The Venue on 35th, a safe and welcoming space for a variety of artists, opened in March of 2007 and continues to grow and thrive today! Offering space, showcases and workshops for writers, singers, musicians, actors, dancers and anyone else interested in exploring their artistic talents, the Venue welcomes All Who Come in Peace!
The TCC Jeanne and George Roper Performing Arts Center occupies the former Loew’s State Theater building in revitalized downtown Norfolk, Virginia. Built in elegant style in 1926, Tidewater Community College lovingly restored this former movie palace and Vaudeville house to its original opulence. Featuring sumptuous surroundings with gilded box seats, glass chandeliers and ornate, hand-painted architectural details, the Roper has been lauded by theater critics as “a cathedral to the past.” The Roper now hosts the range of the performing arts as well as feature films and college convocations, commencements and symposia. Comfortably seating up to 900 patrons, this vibrant centerpiece of the downtown entertainment district has been fitted out with state-of-the-art technology, enabling the production of the most complex and demanding staged presentations.
University Theatre, at 47th Street and Hampton Blvd., features a classic 280-seat proscenium theatre. Fully equipped with a contemporary counter-weight system, both traditional lighting instruments and moving lights, a flexible sound system and high-definition data projectors featuring multiple inputs including Blu-ray players. Free parking for the University Theatre is available in Garage D, 45th or 46th Street and Hampton Boulevard.
Visit the quaint Chelsea neighborhood of Norfolk, and you will be welcomed by the bold red facade of Little Theatre of Norfolk. While this intimate 210-seat playhouse was originally built in 1949, Little Theatre of Norfolk has been a continuously operating community theatre since 1926. Back then, when the Little Theatre Movement was spreading across the country, the group operated out of a former horse stable on York Street downtown. Even Hollywood Golden Age film star Margaret Sullavan once graced the LTN stage! Now the group presents five main-stage productions each season; a fall musical, three plays over the winter months, and a spring musical. The shows selected each season offer a well-rounded mix of modern works and classics to welcome everyone in the Hampton Roads community, and visitors, to experience live theatre. LTN also offers free educational workshops and an annual scholarship.
One of the area’s newest concert halls, the L. Douglas Wilder Performing Arts Center is located on the beautiful campus of Norfolk State University. The Center, which seats 1,800 people, has curvilinear and elegant designs. In addition to the concert hall, the Wilder Center has a full theatrical stage, excellent acoustics, houses an atrium, three large conference rooms and assigned offices that will more than meet your expectations.
Located at 46th Street and Monarch Way, the Goode Theatre features a 185-seat flexible stage facility and fully equipped film soundstage as well as conventional, LED, and automated lighting fixtures and state-of-the-art lighting and sound consoles. The scene shop is equipped with the latest in scenic design technologies including a CNC Router Table and Plasma cutter. Free parking for the Goode Theatre is available in Garage D, 45th or 46th Street and Hampton Boulevard.
The ODU Department of Music is housed in the F. Ludwig Diehn Center for the Performing Arts, opened in 1991. The facility is among the finest in the area.
An intimate 200-seat performance space with excellent acoustics, located in the F. Ludwig Diehn Center for the Performing Arts on 49th Street near Webb University Center. Free parking for the Chandler Recital Hall during Diehn Concerts is available in Garage E, 49th Street and Bluestone Avenue, or in the circular lot between the F. Ludwig Diehn Center for the Performing Arts and Webb Center.
Sail Nauticus is a Norfolk-based, nonprofit sailing school and community sailing center unlike anything else in the Hampton Roads region. They provide a variety of activities including sailing cruises, adult sailing lessons, an expansive membership program and popular Summer Camps. As a community sailing program, they create accessible opportunities for individuals to get out on the water via group outing programs and through guided sails and courses.
Sail Nauticus offers two U.S. Sailing Courses: First Sails, a fun, informal 2-hour sail to test the waters and Learn to Sail a weekend-long course where you can train, study and be guided through the process to earn your Keelboat Certification. Group outings and corporate retreats are available as well.