Hey, Greenville. Grace here. 👋 I’m a huge fan of theatre (especially musical theatre). There must be a lot of us, because the theatre scene downtown is definitely thriving. Whether you’re someone (like me) who tries to make it out to see as many shows as possible or if you’re just wanting to dip your toes in the theatrical sand, we put together a guide to the theatres downtown so you can see which one(s) you need to check out next.
- The Peace Center is probably the one most people think of. It’s a major downtown landmark and a cultural center in Greenville with a pretty important history to the city.
- The Peace Center houses the Peace Concert Hall (2,100 seats, where you’ll see Broadway shows + large concerts) and the Gunter Theatre (smaller, 400 seats, you’ll see more films, recitals, and children’s theatre).
- The Peace Center also houses Genevieve’s Theater Lounge, for if you want to grab a bite or a drink before your show.
- Now Playing: You can check out the Reedy Reels Film Festival Nov. 2-3, which will be held in the Gunter Theatre. Tickets are $12+ and you can get them here. We also recommend checking out the Broadway show, Once on This Island, which will be playing at the Peace Center from Nov. 5-10. You can buy tickets for that here. The cast features Greenville native, Phillip Boykin.
- Centre Stage houses a much smaller + more intimate space (275 seats), where there is truly not a bad seat in the house.
- There is a small bar where you can purchase beer or wine before your show.
- Now Playing: On Nov. 2, Centre Stage is presenting Masquerade, an Evening of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Rodgers and Hammerstein. There’s not many tickets left, but you can get them at the link here. After that, starting Dec. 5, they’ll present A Holly Jolly Christmas. If you want to go ahead + get tickets for that, you can do that here.
WareHouse Theatre, 37 Augusta St.
- Warehouse Theatre describes their mission as to be the Upstate’s “premier, professional theatre where community engagement and education complement thought-provoking theatre experiences.”
- The theatre is, like Centre Stage, a smaller and more intimate size.
- #ProTip: You can reserve a seat in advance for $5.
- In addition to the great shows they produce every year, they also manage a regional Educational Program consisting of an annual Educational Tour, This Wooden O (Language Arts Program), Applied Theatre Program, and Community Outreach Initiatives, and produce the Upstate Shakespeare Festival in Falls Park.
- Now Playing: Nov. 8-24, Warehouse Theatre will be presenting The Thanksgiving Play – a satire about four “woke” teaching students who end up offending everyone with their Thanksgiving Pageant. You can grab tickets for that here.
Greenville Theatre, 444 College St.
- Greenville Theatre is the Upstate’s oldest + biggest professional theatre that produces locally. You can read the history of the theatre – whose story starts in 1926 – at the link here.
- A bit larger than the Warehouse Theatre and Centre Stage, Greenville Theatre houses 571 seats and sits on Heritage Green.
- The theatre houses a large lobby + bar where you can grab a beer, wine + other general concessions before your show.
Greenville Theatre has an educational outreach program which has been touring schools for the last 18 years. The program aims to provide a field trip experience for students of all backgrounds and they’re able to tour all Greenville County Title 1 schools for free. You can read more about their program here.
High school + middle school students can have an opportunity to grow in the acting field through the theatre’s after school program: Junior Players.
They also host a concert series which features touring tribute bands – John Denver + Fleetwood Mac tribute performances are #ComingSoon. Tickets for that are here.
Now Playing: Now through Nov. 10, you can see The Game’s Afoot. You can buy tickets here + check out what’s coming next here.
Cafe and Then Some, 101 College St.
- Something a little different but equally as enjoyable is Cafe and Then Some, a comedy dinner theater. Shows run every Wednesday through Saturday and you can either opt for dinner + a show, or just the show. You can check out the Cafe’s menu here.
- They offer private parties (of 50 to 120) and will even travel to perform. Some of their recent traveling gigs as listed on their website are: Weddings, Birthdays, Baptisms, Graduations, Family Reunions, and Bar Mitzvahs, just to name a few.
- Now Playing: Oct. 31 through Jan. 4, Back to the Jockey Lot – a story which features CBD oil, a peanut brittle vendor, an Anderson socialite, and more. Tickets are $20 and you can make a reservation for the show at the link here.
South Carolina Children’s Theatre, ?
- You might be wondering why there’s a question mark instead of an address. As of right now, there is not one clear address for the S.C. Children’s Theatre. Their offices are located at 1200 Pendleton St. and they currently produce their shows at the Peace Center’s Gunter Theatre. But they’re in the middle of constructing their new location on Augusta St. (planning to open June of 2020), where everything will all be in one place. You can read more about the construction progress here.
- The SCCT has three main focuses: performance, education, and outreach.
- Now Playing: Coming Nov. 29-Dec. 8, SCCT will present A Charlie Brown Christmas. You can buy tickets for that now at the link here.
