Arts And Entertainment
By Local East Valley Realtor Cody Sperber
Theater
The Herberger Theater includes two separate theaters, Center Stage and Stage West. Center Stage with 827 seats is designed so no seat is farther than sixty-six feet from the stage. The 350-seat Stage West can be arranged for theater-in-the-round, cabaret or traditional theater. Herberger Theater is home to the Arizona Theater Company, Ballet Arizona and Actors Theater of Phoenix and also features many visiting companies. 222 E. Monroe Street, Phoenix, 602/252-8497.The Arizona Theatre Company is the state's leading professional resident company. It offers a wide range of productions from classic to contemporary theater including Broadway hits. This company performs from October to the end of May at the Herberger Theater. 502 W. Roosevelt Street, Phoenix, 602/256-6995.
Phoenix Theatre is the oldest continuously-operated community theater in the United States, founded in 1920. Comedies, dramas, musicals and children's theatre are presented from September through July. 100 E. McDowell Road, Phoenix, 602/254-2151.
The Queen Creek Performing Arts Center is located at 22149 E. Ocotillo Road, Queen Creek. 480/987-5964. For complete show schedule, visit www.qxpac.com.
For years, the Black Theatre Troupe has been presenting comedies, musicals and classical and contemporary pieces featuring local talent. Their season is September through May. 333 E. Portland Street, Phoenix, 602/258-8128.
Arizona State University in Tempe is another source of theatrical entertainment. Designed by Frank Lloyd Wright, the 3,000-seat Grady Gammage Memorial Auditorium hosts a gamut of productions year-round. Mill Avenue and Apache Boulevard, Tempe, 480/965-3434. The Lyceum Theatre in the Galvin Playhouse, also at ASU, is the showcase theater for the university's own companies. 480/965-5337.
The Tempe Performing Arts Center is home to the Tempe Little Theatre (480/350-8388), a community theater presenting plays from September through May, and Childsplay, Inc. (480/ 350-8101), a professional theater for family audiences. 132 E. 6th Street, Tempe.
A local theater group, The Scottsdale Community Players, performs in the Stagebrush Theatre, a 200-seat facility. Musicals and dramas are the fare during a September through June season. 7020 E. Second Street, Scottsdale, 480/ 990-7405.
For family entertainment, Mesa Encore Theatre offers mostly comedies from September through April. 1207 N. Country Club Rd. 480/834-9500.
The Chandler Center for the Arts is a turntable-divisible auditorium allowing for seating to be divided into three separate theaters: Main Stage, the 350seat Little Theatre and the 250-seat Recital Hall. Shows include a variety of performing artists and entertainers. 250 N. Arizona Avenue, Chandler, 480/782-2680.
Music
The 2,500-seat Phoenix Symphony Hall, 225 E. Adams Street, Phoenix 602/534-5600, offers a variety of entertainment. It is also home to the sixty-five full-time musicians of The Phoenix Symphony. The symphony is host to acclaimed guest artists at their classical, chamber and pops concerts, September through May. The Phoenix Symphony also performs at other locations throughout the area. Office, 455 N. 3rd Street, Phoenix, 602/ 495-1999. Arizona Opera also calls the Phoenix Symphony Hall home. Arizona Opera has won national acclaim for its performances, which are split between Phoenix and Tucson. There are five productions from October to March. 4600 N. 12th Street, Phoenix, 602/266-7464.
The Scottsdale Symphony Orchestra presents concerts from November to June at the Scottsdale Center for the Arts, ranging from family nights to pops to the finest in classics. 3817 N. Brown Avenue, Scottsdale, 480/945-8071.
The Scottsdale Center for the Arts is a multi-purpose facility in the awardwinning Civic Center Mall. Besides the symphony concerts and theater performances, there are shows by guest performing artists and entertainers, travel and classic cinema and art exhibitions. 7380 2nd Street, Scottsdale, 480/994-2787.
The Mesa Symphony Orchestra performs September through June at various locations in the East Valley. 480/ 827-2143.
The Cricket Pavilion is a year-round amphitheater, seating 20,000. The pavilion features shows including Broadway musicals, concerts, dance and comedy. 2121 N. 83rd Avenue, Phoenix, 602/254-7200.
Arizona State University's Kerr Cultural Center, an adobe concert hall in Scottsdale, hosts concerts, jazz fests and a variety of entertainers. 6110 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale, 480/596-2660.
In Tempe, the ASU Activity Center, a multi-purpose facility which seats 14,000, features live concerts and entertainment. 480/965-3434. Open to staff and students.
Also in Tempe in ASU's 500-seat Music Theater are the Lyric Opera Theatre's productions plus recitals, chamber groups and other guest performances. 480/965-2856.
ASU's Sundome Center for the Per-forming Arts in Sun City West has 7,048 seats and is the largest single level theater in the country. There are a variety of shows featuring concerts, musical the-ater, celebrity performances and other cultural events. 19403 R.H. Johnson Boulevard, Sun City West, 623/975-1900.
For year-round country, rock and roll and contemporary music, head for the Veteran's Memorial Coliseum. 1326 W. McDowell Road, Phoenix, 602/252-6771.
The 19,500-seat facility of America West Arena features musical performances by the nation's top acts. 201 E. Jefferson Street, Phoenix, 602/379-7800.
Dance
For dance lovers, Ballet Arizona performs at the Herberger Theater, Symphony Hall, Scottsdale Center for the Arts and ASU. It is the state's largest professional ballet company, presenting a full repertoire of classical and contemporary works. www.balletaz.org, 3645 E. Indian School Road, Phoenix, 602/381-1096.Southwest Arts & Entertainment brings an international array of dance and music companies from all over the world to Arizona stages, offering everything from classical ballet to modern dance. Performances take place at Symphony Hall, Orpheum Theatre in Phoenix, Chandler Center for the Arts and Sundome Center for the Performing Arts. 602/482-6410.
