Local Arts Help Propel the Rocket City Economy
One topic that is unlikely to spring to mind when discussing the local economy is the role of community arts and arts-based education. However, this segment of the market not only provides joy and entertainment to many people of the city, but also brings in dollars, which help to stimulate the local economy.
Huntsville is already home to an active arts community and marketplace. Now, as the largest city in Alabama, it becomes important to keep that special flair in order to attract new residents and cultivate the city’s personality.
Performance Arts and Opportunity
Huntsville is home to many dancers, actors, and musicians. Both youth (student) performers and professional (teaching) artists are essential for successful arts programs.
There are about a dozen dance schools and studios in the Huntsville-Madison area, including the Huntsville Ballet School. Students who have proven themselves through the HBS program have been accepted into some of the nation’s most prestigious dance schools in New York, Boston, San Francisco, and Philadelphia.

Actors from Huntsville’s famous rendition of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol line-up for a photo at the Fantasy Playhouse Children’s Theatre
The Huntsville Ballet Company has an annual season of various performances throughout the year, typically held at the Mark C. Smith Concert Hall or the Dream Theatre Performing Arts Center.
Arts education also helps to build a communal identity.
Fantasy Playhouse Children’s Theater & Academy has been a fixture of Huntsville for over 60 years! Some of the children who attend summer camps or classes there have parents, or even grandparents, who were also “fantasy kids”. In their 2020-2021 year, Fantasy interacted with over 31,000 individuals (and over 21,000 of those were youth).
They also partner with the Huntsville Inner City Learning Center and Second Mile Preschool, along with other entities, to bring theater education to students who might otherwise miss out on the opportunity. That same year, they had 29 scholarship students and over 350 volunteers helping with camps, classes, and performances.
The Old Cotton Mill
It is impossible to talk about the arts community in Huntsville without discussing Lowe Mill.
This local landmark originally opened in 1901 for textile production under the direction of Arthur H. Lowe, president of the New England Manufacturer’s Association. Just over a century later, it is now a massive artist collective, a local treasure, and a tourist “must see”.

Huntsville’s Lowe Mill, before and after. Now a well known arts hub in the city, Lowe Mill used to be a cotton textile mill.
This renovated space features 152 separate studios and over 200 artists, selling their work and offering classes. There is also indoor and outdoor space for theatrical and musical performances, and they have not forgotten about the culinary arts, either.
Lowe Mill is home to several cafes and restaurants, as well as a distillery, meadery, popsicle shop and more. There are even several galleries, which showcase local artists on a regularly rotating basis, for visitors to enjoy.
Something for Everyone
Another hallmark of Huntsville is the VBC (that is, the Von Braun Center). While it may be best known for the local hockey team, the Huntsville Havoc, the VBC has a lineup of events and shows that is very long and very diverse. Classics, like A Christmas Carol, find their way to the stage while craft shows and other organized events will often occupy the Center’s great indoor spaces.
If that is not your speed, the Huntsville Museum of Art is located conveniently nearby. In addition to its normal galleries and exhibits, some of which are designed specifically for children, the museum also offers a whole catalog of classes in a variety of fine arts areas. These courses are taught by local professionals.
Residents who are a little more senior might enjoy taking courses through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI), which has a chapter locally at the University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH). OLLI offers a diverse catalog of courses to choose from, including memoir writing, poetry, line dancing, swing dancing, tai chi, and photography.
Reputation Matters
One does not have to look far to find examples of how a city’s reputation – its personality – can be an asset to its growth and attractiveness.
Nashville has long held the designation of Music City, tracing its importance to the world of musicians back over 200 years. The city is full of historical sites and events, including the famous Grand Ole Opry, America’s longest-running radio show. The vast network of record labels, recording studios, music bars, and sound cafes attracts songwriters, musicians, and tourists from all over to visit or relocate to the city.
Residents of Portland, Oregon adopted the slogan “Keep Portland Weird” as a way of branding their particular and peculiar communal identity, though the phrase likely originated from Austin, Texas.
This catchline is meant to embrace and support independent businesses, local artistic expression, and a diverse cultural identity. This quirkiness extends to local events as well.
The “Idiotarod” is an annual, four mile course where teams of 4 or 5, dressed in ridiculous costumes, race their decorated or modified shopping carts through the downtown area.
Conclusion
Huntsville embraces its moniker as the Rocket City and continues to build upon it. Of course there is the U.S. Space & Rocket Center and Marshall Space Flight Center, but smaller businesses, like InnerSpace Brewing Company, also lean into the engineering and aeronautic history of the city, with a more sci-fi spin.
The city of Huntsville is growing rapidly and its arts community will undoubtedly continue to play a pivotal role in its expanding economy and identity.
Story images provided by Huntsville Ballet Company.
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