Nightlife

The Performing Arts

The city's cultural pride and joy, the Alabama Shakespeare Festival (ASF), 1 Festival Dr. (tel. 800/841-4-ASF [841-4273] or 334/271-5353; www.asf.net), is renowned throughout the nation for its high-caliber performances and ambitious programming. Performances are staged in two theaters within the $22-million Carolyn Blount Theatre complex. The ASU operates year-round, producing 14 world-class productions annually, including 3 works of William Shakespeare, as well as classics by such playwrights as George Bernard Shaw, Anton Chekhov, and Tennessee Williams. The ASF also commissions new works.

The city boasts two ballet companies, the professional Montgomery Ballet (tel. 334/409-0522; www.montgomeryballet.com) and Alabama Dance Theatre (tel. 334/241-2590; www.alabamadancetheatre.com), which stages traditional and contemporary works in two major performances annually. The 75-piece Montgomery Symphony (tel. 334/240-4004; www.montgomerysymphony.org) performs 10 concerts a year. Its primary venue is the Davis Theater for the Performing Arts, 251 Montgomery St., at Troy State University. Built in 1941, the Capri Theatre, 1045 E. Fairview Ave. (tel. 334/262-4858; www.capritheatre.org), was the city's first movie palace. Since being purchased by a community group in 1983, the venue has operated as a nonprofit cinema specializing in independent films. Call for features and showtimes. One of the newest entertainment venues in Montgomery is Faulkner University Dinner Theatre, 5345 Atlanta Hwy. (tel. 334/386-7190; www.faulkner.edu/campuslife/dinnertheatre.asp), where Broadway-style family entertainment is offered in a Christian-based atmosphere.