, with the public’s support and contributions to the holiday auction, we can help aspiring dancers’ dreams come true and provide scholarships to students experiencing financial hardships. Our online auction is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week beginning November 19 at 6 p.m. Bidders can access the online auction from any location worldwide. People can still get involved by volunteering with the ballet company, asking merchants to donate a gift certificate or gift card for the auction, or making a purchase,” said Paula K. Shiff, Artistic Director, NSCB.
Financial contributions are also welcome and may be made directly to the ballet company. The NCSB is a 501(c) 3, tax-exempt organization and all contributions are tax-deductible as permissible by law.
Donations may be dropped off at the NSCB’s home at the Marblehead School of Ballet, 115 Pleasant Street in Marblehead, Massachusetts, or call 781-631-6262 to arrange a drop-off time. For more information about the North Shore Civic Ballet, the auction, and volunteer opportunities, call 781-631-6262 or visit the organization’s website http://marbleheadschoolofballet.com/the-company/ and on Facebook http://on.fb.me/1wh3fnp, on Instagram at https://www.instagram.com/marblehead_school_of_ballet/, and Twitter https://twitter.com/MSB_ballet.
About North Shore Civic Ballet Company
The North Shore Civic Ballet, a not-for-profit dance company based at the Marblehead School of Ballet, has provided performances and arts education to the Greater Boston community for 47 years. Artistic Director Paula K. Shiff and Associate Director Florence C. Whipple founded the company in 1974.
The NSCB is home to an ever-changing group of talented dancers made up of both seasoned professionals and aspiring young dancers. For several years, Ivan Korn, resident choreographer, has created a range of work for the ballet company.
For further information about NSCB, call 781-631-6262, send an e-mail to msb@havetodance.com or visit http://marbleheadschoolofballet.com/the-company/. Follow the organization on Facebook at http://on.fb.me/1wh3fnp and Instagram at www.instagram.com/marblehead_school_of_ballet/ and get updates on Twitter at https://twitter.com/MSB_ballet.