6 Best Performing Arts Venues in Jackson Hole and Northwest Wyoming, Wyoming

Jackson's $35 million center is dedicated to supporting the fine and performing arts, including theater, film, and dance. It also hosts lectures on global issues, rotating exhibits, and showcases of star talent you've seen everywhere from Hollywood to Broadway. Classes for adults are also included in the center's mission.

From late June through mid-August, the talented Eagle Spirit Singers and Dancers perform every Wednesday at 7 pm outside the Fremont County Pioneer Museum in Lander. Bring a lawn chair or blanket and watch the skilled singers and dancers, who dress in colorful Native American regalia and perform against a backdrop of the Wind River Mountains.

In summer the symphony orchestra performances of the Grand Teton Music Festival are held at Walk Festival Hall in Teton Village. Outdoor concerts are held at the Center for the Arts Park in downtown Jackson. (Concerts are also held in the winter, but they're less frequent.) Tickets for most live events start at $50 for adults, though you'll occasionally find $25 rush tickets (day-of), and some events are free.

Art galleries reserve their best exhibits for this annual extravaganza usually held the first two weekends of September. Nationally known artists who work in a variety of mediums are showcased in the galleries, during a quick-draw competition, and in a live auction. Other events highlight food, poetry, jewelry, and dance.

Catch some of the West's best live theater from June through October at the Jackson Hole Playhouse, the oldest building in town. The best seats are a hot commodity, but procrastinators can usually buy last-minute tickets. Eat dinner at 6 pm in the gaudy, Western-style saloon, and take in the show in the playhouse's theater at 8 pm. Performances also take place from December through March in the adjacent Saddle Rock Saloon.

For those seeking a contemporary theater experience, Off Square Theatre is an ideal space for children and adults where theater professionals and nonprofessionals strut their stuff and sometimes go outside the box. It's one of the leading theater companies in the region and hosts productions year-round.