Stunning shows, beautiful ballets, powerful plays, superlative singing, and vibrant venues are all a part of the fabric of Seattle—a creative hub for the performing arts. Don’t miss the chance to see local, national, and international talent take the stage at these noteworthy spots around the city. We’ve mentioned some exciting upcoming shows, but be sure to check websites for the latest seasonal lineups.
Cue the Musicians
Seattle Symphony with Conductor Emeritus Ludovic Morlot, 2023 Brandon Patoc
Seattle Symphony
Downtown’s Benaroya Hall knows its audience: music lovers who want to hear the award-winning Seattle Symphony just as intended. And it delivers with a purpose-built design that artfully melds acoustics and aesthetics. In that environment, the symphony ably tackles everything from the classics to modern pop. South African cellist Abel Selaocoe brings his joyous take on Tchaikovsky to the stage on Feb 6 and 8, and Disney’s Fantasia in Concert is slated for March 21–23.
200 University St
seattlesymphony.org
Seattle Symphony, guest cellist Gretchen Yanover at Raisbeck Music Center, 2023-24 Brandon Patoc
Seattle Chamber Music Society
World-class musicians bring classical music to life in intimate concerts hosted by the Seattle Chamber Music Society. Their Signature Series is held at Benaroya Hall’s Nordstrom Recital Hall, featuring a cherry wood stage and excellent acoustics. Catch the 2025 Winter Festival Jan 24-Feb 2, or the Ehnes Quartet on April 27 playing the likes of Beethoven and Brahms.
200 University St
seattlechambermusic.org
Seattle Opera “X: The Life and Times of Malcom X,” 2023-24 Philip Newton
Seattle Opera
This internationally acclaimed opera company has been staging high-quality productions from the world’s most talented composers since the 1960s. Seattle Opera performs in the state-of-the-art McCaw Hall, a gorgeous contemporary building with a dramatic five-story glass facade and a dazzling interior with excellent sightlines and superb acoustics. Head back to ancient times for Les Troyens in Concert (Jan 17 and 19), or combine myth, magic, and Mozart at The Magic Flute (Feb 22–March 9).
321 Mercer St
seattleopera.org
Sunny Xia Carlin Ma
Sunny Xia Seattle Symphony
Sunny Xia was originally a violin performance major at the Cleveland Institute of Music when she started exploring her interest in conducting. “The way to understand the music is to study the conductor’s score,” she says. “As a player, you play one line; as a conductor, you have the tools to understand from the inside how everything is put together.”
Becoming a conductor isn’t the easiest career path, given that there are only so many conducting jobs available. So Xia, now in her third season with the Seattle Symphony as associate conductor, feels especially fortunate. “This is my dream job,” she says.
Her role includes assisting guest conductors, conducting concerts of her own, and working closely with the symphony’s education and community engagement department on a variety of initiatives, including a series of community concerts.
This season, she’s particularly excited to conduct The Four Seasons (May 1–4), her first subscription debut with the orchestra. No matter what performance you attend, though, she notes you can always count on well-blended sound and a talented group of performers. “It’s a special ensemble because it’s quite forward thinking,” she says. “We do new things in interesting ways. I still find myself really enjoying being an audience member.”
Variety Show
Silkroad Ensemble "Uplifted Voices", 2024-25 Courtesy Meany Center for the Performing Arts; Noir Prism
Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo, 2024-25 Courtesy Mean Center for the Performing Arts
Meany Center for the Performing Arts
Like any good college performing arts venue, Meany Center on the University of Washington campus hosts a vibrant lineup of innovative performances. All-male dance company Les Ballets Trockadero de Monte Carlo pays a visit Jan 23–25 for polished parodies of classical dances, while Silkroad Ensemble draws inspiration from the folk and ancestral music of Japan, China, Armenia, Ireland, and the Hebrides, plus native cultures across North America, for the show Uplifted Voices (March 28).
4040 George Washington Ln NE
meanycenter.org
Liz Phair, 2023 Courtesy Moore Theatre
Moore Theatre
Seattle’s oldest active theater first opened in 1907 for those in high society, but today it welcomes everyone who wants to see a good show—featuring everyone from singers to comedians to dancers. Join the sugary DeLa and spicy Jinkx Dec 21-24 for a hilarious Holiday Show that is sure to lift your spirits, and percussion troupe Stomp stops by between Jan 24–26. On the second Saturday of the month, take a free, behind-the-scenes tour of the historic venue.
1932 Second Ave
stgpresents.org
Unexpected Productions
Tucked along the Gum Wall in Pike Place Market is a door that will lead you to loads of laughs. Seattle’s longest-running improv troupe hosts a variety of regularly recurring shows, like the Duo Comedy Showcase on Wednesdays, as well as limited-run events. Get your chuckles in at Xtreme Theatresports New Year’s Eve Party (Dec 31), featuring fast-paced comedy improv battles.
1428 Post Alley
unexpectedproductions.org
Seattle Men’s Chorus (SMC) and Seattle Women’s Chorus (SWC)
Among the world’s largest LGBTQIA+-identified choruses, SMC and SWC have plenty to boast about—including great voices. They use those powerful pipes to build community, expand inclusion, and inspire justice. SWC will present 22 popular jazz standards during its Fly Me to the Moon concert on Feb 23 at Benaroya Hall. And don’t miss SMC’s Dolly, a salute to beloved singer Dolly Parton, April 5–May 18, at The 5th Avenue Theatre and other venues throughout the metro area.
Various venues
seattlechoruses.org
Town Hall Seattle
The vibrant community gathering place presents events of all kinds, from author conversations to civic panels to candlelight concerts. The former church, which dates to 1916, was built in the Roman Revival style, with terra-cotta walls, soaring art-glass windows, and a central dome with a decorative oculus. Affordable tickets and accessible spaces are other hallmarks of this inclusive venue.
1119 Eighth Ave
townhallseattle.org
Seattle Arts & Lectures
Connecting readers, writers, speakers, and listeners is among the goals of Seattle Arts & Lectures, which has a stated mission to cultivate transformative experiences through story and language. They often bring buzzworthy authors to town, like Percival Everett (Jan 23), who wrote James—a retelling of Huckleberry Finn from the point of view of the enslaved character, Jim—and Abby Jimenez (April 3), known for her funny romantic novels that’ll make you swoon.
Various venues
lectures.org
Let's Dance
George Balanchine's "The Nutcracker" performed by Pacific Northwest Ballet Angela Sterling
Pacific Northwest Ballet Angela Sterling
Courtesy Pacific Northwest Ballet
McCaw Hall Angela Sterling
Pacific Northwest Ballet
Under the direction of Peter Boal—who had a 22-year career as a dancer for the New York City Ballet—PNB artfully brings classics and modern pieces to the stage at Seattle Center’s McCaw Hall. This season, attend the always-popular George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker (Nov 29–Dec 28) or Emergence (March 14–23), a collection of four works from choreographers not afraid to push the boundaries of their art form.
321 Mercer St
pnb.org
Preston Singletary Chloe Collyer
Preston Singletary
Pacific Northwest Ballet
When the Pacific Northwest Ballet debuts its contemporary take on the classic story The Sleeping Beauty (Jan 31–Feb 9), it won’t be against a backdrop of 14th-century Europe, as the Disney movie has popularized. Instead, the setting will be a timeless, mythical Pacific Northwest place—and that’s largely thanks to artist Preston Singletary, who’s creating his first theatrical scenic design.
Primarily known as a glass artist, Singletary incorporates his Tlingit cultural heritage into his works, and this production will be no exception. A naturalistic-looking eagle sculpture will be the central figure on set, and his signature style will have a subtle presence in spots like the curtain scrims used for set changes.
Although Singletary, who got his start in glass in the early 1980s, has never done a project like this before, he jumped at the opportunity. “I believe in cross-fertilization of mediums,” he says. “To work on this scale is quite exciting for me, because it’s such a major production from every aspect—the dancing to the music to the stage sets to the props and costumes.”
Although people often think of The Sleeping Beauty as a fairy tale, Singletary sees it as a mythology that shares universal themes with many of the stories from the Tlingit tradition—and it’s through that lens that he’ll bring the stage to life.
Raise the Curtain
"Disney's The Little Mermaid," 2023-24 at The 5th Avenue Theatre John Curry Photography
The 5th Avenue Theatre John Curry Photography
The 5th Avenue Theatre John Curry Photography
The 5th Avenue Theatre
Musical theater comes to life at the ornate 5th Avenue Theatre, with architecture inspired by China’s Forbidden City, Temple of Heavenly Peace, and Summer Palace. Since the grand opening in 1926, it has hosted a number of world premieres, including Hairspray and Memphis. This season, get a spoonful of sugar at the magical Mary Poppins (Nov 22–Dec 22), or root for a down-on-her-luck pie baker at Waitress (March 11–30).
1308 Fifth Ave
5thavenue.org
Dance Theatre of Harlem, 2025 Courtesy Paramount Theatre
Courtesy Paramount Theatre
LCD Soundsystem, 2024 Courtesy Paramount Theatre
Paramount Theatre
As host to traveling Broadway shows and tons of other performances—including dance, jazz, comedy, and concerts—the Paramount is a downtown Seattle destination. When it opened in 1928, The Seattle Times wrote: “Never has such a magnificent cathedral of entertainment been given over to the public. Indescribable beauty! Incomparable art!” It’s just as lovely today, with opulent chandeliers that feature more than 3 million crystal beads. Take it all in when you see Kimberly Akimbo (Jan 7–12) or Life of Pi (April 15–20).
911 Pine St
stgpresents.org
Quixote Nuevo, 2024 at Seattle Rep Nate Watters
Seattle Rep
Representing the region’s diverse cultures, perspectives, and life experiences, Seattle Rep—which has won a Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre—is deeply in tune with its surroundings. This season the company will stage Noël Coward’s Blithe Spirit (Nov 29–Dec 22), about a supernatural love triangle, and Blues for an Alabama Sky (Jan 30–Feb 23), set during the Great Depression.
Fun fact: At the Rep’s main Bagley Wright Theater, it’s just 65 feet from the stage to the last row, which ensures an intimate experience from every seat.
155 Mercer St
seattlerep.org
“A Christmas Carol,” 2024 Courtesy ACT Theatre
ACT Contemporary Theatre
Artistic expression and civic engagement come together at ACT Contemporary Theatre, where there’s an emphasis on new works from local playwrights. The shows happen on two stages: the Allen Theatre, once a grand ballroom that’s now a stage in the round, and the Falls Theatre, where you’re never more than 30 feet from the stage. See the timeless holiday tale A Christmas Carol (Nov 29–Dec 27), an ACT tradition 49 years in the making, or watch a couple fall in and out of love in The Last Five Years (Feb 8–March 16).
700 Union St
acttheatre.org
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