The Performing Arts

Dance

Although it has a well-regarded ballet company and a theater dedicated to contemporary dance and performance art, Seattle is not nearly as devoted to dance as it is to theater and classical music. That said, hardly a week goes by without some sort of dance performance being staged somewhere in the city. Touring companies of all types, the University of Washington Dance Department faculty and student performances, the UW World Series, and the Northwest New Works Festival all bring plenty of creative movement to the stages of Seattle. Check Seattle Weekly or the Seattle Times for a calendar of upcoming performances.

The Pacific Northwest Ballet, Marion Oliver McCaw Hall, 301 Mercer St. (tel. 206/441-2424; www.pnb.org), is Seattle's premier dance company. During the season, which runs from September to June, the company presents a wide range of classics, new works, and (the company's specialty) pieces choreographed by George Balanchine. This company's performance of The Nutcracker, with outstanding dancing and sets, plus costumes by children's book author Maurice Sendak, is the highlight of every season. The Pacific Northwest Ballet performs at Marion Oliver McCaw Hall at Seattle Center. Ticket prices range from $18 to $145.

Much more adventurous choreography is the domain of On the Boards, Behnke Center for Contemporary Performance, 100 W. Roy St. (tel. 206/217-9888; www.ontheboards.org), which, although it stages a wide variety of performance art, is best known as Seattle's premier modern-dance venue. In addition to dance performances by Northwest artists, there are a variety of productions each year by internationally known performance artists. Tickets go for $10 to $24.

Major Performance Halls

With ticket prices for shows and concerts so high these days, it pays to be choosy about what you see, but sometimes the venue is just as important. Benaroya Hall, the Seattle Symphony's downtown home, has such excellent acoustics that a performance here is worth attending simply for the sake of hearing how a good symphony hall should sound. Seattle also has two restored historic theaters that are as much a part of a performance as what happens onstage.

Benaroya Hall (tel. 206/215-4747), on Third Avenue between Union and University streets in downtown Seattle, is the home of the Seattle Symphony. This state-of-the-art performance hall houses two concert halls -- the main hall and a smaller recital hall. It's home to the Watjen concert organ, a magnificent pipe organ, as well as a Starbucks, a cafe, a symphony store, and a pair of Dale Chihuly chandeliers. Amenities aside, the main hall's excellent acoustics are the big attraction.

The 5th Avenue Theatre, 1308 Fifth Ave. (tel. 888/5TH-4TIX or 206/625-1900; www.5thavenuetheatre.org), which first opened its doors in 1926 as a vaudeville house, is a loose re-creation of the imperial throne room in Beijing's Forbidden City. Don't miss an opportunity to attend a performance here. Broadway shows are the theater's mainstay; ticket prices usually range from $20 to $75.

The Paramount Theatre, 911 Pine St. (tel. 206/682-1414; www.theparamount.com), one of Seattle's few historic theaters, has been restored to its original beauty and today shines with all the brilliance it had when it first opened in 1928. New lighting and sound systems have brought the theater up to contemporary standards. The theater hosts everything from rock concerts to Broadway musicals. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster.

Affiliated with the Paramount Theatre, the Moore Theatre, 1932 Second Ave. (tel. 206/682-1414; www.themoore.com), in Belltown, gets lots of national rock acts that aren't likely to draw quite as many people as bands that play at the Paramount.

Performing-Arts Series

When Seattle's own resident performing-arts companies aren't taking to the dozens of stages around the city, various touring companies from around the world are. If you're a fan of Broadway shows, check the calendars at the Paramount Theatre and the 5th Avenue Theatre, both of which regularly serve as Seattle stops for touring shows.

The UW World Series (tel. 800/859-5342 or 206/543-4880; www.uwworldseries.org), held at Meany Hall on the University of Washington campus, is actually several different series that include chamber music, classical piano, dance, and world music and theater. Together these four series keep the Meany Hall stage busy between October and May. Special events are also scheduled. Tickets go for $32 to $45. The box office is at 4001 University Way NE, which is off campus.

Seattle loves the theater, including fringe works. Avant-garde performances are the specialty of the Northwest New Works Festival (tel. 206/217-9888; www.ontheboards.org), an annual barrage of contemporary dance and performance art staged each spring by On the Boards.

Summer is a time of outdoor festivals and performance series in Seattle, and if you're in town during the sunny months, you'll have a wide variety of alfresco performances from which to choose. The city's biggest summer music festivals are the Northwest Folklife Festival, over Memorial Day weekend, and Bumbershoot, over Labor Day weekend.

At Woodland Park Zoo (tel. 206/615-0076; www.zoo.org/zootunes), the Zoo Tunes concert series brings in more big-name performers from the world of jazz, easy listening, blues, and rock. Tickets go for $17 to $21; bear in mind that they usually sell out almost as soon as they go on sale in early May.

North of Seattle, in Woodinville, Summer Concerts at the Chateau, 14111 NE 145th St. (tel. 425/415-3300 for information, or 206/628-0888 for tickets; www.ste-michelle.com), is the area's most enjoyable outdoor summer concert series. It's held at the Chateau Ste. Michelle's amphitheater, which is surrounded by beautiful estate-like grounds. This is Washington's largest winery, so plenty of wine is available. The lineup is calculated to appeal to the 30- to 50-something crowd (past performers have included Bruce Hornsby, Lyle Lovett, Madeleine Peyraux, and Harry Connick Jr. Ticket prices usually range from $36 to $100, with a few shows each summer priced a bit higher.

At the summertime Concerts at Marymoor, 6046 W. Lake Sammamish Pkwy. NE (tel. 206/628-0888; www.concertsatmarymoor.com), at Marymoor Park, 20 to 30 minutes east of Seattle at the north end of Lake Sammamish, you can expect the likes of Alison Krauss and UB40. Tickets for most shows are between $30 and $70, although prices sometimes go higher.

The White River Amphitheatre, 40601 Auburn-Enumclaw Rd., Auburn (tel. 360/825-6200; www.whiteriverconcerts.com), is the Seattle area's top amphitheater and pulls in big-name rock bands. Ticket prices can be anywhere from $20 to around $150, with the lowest prices being space on the lawn. The amphitheater is on the Muckleshoot Indian Reservation, 35 miles southeast of Seattle.

Then, of course, there's Seattle's perennially popular Shakespeare-in-the-park festival, which is staged in July and August in several parks around the city. GreenStage (tel. 206/748-1551; www.greenstage.org) usually produces two Shakespeare plays per summer and has free performances three to four times each week.

Back to Top

Note: This information was accurate when it was published, but can change without notice. Please be sure to confirm all rates and details directly with the companies in question before planning your trip.

		Email			Print			RSS

				Frommer's Seattle 2008 Author: Karl Samson Pub Date: December 10, 2007 Price: $17.99				Related Titles: Alaska For Dummies, 3rd Edition Frommer's Alaska 2008 Frommer's Alaska Cruises & Ports of Call 2008