1679 Best Performing Arts Venues in USA

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We've compiled the best of the best in USA - browse our top choices for the top things to see or do during your stay.

The National Theatre

Downtown

Though rebuilt several times, The National Theatre has operated in the same location since 1835. It now hosts touring Broadway shows, from classics like Porgy and Bess and Chicago to contemporary shows like The Tina Turner Musical. Ticket prices vary with each show.

1321 Pennsylvania Ave. NW, Washington, DC, 20004, USA
800-447–7400

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Navajo Nation Annual Tribal Fair

The world's largest Native American fair includes a rodeo, a parade, traditional Navajo music and dances, food booths and fry-bread competitions, a Miss Navajo Nation Pageant, and an intertribal powwow during the first week of September, at Window Rock.

Naval Academy

Entertainment at the includes the Distinguished Artists Series, the Masqueraders (the Academy's theatrical club), chamber music recitals, and glee club concerts.

121 Blake Rd., Annapolis, MD, USA
410-293--2439-for schedules
Performing Art Details
$16

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Recommended Fodor's Video

Naval Academy Band

Concerts, many held outside during fair weather, are free.

121 Blake Rd., Annapolis, MD, USA
410-293--1257

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Neighborhood Theatre

North Davidson

Once called the Astor Theatre, this circa-1945 former movie palace is now a venue that has hosted concerts by the likes of the Indigo Girls, Beach House, and Rooney.

The Neptune Theatre

A cultural hub for the nearby University of Washington since opening in 1921, this striking Renaissance-revival theater is operated by STG Presents, which also runs the Paramount and Moore. The lineup—featuring mostly music and comedy—includes a mix of emerging and well-established acts.

1303 NE 45th St., Seattle, 98105, USA
206-682–1414

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Nevada Ballet Theatre

Downtown

The city's longest-running fine-arts organization (this being Las Vegas, it only dates from 1973) stages four or five productions each year, anchored by an annual December presentation of The Nutcracker (and making an October tradition of its Dracula every other year). Performing at The Smith Center for the Performing Arts Downtown, the dance company also runs classes from its studio in Summerlin.

361 Symphony Park Ave., Las Vegas, NV, 89134, USA
702-243–2623-offices and group sales

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Nevada Theatre

This 1865 redbrick edifice reopened in 2022 after extensive renovations. The West Coast's longest continuously operating theater building, it presents film, comedy, plays, live music, and spoken-word performances.

New Amsterdam Theatre

Midtown West

In 1997, Disney refurbished the elaborate 1903 art nouveau New Amsterdam Theatre, where Bob Hope, Jack Benny, Fred Astaire, and the Ziegfeld Follies once drew crowds. The Lion King ruled here for the first nine years of its run, followed by Mary Poppins. These days the theater is home to long-running Aladdin.

New Archangel Dancers of Sitka

Dedicated to preserving Alaska's Russian history, this all-female troupe has performed in Sitka since 1969. The 30-minute performances showcase authentic dances from the surrounding regions and Russia.

New Conservatory Theatre Center

Civic Center

This three-stage complex focuses on contemporary LGBTQ+-themed works and newer small-production musicals, as well educational plays and classes for young people.

25 Van Ness Ave., San Francisco, CA, 94102, USA
415-861–8972

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New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall

Back Bay

One of the world's acoustic treasures, the New England Conservatory's Jordan Hall is ideal for solo and string quartet recitals, yet spacious enough for chamber and full orchestras. The pin-drop intimacy of this all-wood, 1,050-seat hall is in demand year-round for ensembles visiting and local. The New England Philharmonic and Boston Baroque perform here regularly. Dozens of free faculty and student concerts, jazz and classical, are a best-kept secret. The lobby box office is no longer open for purchasing tickets. All tickets must be purchased online.

30 Gainsborough St., Boston, MA, 02115, USA
617-585–1260-box office

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New London Barn Playhouse

Broadway-style musicals and children's plays are presented here every summer in New Hampshire's oldest continuously operating theater.

84 Main St., New London, NH, 03257, USA
603-526–6710

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New Mexico Philharmonic

The highly respected New Mexico Philharmonic dips deeply into the full realm of classical repertoire, from the less expected to Handel's Messiah at Christmas. Most performances are at the 2,000-seat Popejoy Hall or the National Hispanic Cultural Center's superb Roy E. Disney Hall; in summer they occasionally suit up for outdoor performances at the ABQ BioPark.

Albuquerque, NM, USA
505-323–4343

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New Orleans Ballet Association

Central Business District

The city's prestigious dance organization performs both contemporary and classical works at the Orpheum Theater. The company also collaborates with other dance organizations and offers community and school programming, as well as classes.

935 Gravier St., New Orleans, LA, 70112, USA
504-522–0996

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New Orleans Film Festival

Cinephiles can get their fix during this juried festival in October, which brings an influx of indie and film culture to town and commandeers screens at venues throughout the city. Of course, it's New Orleans, so there are also exceptional parties to attend all week. The Film Society, which presents the annual festival, also hosts screenings year-round, a French film fest, themed film series, and a gala.

New Orleans Shakespeare Festival at Tulane

Uptown

Tulane's Shakespeare Festival, at the university's Dixon Concert Hall, interprets the Bard's work in a series of three to four imaginative, high-quality productions each season.

New Orleans Wine & Food Experience

Winemakers and oenophiles from all over the world converge each year in late-Spring for five days of seminars, fine food, and the opportunity to sample hundreds of wines. Attendees can purchase individual tickets or multi-event packages. The Grand Tasting, where wines from around the world are poured alongside offerings by some of New Orleans' finest chefs, is a must.

New Orleans, LA, USA

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New World Stages

Midtown West

At this dynamic theatrical complex you can attend new and familiar plays, musicals, and other live performances on five different off-Broadway stages. New World Stages has served as the home of Tony Award–winning, Guinness Record–setting, and Pulitzer Prize–earning shows, and hosts sharp productions with high-caliber talent. Arrive early for a cocktail in the lobby (which you can bring into the theaters) and to view its art gallery. The complex is fully accessible and modern, with generous legroom in each theater.

340 W. 50th St., New York, NY, 10019, USA
212-239–6200-for tickets

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New Year's Eve

Join the crowd for live music on Jackson Square, and help count down to the new year with the drop of a giant luminescent fleur-de-lis on the riverfront near Jax Brewery. A barrage of fireworks lights up the Mississippi as clocks strike midnight.

New York Botanical Holiday Train Show

Belmont

The New York Botanical Garden’s Holiday Train Show is one of the city’s top seasonal attractions, especially for families. It runs from the mid-November through mid-January, and you’ll find electric trains, more than 150 miniature replicas of city landmarks (made out of twigs and bark), and magical landscapes—all housed in a conservatory, so winter weather can’t dampen your spirits.

2900 Southern Blvd., Bronx, NY, 10458, USA
718-817–8700
Performing Art Details
$23–$30

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New York City Marathon

Even if you're not joining the more than 50,000 runners taking a 26.2-mile tour through New York’s five boroughs on the first Sunday in November, you’ll want to experience the electric atmosphere and the very best of New York with the 2 million spectators who come out to watch and cheer.

New York Live Arts

Chelsea

This space serves as the home stage for the innovative Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company. It's also a laboratory for new choreographers and artists in residence, and it hosts events such as panel discussions.

New York Public Library for the Performing Arts

Upper West Side

In addition to maintaining what may be the world's largest collection of theater, film, dance, music, and recorded sound, the library presents concerts and mounts periodic exhibitions related to major artists and composers. At the library’s free, year-round Silent Clowns series ( www.silentclowns.com), held Saturday afternoon each month in its auditorium, rarely seen prints of the silent era’s comedy masters are paired with live piano music.

New York State Theatre Institute

The New York State Theatre Institute, a family-oriented professional theater company, presents plays and musicals from September to May.

37 1st St., Troy, NY, 12180, USA
518-2747--3200

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New York Studio School

Greenwich Village

The venerable New York Studio School hosts two—always free, almost always on Tuesday and Wednesday—evening lecture series (fall and spring) on contemporary issues in art. Hear from both emerging and established artists and curators, as well as some of the biggest names in art history and criticism. The school building served as the original location of the Whitney Museum.

8 W. 8th St., New York, NY, 10011, USA
212-673–6466

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New York Theatre Workshop

East Village

Works by new and established playwrights anchor this theater's repertoire. Jonathan Larson's Rent got its start here before going to Broadway, and works by Tony Kushner (Homebody/Kabul), Caryl Churchill, Amy Herzog, and Paul Rudnick have also been staged here. Heidi Schreck's What the Constitution Means to Me also ran here, as did an early version of Anaïs Mitchell's Hadestown.

79 E. 4th St., New York, NY, 10003, USA
212-460–5475

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The Newberry Library

Near North Side

Head to the stately Newberry Library for performances by the Newberry Consort, an early-music chamber group, and other ensembles in Ruggles Hall.

60 W. Walton St., Chicago, IL, 60610, USA
312-943–9090

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Newport Jazz Festival

The grandfather of all jazz festivals, founded in 1954, takes place over three days at the end of July and/or beginning of August. The festival showcases both jazz veterans and up-and-coming artists, playing traditional and avant-garde styles. Performers in recent years have included Herbie Hancock, Wynton Marsalis, Dianne Reeves, Kendrick Scott, Norah Jones, and Diana Krall. The festival is held rain or shine, with open-air lawn seating. Tickets go on sale in February and sell out quickly.

90 Ft. Adams Dr., Newport, RI, 02840, USA
Performing Art Details
From $79

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Newport Playhouse and Cabaret Restaurant

Since 1983, this dinner theater has offered a varied schedule of comedies and musical shows, and tickets include a hearty buffet with homemade meatballs, pasta, turkey, ham, and lots of veggies and sides. The adorably intimate theater puts you practically in the play, and after the show you'll see the performers again as they put on a musical/comedy cabaret show at the bar.

102 Connell Hwy., Newport, RI, 02840, USA
401-848–7529
Performing Art Details
$71.95

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