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Columbus, Ohio

Columbus Arts: Art Scene in Columbus

Discounts
Ohio’s state capital, Columbus is home to many outstanding cultural institutions that are well worth exploring. The city plays host to the Columbus Museum of Art and BalletMet Columbus, and also boasts a trio of restored historic theaters which regularly host touring Broadway productions, concerts and special events.

Arts Info

  • Columbus Alive—Weekly entertainment magazine with coverage of music, the arts, and local nightlife
  • Columbus Arts—Helpful guide to cultural events and arts organizations in Central Ohio, courtesy of the Greater Columbus Arts Council

Art Museums

Columbus Museum of Art

Approximately 200,000 people tour the city’s major arts institution each year. It collects art from all time periods, and focuses on specific collections as well. Its holdings of Impressionist, German Expressionist and Cubist art are highly regarded, and it collects work by local Columbus artists, especially lithographs by George Bellows. Since the 2000s, it has particularly built its photography collection.

While the focus is on modern, contemporary and the photographic arts, …more…

Theater

CATCO

CATCO (Contemporary American Theatre Company) is the only resident professional Equity theatre located in Central Ohio. Its repertoire includes new works and classics, both international and homegrown. The theatre opened in January 1985 at the local YWCA with a production of Bill C. Davis’s Mass Appeal; in the fall of the following year, CATCO leased warehouse space on Park Street in the Short North District and converted it into a theatre …more…

Evolution Theatre Company

Evolution Theatre Company was founded in January 2008 by Artistic Director Emeritus Paul Lockwood, a writer-actor-singer who has worked in New York, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and elsewhere. ETC is now under the direction of Mark Phillips Schwamberger, a theater professional with over 25 years of experience in acting, directing and writing in New York, as well as in various other cities throughout the East Coast and the Midwest.

The company’s “premiere only” …more…

Opera

Opera Columbus

Opera Columbus was founded in 1981 as an independent offshoot of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, which had produced operas in Columbus for a number of years. It didn’t take long for the fledgling company to make its mark. Three years later, Opera Columbus staged the world premiere of American composer Thomas Pasatieri’s Three Sisters. Another world premiere, Leslie Burr’s Vanqui, followed in 1999.

Today the company offers a three-production season. …more…

Jazz

Jazz Arts Group

The oldest not-for-profit jazz organization in the country, Columbus’ Jazz Arts Group is dedicated to the highest level of jazz performance and education with some of the finest performers and venues in Ohio. Recent performers include almost every major touring act and their multiple concert series (including “Swingin’ at the Southern” and “The Great American Songbook”) are as innovative as they are superb.

Concerts take place in world-class venues, including the …more…

Vonn Jazz & Blues

Frequently cited as one of the best places to hear live jazz in Columbus, Vonn Jazz & Blues brings in great straight ahead jazz and a smattering of fusion, R&B crossovers and everything in between. The lush interior and an eclectic menu (Filet & Lobster Au Poivre and Chicken & Waffles) make Vonn an exciting and comfortable venue. Cover charges are reasonable and, occasionally, on the cheap side if you’re …more…

Dance

BalletMet Columbus

BalletMet Columbus is one of the largest dance companies in the nation and is known for its varied and versatile repertoire. In addition to the obligatory annual Nutcracker, its season of productions generally includes a few idiosyncratic creations by contemporary ballet choreographers. These include works such as Dangerous Liaisons, a piece inspired by the scandalous 18th century French novel by the same name, and a rock and roll ballet about …more…

Venues

Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA)

The Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) is the city’s largest and most expansive performing arts organization.  Eight of Columbus’ major theaters are owned or managed by the association, as well as two venues outside of Columbus

Despite CAPA’s current size and scope, the organization comes from much humbler origins.  It was formed in 1969 as the community of Columbus fought to save the historic Ohio Theater (built 1928) from …more…

Wexner Center for the Arts

The Wexner Center is a multi-disciplinary laboratory for the creative arts in Columbus’ University District.  Since 1989 it has emphasized commissions of new art works, and initiated programs in theater, dance and music, as well as film.  An artist residency program engages contemporary artists to create new works, exhibited or performed at the Wexner, that interface with the Ohio State community and the larger public.  Lectures, workshops and public programs …more…

Art Museums

Columbus Museum of Art

Approximately 200,000 people tour the city’s major arts institution each year. It collects art from all time periods, and focuses on specific collections as well. Its holdings of Impressionist, German Expressionist and Cubist art are highly regarded, and it collects work by local Columbus artists, especially lithographs by George Bellows. Since the 2000s, it has particularly built its photography collection.

While the focus is on modern, contemporary and the photographic arts, …more…

Theater

CATCO

CATCO (Contemporary American Theatre Company) is the only resident professional Equity theatre located in Central Ohio. Its repertoire includes new works and classics, both international and homegrown. The theatre opened in January 1985 at the local YWCA with a production of Bill C. Davis’s Mass Appeal; in the fall of the following year, CATCO leased warehouse space on Park Street in the Short North District and converted it into a theatre …more…

Evolution Theatre Company

Evolution Theatre Company was founded in January 2008 by Artistic Director Emeritus Paul Lockwood, a writer-actor-singer who has worked in New York, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and elsewhere. ETC is now under the direction of Mark Phillips Schwamberger, a theater professional with over 25 years of experience in acting, directing and writing in New York, as well as in various other cities throughout the East Coast and the Midwest.

The company’s “premiere only” …more…

Opera

Opera Columbus

Opera Columbus was founded in 1981 as an independent offshoot of the Columbus Symphony Orchestra, which had produced operas in Columbus for a number of years. It didn’t take long for the fledgling company to make its mark. Three years later, Opera Columbus staged the world premiere of American composer Thomas Pasatieri’s Three Sisters. Another world premiere, Leslie Burr’s Vanqui, followed in 1999.

Today the company offers a three-production season. …more…

Jazz

Jazz Arts Group

The oldest not-for-profit jazz organization in the country, Columbus’ Jazz Arts Group is dedicated to the highest level of jazz performance and education with some of the finest performers and venues in Ohio. Recent performers include almost every major touring act and their multiple concert series (including “Swingin’ at the Southern” and “The Great American Songbook”) are as innovative as they are superb.

Concerts take place in world-class venues, including the …more…

Vonn Jazz & Blues

Frequently cited as one of the best places to hear live jazz in Columbus, Vonn Jazz & Blues brings in great straight ahead jazz and a smattering of fusion, R&B crossovers and everything in between. The lush interior and an eclectic menu (Filet & Lobster Au Poivre and Chicken & Waffles) make Vonn an exciting and comfortable venue. Cover charges are reasonable and, occasionally, on the cheap side if you’re …more…

Dance

BalletMet Columbus

BalletMet Columbus is one of the largest dance companies in the nation and is known for its varied and versatile repertoire. In addition to the obligatory annual Nutcracker, its season of productions generally includes a few idiosyncratic creations by contemporary ballet choreographers. These include works such as Dangerous Liaisons, a piece inspired by the scandalous 18th century French novel by the same name, and a rock and roll ballet about …more…

Venues

Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA)

The Columbus Association for the Performing Arts (CAPA) is the city’s largest and most expansive performing arts organization.  Eight of Columbus’ major theaters are owned or managed by the association, as well as two venues outside of Columbus

Despite CAPA’s current size and scope, the organization comes from much humbler origins.  It was formed in 1969 as the community of Columbus fought to save the historic Ohio Theater (built 1928) from …more…

Wexner Center for the Arts

The Wexner Center is a multi-disciplinary laboratory for the creative arts in Columbus’ University District.  Since 1989 it has emphasized commissions of new art works, and initiated programs in theater, dance and music, as well as film.  An artist residency program engages contemporary artists to create new works, exhibited or performed at the Wexner, that interface with the Ohio State community and the larger public.  Lectures, workshops and public programs …more…