1679 Best Performing Arts Venues in USA

In late May, Elvis's spirit wafts through the North Country. Nobody will fault you if you think that, not only is Elvis living, he's become legion. During the five-day fest, multitudes of Elvis impersonators and admirers converge from miles around to compete in contests, admire Elvis-type classic cars and pore over memorabilia. The events stretch for days and reach into local pubs, restaurants, parks, and onto the festival grounds.

Jazz groups from all over the state converge at the Shepard Park bandstand for an end-of-summer bash, usually in mid-September, after Labor Day.

Free pre-opera talks provide some background on the operas performed at the Lake George Opera Festival, which runs for two weeks at the start of summer.

Cold-weather activities, such as polar-bear swims, ice sculpting and fishing, snowmobile and dog-pull races, and snowmobile drags are scheduled for weekends from late January through early February. The carnival also includes a chili cook-off and fireworks.

The Lake Placid Center for the Arts, the largest arts center in the region, shows classic films and hosts theater, dance, and music performances. Gallery space is used to show works by local artists and changing exhibits.

Hunter and jumper competitions are part of the back-to-back Lake Placid and I Love New York horse shows, which start at the end of June and run to early July. Participants include members of the U.S. equestrian team.

In July and August, actors perform works by the Bard and others outdoors at Sand Harbor, with the lake as the backdrop.

This venue draws national popular music acts all summer. There's seating for nearly 19,000 in reserved areas and on its sloped lawn.

The theater typically produces four mostly uplifting productions throughout the year. It also stages an original musical, Festival of Christmas, in December. The company's resident theater for performances has 350 seats in a horseshoe shape so that no audience member is more than seven rows away from the stage.

The 450-seat which presents mostly musical performances, has hosted the likes of Joan Osborne, The Bacon Brothers, and Christine Ebersole in recent years.

The ornate 1928 Landmark Theatre hosts touring stage shows, dance performances, concerts, stand-up comics, and classic films. Ani DiFranco, Jerry Seinfeld, and the Moscow Ballet are among the past performers and shows at this 3,000-seat venue.

The sleek Landmark Theatres offer mainstream films within walking distance of the Inner Harbor. You can order crab cakes or a drink at the bar, take them into the auditorium, and relax in one of the black leather seats.

The nine screens of this iconic theater are devoted to not only smash hits, but also first-run independent, avant-garde, and foreign films. The concession stand offers hip goodies like coffee, empanadas, and homemade cookies, and the Kendall Bar serves beer and wine. 1 Kendall Square stands where Hampshire Street meets Broadway, a 10-minute walk from the Kendall Square T station. Validated four-hour parking ($3) is available in an adjacent garage. If you're walking, be advised the area can get a bit desolate at night.

A community hub that celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2022, the Central District's Langston Hughes Performing Arts Institute (LHPAI) offers a gathering place for Seattle's Black community—even as it's become more dispersed—through a variety of programming like classes, film screenings, readings, and theater. Housed in an elegant historic domed building, LHPAI also hosts the annual Seattle Black Film Festival in the spring.

During the daylong, early September street festival Larkfest, more than 100 crafts and food booths line the streets. A separate area for kids has games and rides. Local bands perform, in addition to area dancers and magicians.

Las Vegas's oldest community theater runs a main-stage season of six or more titles, as well as a \"new works\" competition and a summer \"fringe festival.\" Productions are staged in a sparse but comfortable theater in a strip mall that's become much more interesting and popular thanks to the growth of Las Vegas's Chinatown.

Formed in 1998, the Philharmonic performs a nine-show season (September through May), lately with a rotation of guest conductors as it searched for a full-time leader. The nine full concerts each year typically pair familiar classics with less-heard works. Two programs of the 2025–26 season were expressly labeled as \"pops\" concerts. The orchestra performs at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts downtown. 

Since 1916, Le Petit Théâtre has entertained the French Quarter with plays, musicals, and variety shows. The oldest continuously running community theater in the United States occupies a historic building in the Quarter. The community-based group were originally housed in one of the Pontalba apartments on Jackson Square, but they quickly outgrew that space and moved to this building in 1922. The flagstone patio with its fountain is postcard-perfect. Renovations have resulted in many improvements to the theater itself, and also made room for Tableau, a restaurant featuring contemporary Creole fare by local restaurateur Dickie Brennan. The theater presents children's entertainment in addition to its usual calendar of classics, musicals, and dramas, often with local themes. Events in the Tennessee Williams Festival take place here in March.

Overlooking the stately town green of Lebanon, a 10-minute drive southeast of Hanover, this stunningly renovated 1920s venue has terrific acoustics and clear sightlines from its 800 seats. It hosts a wide range of nationally known musicians and performers, as well as touring musicals, LGBTQ+ Pride events, vintage movies, and more.

Presented outdoors at the Kamehameha Court, the aptly subtitled "Our Big Island Story" features song and a fire-knife dance as well as a delicious buffet with Big Island–grown luau choices and more familiar fare and tropical drinks. Pay a small fee and upgrade to Alii seating for a front-row vantage; unlimited cocktails, beer, and wine; and your own buffet station. A children's station has kid favorites. Delicious desserts such as haupia (coconut pudding) cream puffs and Kona-coffee cheesecake top it all off.

Enjoy an excellent series of mostly free outdoor summer concerts here that range from jazz to classical, folk to blues, and one night each week focused especially on children. (You must reserve or buy a ticket online.) Bring a blanket or beach chair—and a picnic, if you like, but snacks and drinks are also available.

One of the largest breweries in the state is serving up more than just great brews, with live music most weeks from Thursday through Saturday. The Lewis and "Clarkade" is home to a golf simulator, but you'll also find vintage arcade and pinball machines, as well as a pool table, to while away the time. On Fridays and Saturdays, pizza is served in the tap room.

Every Fourth of July in downtown Gilbert, indulge in fresh peach ice cream and take in live country music, or just bite into a sun-warmed peach while enjoying the peach parade and the evening fireworks.

The Lincoln Theatre is a historical venue from 1922, back when Washington natives Duke Ellington and Pearl Baily were joined by the likes of Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Nat King Cole, and Louis Armstrong. Today, the 1,200-seat theater presents modern musical artists, including Kendrick Lamar, Hozier, and Billy Idol, as well as comedic performers like Demetri Martin, Tig Notaro, and Ilana Glazer.

Summer stock rules at the Lions Wilderness Amphitheater between mid-June and mid-August. Broadway shows are the usual fare of the Sandstone Theatre's series, which is presented outdoors here in a natural sandstone amphitheater. Performances are usually in the evening, Thursday–Sunday; prior to each show, theatergoers may enjoy an optional Southwestern-style dinner.

A nearly 1,500-seat theater on the campus of George Washington University attracts students and outsiders alike to its pop, classical, and choral music shows, modern dance performances, musical theater, and lectures by high-profile political and celebrity speakers.

Enthusiasm for Petersburg's Norwegian heritage, expressed by rowdy locals dressed in horned helmets and fur vests, make this event one to catch. The festival has been held annually since 1958 on the weekend closest to May 17, Syttende Mai, or Norwegian Constitution Day. You won't find better Norwegian folk dancing or beer-battered halibut outside Norway.

The art-deco Little Theatre shows art-house and foreign films on five screens and also hosts movie festivals. The café is a destination in itself, with live jazz and sweets that make you forget about buckets of popcorn.

The New York Public Library's discussion series includes a rich program of lectures and reading events from the biggest names in books and culture in general. Most programs are held at the famous main library (and are sometimes available virtually, too), and many are free.