201 Best Performing Arts Venues in New York, USA

New Yorkers come out of hibernation en masse at the end of April to witness the extremely popular annual Sakura Matsuri Cherry Blossom Festival at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden. In addition to the blooming cherry trees, there are Taiko drumming performances, Japanese pop bands, samurai swords, martial arts, tea ceremonies, and more.

The annual festival, held for 10 days starting in early February, is the oldest winter carnival in the country. It includes a lighted ice palace, fireworks, and a costume parade. Inner-tube and ski races, hockey tournaments, and snowshoe-softball games are among the sporting events. The whole town gets into the action, so there are concerts, dinners, and dances at Hotel Saranac; breakfasts at the Masonic temple; and shows at the Pendragon Theatre.

The Saratoga Chamber Music Festival, a celebration of music written for ensemble groups, is offered for several days through the Saratoga Performing Arts Center but presented at the more intimate Spa Little Theatre, next door.

Changing exhibits in this 2,000-square-foot art gallery and theater-performance space showcase works by local as well as nationally known artists. At the theater here the Saratoga Film Forum shows mostly art-house movies (tickets $6) Thursday and Friday nights in fall, winter, and spring.

The Saratoga Performing Arts Center is the summer home of the New York City Ballet and the Philadelphia Orchestra. The open-air venue, with both assigned amphitheater seats and lawn seating, also hosts concerts by big-name pop acts.

Bring a picnic basket and a blanket and enjoy free full-length plays with Shakespeare in the Park most nights from late June through August.

Shea's Performing Arts Center presents concerts, opera, dance, and touring theater performances in an old movie palace reminiscent of a European opera house.

Designed by architect Frank Gehry, the company's Pershing Square Signature Center houses three theater spaces. The Tony Award–winning, not-for-profit theater company provides a platform for both New York and world premieres, as well as revivals. Tickets tend to be affordable here, as low as $35 for some shows. A central space with a café is open before and after shows and during intermission; there's also a bookstore with limited hours.

Chamber music reigns during the monthlong Skaneateles Festival, which starts in early August. Pianist Jon Nakamatsu is among the many other acclaimed musicians who have been featured in the program. Performances, ranging from $12 to $30, are held in First Presbyterian Church and at the Brook Farm estate.

The 1894 Smith Opera House presents stage productions, concerts, and films. The exterior of the theater, built by Geneva philanthropist William Smith, is Richardson Romanesque. The interior was gutted in 1930 and spruced up into an elegant movie palace with art-deco and baroque details. Along with Radio City Music Hall, it's one of the few remaining atmospheric theaters still in use. Films are frequently shown, and the stage has hosted George M. Cohan, Billy Joel, Bruce Springsteen, and other performers. Tours are given by appointment.

Built for vaudeville in 1928, this classic theater is still going strong nearly a century later, with a mix of classic movie screenings, stand-up comedy, educational theater performances for kids and teens, and music concerts catering to the Gen X and older crowd—or anyone who enjoys the likes of Air Supply, Dionne Warwick, Queen, or The Smithereens. Without a performance, the building's interior design still dazzles; the theater is a mix of Spanish and Italian baroque styles, with paintings and murals throughout, as well as tiled fountains.

At the 2,945-seat Stanley Center for the Arts you can see touring Broadway shows and enjoy performances by the Mohawk Valley Ballet and the Utica Symphony Orchestra. The Mexican-baroque center was built as a movie house in 1928. It has an ornate marquee and terra-cotta and mosaic tile accents on its exterior; inside, walls are adorned with gold-leaf lions and angels, and the ceiling is scattered with stars.

Over the first three Saturdays in August, you can join hundreds of thousands of locals to let loose on nearly 7 miles of pedestrianized arterials for Summer Streets. From the Brooklyn Bridge to Central Park, along Park Avenue and connecting streets, New Yorkers hit the car-free streets to run, zip-line, dance, experience art, or just ramble along the city's streets in a new way—all for free.

Although Symphony Space runs an energetic roster of classical, jazz, international, and other kinds of music, it also excels with other kinds of arts programming. On the literary front, its two halls—the Peter Jay Sharp Theatre and the Leonard Nimoy Thalia—host a celebrated roster of events including Bloomsday on Broadway, the Thalia Book Club, and the famed Selected Shorts series (stories read by prominent actors and produced as a podcast and radio show on National Public Radio). There's also a popular comedy series, Uptown Showdown, as well as Performance in HD screenings—from the National Theatre Live, Royal Shakespeare Company, and Royal Opera House—and Secret Science Club North science talks. Plays, films, and "Thalia Docs" (usually true-to-their-roots art-house screenings) round out the programming. 

Syracuse Stage, a professional regional theater, hosts at least seven productions at its 499-seat theater each year. Productions include musicals, dramas, and children's programs.

The Syracuse Symphony, with 80 professional musicians, makes its home in the Mulroy Civic Center in downtown Syracuse, but sometimes performs in other venues.

Vibrant original musicals for family audiences are performed by a cast of talented kids (ages 8–18). Most shows are on weekends, and children's tickets start at reasonable prices.

The 1885 Tarrytown Music Hall, a National Historic Landmark, is the oldest theater in Westchester County, where it serves as a cultural-arts center known for its wide array of musical performers in different genres. With only 843 seats, it's an intimate setting for recent performers like Rick Springfield and Sinead O'Connor. Theater, opera, dance, and film round out the offerings.

This is the premier live-music venue in the region. Bookings span all musical styles and include up-and-coming local bands as well as popular, internationally known performers.

Timothy Touhey runs The Gallery in an old tin-ceilinged department store, where he showcases his sculptures and vibrant paintings. The congenial Touhey may let you peek into his studio, or he might play a tune for you on the upright piano. A second space, at the back of the building, displays regional artists' works.

New York City's local public radio stations WNYC and WQXR invite the public into their intimate (125 seats) studio for live shows featuring classical, rock, jazz, and new music; audio theater; conversation; and interviews. It's a great place to get up close with writers and newsmakers, as well as musicians and actors who might be playing Carnegie Hall, Broadway, or the Met Opera a few days later.

Across from the Plaza Hotel stands the Paris Theatre—a rare, stately remnant of the single-screen era. Opened in 1948, the historic cinema was purchased by Netflix in 2019 and today serves as an elegant, wide-screen showcase for original Netflix productions, as well as arthouse and classic-film screenings. Tickets can be purchased online in advance, with the option to select seats, too.

Launched in 1966, the Poetry Project has been a source of sustenance for poets (and their audiences) ever since. This place has seen performances by Eric Bogosian, Allen Ginsberg, Amiri Baraka, Sam Shepard, Patti Smith, Anne Waldman, Jim Carroll, Philip Glass, and many others. Current readings feature artists of a similar caliber.

The a 2,242-seat concert hall, host all kinds of entertainment. The Big Apple Circus, k.d. lang, the New York Philharmonic, and the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater have performed here.

National music acts, the circus, and wrestling all make stops at the 16,000-seat Times Union Center.