1683 Best Performing Arts Venues in USA

A landmark movie theater that showed silent films when it opened in 1926, the not-for-profit Hollywood Theatre screens everything from obscure foreign art films to old American classics and second-run Hollywood hits, and hosts an annual Academy Awards viewing party. It also hosts a slew of film series and festivals.

The only professional theater troupe in the state, this group stages delightful productions, with creative props and engaging stories, August through May. Local stories and themes are the focus, making for unique shows for visiting kids. Founded in 1955, it's one of the oldest children's theaters in the country, offering drama-education programs and school and family performances.

The last weekend in June, basketball mania descends on downtown Spokane as Hoopfest comes to town, a mega-tournament with more than 6,000 teams and 24,000 players playing 3-on-3 basketball on more than 400 courts on 45 city blocks. It's the world's largest event of its type, with 225,000 fans in attendance.

Opened in 1910, the Howard Theatre continues to be a draw in Washington, D.C. Initially a venue to highlight African American artists, the Howard Theatre now hosts diverse performances, from '80s hard rock by Sebastian Bach of Skid Row to old-school hip-hop by Slick Rick to Puerto Rican reggae by Cultura Profética. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974, it has also hosted many American musical icons, from Duke Ellington to Ella Fitzgerald, in its intimate space. The theater closed in 1970 and reopened in 2012 after an extensive remodel.

This striking midcentury modern 975-seat movie palace built in 1950 by film lover Hyrum Bischoff received a full restoration in the early 2000s, thanks to efforts by local volunteers who raised funds to restore the building's spacious lobby, sunken lounge, sloping balcony, and neon painter's palette high above the marquee. Both current and classic films are shown here.

Built in 1883, this modernized 300-seat music hall with a world-class sound system hosts more than 200 shows a year by local performers as well as nationally known folk, soft rock, and jazz groups. The intimate setting puts you close to the stage. Before the performance, have drinks, snacks, or a meal at the on-site GoodWorks Smokehouse.

Held the second full weekend in July, this market sprawls across Museum Hill parking lots and plazas as the world's largest folk art market. More than 150 master folk artists from every corner of the planet come together to sell their work amid a festive array of huge tents, colorful banners, music, food, and delighted crowds. The feeling of fellowship and celebration here enhances the satisfaction of buying wonderful folk art—it's truly an experience you won't have anywhere else in the world. If you aren't in town during IFAM weekend, the nonprofit has a showroom/store open to the public in its headquarters near the capital at 620 Cerrillos Road.

With traditional dancing showcasing the interconnected Polynesian roots of Hawaii, Samoa, Tahiti, and New Zealand, the "We Are Ohana" luau is not a hokey, tourist-trap event; these performers take their art seriously, and it shows. The historic oceanfront location—on the Courtyard King Kamehameha's Kona Beach Hotel's luau grounds and directly next to the king's former royal compound and Ahuena Heiau—adds to the authenticity of the event, which takes place daily except Monday and Saturday. The bounty of food includes kalua (earth oven–baked) pig. It's one of the best-priced luaus in town. The hotel validates parking.

A few blocks south of Lincoln Center itself, this Columbus Circle venue is almost completely devoted to jazz, with a sprinkling of other genres mixed in. Stages in Rafael Viñoly's crisply modern Frederick P. Rose Hall include the 1,200-seat Rose Theater, where up-and-coming artists as well as jazz-world fixtures like composer and trumpeter Wynton Marsalis (the organization’s managing and artistic director), perform several times a year. Also here is the Appel Room, an elegant theater with a glass wall overlooking Columbus Circle. In the smaller Dizzy's Club, there are often multiple sets nightly, plus late-night sessions Tuesday through Saturday, all accompanied by a full bar and restaurant with a New Orleans–inspired menu.

Author and Santa Fe resident George R. R. Martin, of Game of Thrones fame, restored this intimate, funky Railyard District art-movie house into a busy neighborhood favorite. The single-screen theater is a great place to catch first-run films, indie flicks, cult classics, and traveling selections from international film festivals. The lobby has a small bar and coffee shop to complete the indie vibe. Next door, Martin also operates Beastly Books which focuses, of course, on science fiction and fantasy.

Fine-tuned performances, such as the glittering production of The Nutcracker, make this Chicago's premier classical-dance company. The Joffrey performed at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University for nearly two decades but took up residence with the Lyric Opera in 2021.

Set within a former Art Deco movie house, the 472-seat Joyce Theater has superb sight lines and presents a wide range of classical and contemporary dance. Its 48-week season includes a rotating roster of international, national, and New York–based companies.

KÀ, Cirque du Soleil's biggest Las Vegas production, celebrated 20 years on the Strip in 2025 and still stands as an amazing monument to the sky's-the-limit mentality that fueled Vegas in the go-go 2000s. It's also the most theatrical—cinematic even—of the Cirque shows remaining on the Strip, an astonishing blend of technology and subtlety. The $165-million opus frees the stage itself from gravity, replacing a fixed stage with a 50-ton deck, maneuvered by a giant gantry arm into a near-vertical position for the climactic battle. Giant puppets and a \"flying machine\" also factor into the bold fantasy, influenced by Asian martial arts epics, which follows the adventures of two separated twins. An early venture into video mapping allows the audience to see one character fall off a boat, then shift to an underwater angle to watch her float up again. Though no other Cirque show in Las Vegas rivals it for sheer spectacle, those not sitting close enough to see faces can be confused by the story, which is told without dialogue and full of \"small\" moments to balance the big ones. Sit in the front half of the house if you can.

The intimate theater regularly hosts internationally acclaimed performers such as Mikhail Baryshnikov and renowned Hawaiian artists such as Jake Shimabukuro, Kealii Reichel, and the Brothers Cazimero. They share the calendar with regional and national modern-dance troupes, community theater and dance groups, ukulele festivals, and classical music performances. The theater also supports the community by welcoming local artists to exhibit in its lobby, which doubles as a gallery.

With its striking red-and-gold vertical marquee and art deco Streamline Moderne design, this 1930s single-screen cinema—which received a thorough restoration in 2006—is a fun place to catch a film, with indies, classics, and other offbeat fare presented. Kiggins also owns Bessolo Pizzeria across the street; you can bring food from there into the theater.

Each summer, on the Saturday nearest to King Kamehameha Day (June 11), at least 100 regal riders on horseback parade through Historic Kailua Village, showing off the colorful flora and aloha spirit of Hawaii. This spectacular free event is one of the highlights of summer. The traditional royal pau riders (women dressed in long skirts) include a queen and princesses representing the major Hawaiian Islands. A cultural festival with live music and a houlaulea (local fundraiser) always follow on the historic grounds of Hulihee Palace, Hawaii Island's only royal palace.

The lively festival held every March showcases island-based brewers and chefs at the popular BREW block in Kona's "Old" Industrial Area. A "trash" fashion show, a 10K fun run, live music, and community fundraisers are all part of the fun. The festival has raised more than $1.5 million for local causes. Save the date and get tickets online starting in January, as this event always sells out.

Held over 10 days in early November, the longest-running food festival in Hawaii celebrates world-renowned Kona coffee. The highly anticipated Kona-side festival includes coffee contests, serious cupping (tasting) competitions, a lecture series, label contests, farm tours, and a colorful community parade featuring the newly crowned Miss Kona Coffee. Throughout locations in town and at many Kona coffee plantations, you can meet growers and sample estate coffees.

Paul "Kona Kozy" Kozak, a veteran Las Vegas and New York comedy club entertainer, brings a world-class magic show to the Kohala Coast. Every show is different but, guaranteed, each one is hilarious. Held within his fine-art tiki gallery, the shows will truly have you asking "How'd he do that?" for days afterward. Kozy knows his stuff: he once did a command performance for Prince Charles and Princess Diana. The show is for ages 18 and up; there are two shows nightly.

The playhouse presents exciting and innovative plays and musicals on three stages. Many Broadway shows—among them Memphis, Come From Away, Tommy, The Outsiders, and Jersey Boys—have previewed here before their East Coast premieres. Hosted in late April, its WOW festival (Without Walls) also ensures that the productions aren't limited to the playhouse, having put on site-specific shows in places like outdoor art spaces, cars, and even the ocean.

Specializing in independent, foreign, and documentary films, this theater is beloved by D.C. movie enthusiasts both for its selection and its state-of-the-art facilities. The Washington Post has often declared it D.C.'s best movie theater, its concession stand is fabulous, and it is one of the city's few movie theaters that serve alcohol.

Adjacent to the twinkling zoo, the Desert Botanical Garden lights up every night during Las Noches de las Luminarias, when thousands of luminarias (paper bags with lights inside) line the garden's pathways. Stroll, listen to live music, and enjoy the beauty of the desert. Tickets sell out quickly, so be sure to make a reservation for this annual event in December.

Santa Fe's vintage Downtown movie house has been fully restored and converted into the 850-seat Lensic Performing Arts Center. The grand 1931 building, with Moorish and Spanish Renaissance influences, hosts the Santa Fe Symphony, theater, classic films, lectures and readings, noted world, pop, and jazz musicians, and many other prominent events. The Lensic 360 program also presents music festivals and large-scale concerts in other locations throughout the city.

The well-regarded Long Wharf Theatre presents works by contemporary writers and revivals of otherwise neglected classics. The season runs August through May.

Slated for demolition in 1976, the Lucas Theatre is now one of Savannah's most celebrated spaces. The beautifully renovated 1921 Beaux-Arts space hosts a variety of performances throughout the year, from ballet to bluegrass bands. It's a go-to venue for events hosted by the Savannah College of Art and Design, the Savannah Film Festival, and the Savannah Music Festival, and even occasionally screens classic and family films.

The reigning king of Las Vegas afternoons has been on the Strip so long (more than 20 years) that he now greets the children of those who remember seeing his show when they were kids themselves. Ensconced at medieval-themed Excalibur, King remains ageless in his plaid suit and folksy daily greeting of \"Howdy!\" The actual magic takes a backseat to the comedy, which is adjusted to whomever he pulls up onstage on a given day. The one-man hour of low-key, self-deprecating humor features the kind of close-up magic—punctuated by a few more elaborate illusions—that's more baffling than you might first realize amid the running banter and audience participation.

Since a $27-million post-Katrina renovation returned this stately venue to the game, this fabulous stage in the sculpture-filled Armstrong Park grounds have been hosting the New Orleans Opera Association, dance performances, local music productions, theater, and much more. With a state of the art sound system, a digital cinema screen, enhanced lighting, a new orchestra shell, and cutting-edge ballet flooring, the 2,100-seat theater is a fabulous venue for a special night out.

A masterpiece of baroque splendor with Spanish mission and Mediterranean-style influences, this 1929 movie and vaudeville theater once showcased talents like Jack Benny, Bob Hope, and George Burns. Today the fully restored 2,311-seat theater presents the Majestic Broadway Series of top-notch touring companies of Broadway shows like Hamilton, Waitress, Chicago, and many more, along with concerts and comedy shows. No photography of any kind is allowed, so commit to memory the glittering "night sky," ornate architecture, and dazzling surroundings of one of the finest atmospheric theaters in existence. See a show here if you can get last-minute tickets—they sell same-day tickets immediately before each performance.

The biggest event on the city's cultural calendar is also the oldest—it's been around for nearly two centuries. Parades roll almost nightly for the last few weeks of the Carnival season, which starts on Twelfth Night and culminates on Mardi Gras. This extraordinary day, also known as Fat Tuesday, is the last blow-out party before Ash Wednesday ushers in the considerably more reserved season of Lent. Mardi Gras is a city holiday, with the streets taken over by costumed revelers, floats, marching bands, and throngs of partiers. Plastic beads are the currency of the day. Every year, Mardi Gras falls on a different date, but it's always in either February or March.