The University of Mary Washington Philharmonic has received a $2,850 grant from the Virginia Commission for the Arts and the National Endowment for the Arts that will bring the Richmond Ballet to Fredericksburg after more than 20 years.   A joint concert featuring Richmond’s professional ballet company and the UMW Philharmonic will be held April 24, 2015. The event will feature the ballet’s performance of “Ancient Airs and Dances,” by Respighi at 7:30 p.m. in George Washington Hall’s Dodd Auditorium on the Fredericksburg campus. “We are excited to be collaborating with the Philharmonic,” said Brett Bonda, managing director of the ballet. “I recall dancing with the ballet in Dodd Auditorium in the early 90’s. It will be great to be back because I know that Fredericksburg is a terrific arts town.” The collaboration will result in multiple performances in the coming years. The UMW Philharmonic has already traveled to Richmond to attend a ballet performance and will return again in December for a special performance of the Nutcracker and in April for rehearsals with the ballet. In 1984, Richmond Ballet became the first professional ballet company in Virginia and was designated the State Ballet of Virginia in 1990, by then Gov. Douglas Wilder. The UMW Philharmonic, in its 44th season, is comprised of both UMW students as well as talented community musicians. The orchestra, under the direction of Kevin Bartram, achieved national acclaim in 2009 with the American Prize, an award given to the top nine collegiate orchestras in the nation. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit philharmonic.umw.edu or call (540) 654-1324.