Dayton, Ohio’s philharmonic orchestra, opera, and ballet have merged into a single arts organization, the country’s first three-way union among major classical music and dance outfits, writes the Dayton Daily News.

The three groups officially re-formed on July 1 as the Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, the product of two years of discussion over how the companies can best cooperate and secure their collective future amid dwindling financial and administrative resources.

“[A]ll three boards realized things would have to be different in the future,” said Paul Helfrich, the former philharmonic president who now heads the alliance. “The economic base that allowed our organizations to grow and flourish [individually] has changed.”

Julie Henahan, executive director of the Ohio Arts Council, said such mergers represent “the wave of the future” as strapped arts groups look for ways to operate more efficiently.

Donors can still direct gifts to the orchestra, opera, and ballet, each of which retains an artistic director, but the alliance will be governed by a single board. Audiences can expect more collaborative productions, and deals on performances by one group when purchasing subscriptions or ticket packages for another.