Why Pensacola Is
Best in Show
The combination of laid-back beachtown vibes and
a world-class arts scene earns Pensacola rave reviews
Pensacola’s sugar-white beaches, fresh seafood,
and abundant sunshine are among the top reasons travelers find their way to this picturesque stretch of Florida’s Gulf Coast. Watching the Blue Angels’ aerial acrobatics in their home skies is another. But no matter why visitors make their way to Pensacola’s shores, they quickly discover the famed naval aviators aren’t the only world-class performers in town.
Home to a bustling downtown with brick-lined sidewalks, historic architecture, and eclectic shops and restaurants, Pensacola has plenty going for it even without cutting-edge visual art exhibitions and first-rate ballet, opera, and musical theater outfits. It has the artistic chops of a much bigger city and the venues to match—like the one inside downtown’s Clark Family Cultural Center. The former county jail and courthouse is currently undergoing a $7 million makeover. “It’s an overhaul, really,” says Sid Williams-Heath, the Cultural Center’s CEO, “and includes a completely transformed main theater with new chairs, carpet, sound systems, lighting, rigging, and a sophisticated Ralph Lauren–esque aesthetic of plaids, wood, leather, and brass.” A modernized atrium, renovated classrooms and rehearsal spaces, and the addition of a rooftop stage with views of the Pensacola Bay are also on the punch list.
in partnership with
And while it’s known for its innovation and high artistic quality, the Little Theatre’s friend and Cultural Center neighbor, Ballet Pensacola, is equally community-minded. The company’s professional ballerinas perform at local schools and festivals and also staff the Ballet Pensacola Academy, which trains the city’s tiniest dancers. Each year, the company presents four major productions—a fall, winter, and spring show in addition to The Nutcracker every December.
For principal ballerina Hannah Holtsclaw Breen, the “performance of the season” is the spring show: “After training all season long, the spring performance is a culmination of all the dancers’ hard work and growth,” she says. Productions are staged at the Clark Family Cultural Center
as well as at other new and historic venues around Pensacola. “I have been dancing professionally with Ballet Pensacola for seven seasons,” Breen says, “and I always look forward to performing at the Saenger Theatre located
in the heart of downtown Pensacola.” Nicknamed the Grand Dame of Palafox Street, the opulent old-world theater is within easy walking distance of many of the city’s most popular restaurants and bars, making it a natural choice for dinner and a show—and the place to end a day spent
on Pensacola’s sunny shores.
Plan your creative Pensacola visit with Vacation Artfully
Vacation Artfully
And although a handful of organizations, including Ballet Pensacola and West Florida Literary Federation, share space within its walls, the center is anchored by the venerable Pensacola Little Theatre, a nonprofit community theater that has been entertaining Northwest Florida audiences since 1936. “The Pensacola Little Theatre is truly community-based,” says Kathy Holsworth, the organization’s artistic director. “One of our favorite questions from the audience is: ‘Where is this traveling show from and where did they find these actors?’ Our designers, directors, and performers expect a lot from each other, creating a shared connection of excellence in storytelling that belies the fact that we are all ‘just’ local volunteers.” The theatre’s robust annual slate includes a rotating mix of traditional musicals, popular dramas and comedies, family shows, and smaller, unpublished works.
Hannah Holtsclaw Breen,
Principal Ballerina
“I always
look forward to performing at the
Saenger Theatre..."
Sid Williams-Heath,
Clark Family Cultural Center