74 Best Performing Arts Venues in Florida, USA

Touring Broadway shows, performances by the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra, ballet productions, operas, and other events are held at this beautiful riverfront complex with three performance halls.

Featuring national performing acts and local jazz musicians, the Jacksonville Jazz Festival has brought music lovers together for over 40 years. Taking place over Memorial Day weekend, this three-day, outdoor festival is known to be one of the largest free jazz festivals in the country. While the event is free, preferred seating and VIP packages are available for purchase.

New for the 100 Years of Magic celebration across the Disney globe, this nighttime show combines fireworks, fountains, lasers, and music. Its beautifully arranged soundtrack incorporates Disney classics, as well as two new original songs, some underutilized songs from Enchanted and Toy Story, and a dual-language version of "You'll Be in My Heart" from Tarzan. The combination of lights and water can be stunning at times, but, as most of the show is slow and focused around human experiences, small children may find the storyline boring and the fireworks—particularly those that shoot off right by the shore where the audience is situated—too loud. As with anything new, plan for large crowds. Consider booking a Fireworks Dining Package to get the best seat in the house—or, at least, around the lagoon. If the wind is particularly strong, avoid sitting downwind from the center of the lagoon. The high number of low fireworks means there's a lot of smoke.

On the National Register of Historic Places, this 1925 movie house has been revived for live performances ranging from Lily Tomlin's one-woman show to orchestra performances to jazz concerts. With 500 seats, the theater feels intimate.

A former dinner theater facility, the Maltz is now a 554-seat main-stage concert hall that is home to one of Florida's leading regional theater troupes. Major shows, including Broadway favorites like The Producers and Annie, run from October to April, and tickets range from $52 to $68.

The Cinderella Castle forecourt hosts several daily performances of this celebration of friendship starring Mickey Mouse, Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Daisy Duck, Goofy, and their friends. Mickey and pals interact with new Disney characters: Tiana and others from the Land of the Bewitching Bayous arrive, moving to a Dixieland beat, with Goofy; Donald brings a troupe of rowdy Vikings, while Daisy's friends, Rapunzel and Flynn, encourage them to sing instead of carouse; the final newcomers are the popular Frozen characters Elsa, Anna, and Olaf the snowman. For the finale, everyone takes the stage for the new original song “Where the Magic Feels Like Home.” If you want to sit (and don't mind an obstructed view) arrive 30 to 40 minutes before showtime for a seat on the bench. For an unobstructed view, stand on the pavement near the stage.

The 85-piece Naples Philharmonic Orchestra performs more than 140 plays, ballets, orchestral, and chamber concerts each year at the Hayes Hall at Artis–Naples from September to June. The Miami City Ballet performs here during its winter season.

Musicals and dramas are performed year-round; winter shows often sell out well in advance.

Held at the Wonderworks hands-on science and activity center, this dinner show is exactly as its name suggests: a magic show filled with jokes, gags, and tricks. The magicians' juvenile one-liners make this delightful for kids and pleasingly silly for adults, and audience participation plays a huge part in the experience. A pizza/salad/soft drink buffet is open prior to the show.

Housed in an intimate venue with only 218 seats in downtown West Palm Beach, the modus operandi is "theater to think about," with plays by Pulitzer Prize winners on rotation.

Still going strong after more than 60 years, three main-stage productions are offered during the season from January through April at the Kravis Center, with English-language supertitles. There's an annual Children's Performance when all tickets are $5, plus a free outdoor concert at the Meyer Amphitheatre in downtown West Palm Beach. Tickets start at $25.

A long-established community theater, having launched such actors as Montgomery Clift and Paul Reubens, this troupe performs comedies, special events, live concerts, and musicals.

Since the 1980s, the Red Barn Theatre, a small professional theater company, has performed dramas, comedies, and musicals, including works by new playwrights. Big things happen in this little theater, and it's well worth a visit while you're here.

If a charming dive bar were a concert venue, this would be it. The intimate venue for live rock, electronic, funk, and more houses both indoor and outdoor stages featuring rising-star performers, local acts, and popular indie bands. Many big names, including Lady Gaga and Panic! at the Disco, performed here before breaking out as stars.

Dubbed "the Harlem of the South" in the 1920s, the historic La Villa neighborhood is the site of this fully restored theater, which again hosts musical and theatrical events. The venue's museum highlights such Jacksonville natives as James Weldon and John Rosamond Johnson, whose song, "Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing," became the African American national anthem.

A series of professional touring and local productions are staged throughout the year at the Riverside's Agnes Wahlstrom Youth Playhouse and Anne Morton Theatre. Programs and lectures, as well as comedy and concerts are offered here.

From October to May, this renowned center hosts Broadway-style productions at the 692-seat Stark Stage, and smaller, challenging works at the 250-seat Waxlax Stage. Offerings have included The Wonder Years, Million Dollar Quartet, Gypsy, and Mama Mia!

The events roster at this modern, 73,000-square-foot hall includes opera, classical music, and dance performances, as well as concerts by big-name contemporary rock, pop, jazz, and country musicians.

This funky little cultural center is a vibrant venue that brings together all sorts of artists and art lovers. Live music takes over the stage several evenings of each week, and there are not one, but two monthly open mics for literary folks. And these are just a smattering of the offbeat arts events offered. When you visit, don’t forget to take a selfie with Ellie, the big pink elephant out front.

Performing in a historic 1,122-seat, downtown theater, the Sarasota Opera features internationally known artists singing the principal roles, supported by a professional chorus of young apprentices. The season typically lasts from February through March, though a few special events take place throughout the year.

Performers have included members of the Florida West Coast Symphony, Florida String Quartet, Florida Brass Quintet, Florida Wind Quintet, and New Artists Piano Quartet. There are several performance series throughout the year, including Masterworks, Pops, Great Escapes, and Chamber Soirées.

Formerly called Cinema Paradiso, this arthouse theater operates out of a former church south of the New River near the county courthouse. The space doubles as headquarters for the Fort Lauderdale International Film Festival (FLIFF), while still playing films year-round. FLIFF's website is the easiest way to see what's playing on any given evening at the cinema.

Known as "the greatest show on H₂O" and the largest one-day spectator event in Florida, the Seminole Hard Rock Winterfest Boat Parade's 12-mile route through Fort Lauderdale's main waterways draws about a million people every year. The theme and decorations change, as do the participating yachts and superyachts. If you can't make it, you can watch the event live on the Internet.

More than a plush movie theater, Silverspot offers a full evening's entertainment, including a lounge where you can sip specialty cocktails before showtime. You can even order dinner and have it delivered to your comfy seat to enjoy during the movie.

The Food Network and Cooking Channel's star-studded four-day weekend each February showcases the flavors and ingenuity of the country's top chefs and wine and spirits producers. Personalities like Anne Burrell, Guy Fieri, and Bobby Flay headline brunches, cocktail hours, dinners, and seminars—and of course, the coveted large-scale tasting events across Miami Beach. The festival attracts more than 60,000 attendees annually. To avoid disappointment, book your choice events far in advance.

Key West native and nationally recognized conductor Sebrina María Alfonso directs the South Florida Symphony Orchestra (formerly the Key West Symphony Orchestra). This traveling group of symphonic musicians is based in Fort Lauderdale and performs at the Glynn R. Archer Center for the Performing Arts while in Key West.

With about 300,000 square feet, this is the second-largest arts complex south of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. Among its facilities are the 2,610-seat Carol Morsani Hall; the elegant 1,042-seat Louise Lykes Ferguson Hall; and the more intimate, 312-seat Robert and Lorena Jaeb Theater and 130-seat Hinks and Elaine Shimberg Playhouse. Operas, concerts, plays, and ballet performances are presented here.

You can expect an exceptional symphony experience because this orchestra includes music faculty from Florida State University as well as talented local artists. Concerts are held in FSU’s beautiful and acoustically superb Ruby Diamond Concert Hall. Look up to see the owl sculpture winging along above the audience. A special treat are free, pre-performance, open rehearsals, during which you can watch masetro Darko Butorac interact with the musicians.

Rescued from demolition in the late 1970s, this 1926 movie palace is not only a Tampa City landmark, it’s also listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The gorgeous throwback to Hollywood’s golden age has a charming indoor Mediterranean courtyard, replica antique statuary, ornate architectural artistry, and a Mighty Wurlitzer theater organ that’s still in use. In addition to showcasing foreign, independent, and classic films daily, it regularly hosts community and educational events, concerts, and historic tours.

This theater hosts a variety of performing arts events, including chamber music and jazz concerts, dance performances, dramatic plays, and musicals with major stars.