The Performing Arts

Although downtown Phoenix claims the Valley's greatest concentration of performance halls, including Symphony Hall, the Orpheum Theatre, and the Herberger Theater Center, there are major performing arts venues scattered across the Valley. No matter where you happen to be staying, you're likely to find performances being held somewhere nearby.

Calling these many Valley venues home are such major companies as the Phoenix Symphony, Arizona Opera Company, Ballet Arizona, Center Dance Ensemble, Actors Theatre of Phoenix, and Arizona Theatre Company. Adding to the performances held by these companies are the wide variety of touring companies that make stops here throughout the year.

While you'll find box-office phone numbers listed below, you can also purchase most performing-arts tickets through Ticketmaster (tel. 480/784-4444; www.ticketmaster.com). For sold-out shows, check with your hotel concierge, or try Tickets Unlimited (tel. 800/289-8497 or 602/840-2340; www.ticketsunlimitedinc.com).

Major Performing-Arts Centers

Symphony Hall, 225 E. Adams St. (tel. 602/262-7272; www.ci.phoenix.az.us/CIVPLAZA/stages.html#SYMPH), which underwent an extensive renovation and remodeling in 2005, is Phoenix's premier performance venue and is home to the Phoenix Symphony, Ballet Arizona, and the Arizona Opera Company. It also hosts touring Broadway shows and various other concerts and theatrical productions. The hall's Grand Drape is the world's largest piece of machine-made embroidery.

The Orpheum Theatre, 203 W. Adams St. (tel. 602/262-7272; www.ci.phoenix.az.us/STAGES/orpheum.html), is the most elegant hall in the Valley. The historic Spanish colonial baroque-revival theater was built in 1929 and at the time was considered the most luxurious theater west of the Mississippi. Today, its ornately carved sandstone facade stands in striking contrast to the glass-and-steel City Hall building, with which the theater shares a common wall.

Although not the largest performance venue in town, the Celebrity Theatre, 440 N. 32nd St. (tel. 602/267-1600; www.celebritytheatre.com), books some of the best shows. With its revolving stage and no seat farther than 75 feet from the performers, this is a great place to catch the likes of Carole King, Chris Isaak, or Joe Satriani.

The Dodge Theatre, 400 W. Washington St. (tel. 602/379-2888; www.dodgetheatre.com), is another of Phoenix's major downtown performance halls and seats from 2,000 to 5,000 people. It books many top names in entertainment, as well as the occasional Broadway show or international touring company.

The Frank Lloyd Wright-designed Grady Gammage Auditorium, Mill Avenue and Apache Boulevard, Tempe (tel. 480/965-3434; www.asugammage.com), on the Arizona State University campus, is at once massive and graceful. This 3,000-seat hall hosts everything from barbershop quartets to touring Broadway shows.

The Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7380 E. Second St., Scottsdale (tel. 480/994-2787; www.scottsdaleperformingarts.org), hosts a variety of performances and series, ranging from alternative dance to classical music. This center seems to get the best of the touring performers who come through the Valley.

In Scottsdale, near The Borgata shopping center, ASU's Kerr Cultural Center, 6110 N. Scottsdale Rd. (tel. 480/596-2660; www.asukerr.com), a tiny venue in a historic home, offers up an eclectic season that includes music from around the world. The Kerr Cultural Center sponsors a couple of different free concert series, so be sure to check the calendar as you plan your Phoenix vacation.

With its sail-like shade canopies, sunken sculpture courtyard, numerous water features, and colorful architecture, the Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St. (tel. 480/644-6500; www.mesaartscenter.com), which opened in 2005, is the prettiest performing arts center in the valley. Check out the performance schedule when planning your visit. In the cooler months, there are weekly free lunchtime concerts.

Outdoor Venues & Series

Given the weather, it should come as no surprise that Phoenicians like to attend performances under the sun and stars.

The Cricket Pavilion, 2121 N. 83rd Ave., Phoenix (tel. 602/254-7200; www.cricket-pavilion.com), west of downtown and 1/2-mile north of I-10 between 75th and 83rd avenues, is the city's top outdoor venue. This 20,000-seat amphitheater is open year-round and hosts everything from Broadway musicals to rock concerts.

The Mesa Amphitheater, at University Drive and Center Street, Mesa (tel. 480/644-2560; www.mesaamp.com), is a much smaller amphitheater that holds a wide variety of concerts in spring and summer, and occasionally other times of year as well.

Throughout the year, the Scottsdale Center for the Arts, 7380 E. Second St., Scottsdale (tel. 480/994-2787; www.scottsdaleperformingarts.org), stages outdoor performances in the adjacent Scottsdale Amphitheater on the Scottsdale Civic Center Mall. The Sunday A'fair series runs from October to April, with free concerts from noon to 4:30pm on selected Sundays of each month. Performances range from acoustic blues to zydeco.

Two perennial favorites of Valley residents take place in particularly attractive surroundings. The Music in the Garden concerts at the Desert Botanical Garden, 1201 N. Galvin Pkwy. in Papago Park (tel. 480/941-1225; www.dbg.org), are held on Sundays between January and March. The season always includes an eclectic array of musical styles. Tickets are $16 and include admission to the gardens. Sunday brunch is served for an additional charge. Between late March and late June, there are also Friday-night jazz concerts. Up on the north side of the Valley, just outside Carefree, el Pedregal Shops & Dining at The Boulders, 34505 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale (tel. 480/488-1072; www.elpedregal.com), stages occasional jazz, blues, and rock concerts, and sometimes has free live music on weekends.

Outdoor concerts are also held at various parks and plazas around the Valley during the warmer months. Check local papers for listings.

Classical Music, Opera & Dance

The Phoenix Symphony (tel. 800/776-9080 or 602/495-1999; www.phoenixsymphony.org), the Southwest's leading symphony orchestra, performs at Symphony Hall (tickets mostly run $18-$67).

Opera buffs will want to see what the Arizona Opera Company (tel. 602/266-7464; www.azopera.org) has scheduled. Each season, this company stages up to five operas, both familiar and more obscure, and splits its time between Phoenix and Tucson. Tickets cost $30 to $125. Performances are held at Symphony Hall.

Ballet Arizona (tel. 888/3-BALLET or 602/381-1096; www.balletaz.org) performs at both the Orpheum Theatre and Symphony Hall and stages both classical and contemporary ballets; tickets run $10 to $104. The Center Dance Ensemble (tel. 602/252-8497; www.centerdance.com), the city's contemporary dance company, stages several productions a year at the Herberger Theater Center. Tickets cost $21. Between September and April, Southwest Arts & Entertainment (tel. 602/482-6410; www.southwestae.com) brings acclaimed dance companies and music acts from around the world to Phoenix, with performances staged primarily at the Orpheum. Tickets are usually around $30.

Theatre

With nearly a dozen professional companies and the same number of nonprofessional companies taking to the boards throughout the year, a play is always being staged somewhere in the Valley.

The Herberger Theater Center, 222 E. Monroe St. (tel. 602/254-7399 or 602/252-8497; www.herbergertheater.org), which is located downtown and vaguely resembles a Spanish colonial church, is the city's main venue for live theater. Its two Broadway-style theaters together host hundreds of performances each year, including productions by the Actors Theatre and the Arizona Theatre Company (ATC). Actors Theatre (tel. 602/253-6701; www.atphx.org) tends to stage smaller, lesser-known off-Broadway-type works, with musicals, dramas, and comedies equally represented; tickets go for $24 to $49. The annual production of A Christmas Carol is always a big hit. ATC (tel. 602/256-6995; www.aztheatreco.org) is the state theater company and splits its performances between Phoenix and Tucson. Founded in 1967, it's the major force on the Arizona thespian scene. Productions range from world premieres to recent Tony award-winners to classics. Tickets run $21 to $62.

The Phoenix Theatre, 100 E. McDowell Rd. (tel. 602/254-2151; www.phxtheatre.org), is in the Phoenix Art Museum building and has been around for more than 85 years. Musicals are the mainstays here; tickets are $24 to $39. If your interest lies in Broadway plays, see what Broadway in Arizona (tel. 480/965-3434; www.broadwayacrossamerica.com/tempe) has scheduled. The series, focusing mostly on comedies and musicals, is held at the Gammage Auditorium in Tempe; tickets cost between $20 to $70, with the occasional higher-price ticket for a real blockbuster show. The Theater League (tel. 800/776-7469 or 602/262-7272; www.theaterleague.com) is another series that brings in Broadway musicals. Performances are held in the Orpheum Theatre, and tickets range from $45 to $49.

Scottsdale's small Stagebrush Theatre, 7020 E. Second St. (tel. 480/990-7405; www.stagebrush.org), is the home of the Scottsdale Community Players and stages tried-and-true comedies and musicals, with the occasional drama thrown in. Tickets are $20. The Arizona Jewish Theatre Co. (tel. 602/264-0402; www.azjewishtheatre.org), which stages plays by Jewish playwrights and with Jewish themes, performs at Playhouse on the Park, in the Viad Corporate Center, 1850 N. Central Ave. (at Palm Lane). Tickets range from $30 to $32. If you're staying in Scottsdale and are looking for something to do with the whole family, the Scottsdale Desert Stages Theatre, 4720 N. Scottsdale Rd. (tel. 480/483-1664; www.desertstages.com), stages primarily musicals and children's theater productions. Tickets range from $12 to $25.

Lunch & a Show -- At downtown Phoenix's Herberger Theater Center, 222 E. Monroe St. (tel. 602/254-7399; www.herbergertheater.org), lunch break means the actors hit the stage while the audience grabs sandwiches for Lunch Time Theater. Throughout much of the year, 30- to 45-minute plays are staged at noon on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Tickets are only $6, and inexpensive boxed salads, sandwiches, and pasta salads can be ordered in advance.