Louisville’s Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts, or simply The Kentucky Center, has had a culture-filled past since it officially opened as a new building in 1983. Its importance continues, with recognition from Billboard Magazine. Experience an event such as the Kentucky Opera that makes Kentucky Center its home or watch a performance by the Louisville Ballet or Louisville Orchestra.
This complex is the principal cultural venue in Kentucky. Attend multiple events at one or more of the center’s four theaters. Whitney Hall has a large theater, Bomhard Theater has a mid-size space and MeX Theater has an intimate black box setting. The tastefully restored W.L. Lyons Brown Theatre is also part of the center. Drama, dance and music programs abound as talented performers from around the state converge on the center.
Approach the large building and note its expansive glass façade. A tall contemporary red and black sculpture titled The Red Feather by Alexander Calder stands at the base of the steps leading to the main entry. Inside scan the billboards that announce current and future local and world-class shows and appearances by visiting performers, writers and dignitaries.
In the 1980s, this was the venue of a presidential debate between President Ronald Reagan and Walter Mondale, followed later by a Town Hall Forum with President George W. Bush. Former Soviet Union leader and Nobel Peace Prize winner Mikhail Gorbachev gave a talk in 2007 and the Dalai Lama was present 6 years later.
From ballet to modern dance, from opera to folk music sessions, from concerts to indie rock and from plays to poetry readings, Kentucky Center for the Performing Arts has an event for most tastes. Discover Louisville through its cultural presentations at the center.
Purchase tickets online, by phone or at the center’s box office. For extra convenience, use the box office drive-through. The complex is located in the center of Louisville just south of the Ohio River.
