Performing Arts

Theater, music, dance, and kids' performances

New Hampshire’s many cool, small cities – the first among equals probably being seaside Portsmouth, NH – are packed with cool, small performance venues, theaters and clubs. All are run by inspired artistic companies working to bring local color and national talent to the public. A healthy subset of live performance in the Granite State is the many summer stock theaters and festivals like the Village Players in Wolfeboro, NH in the Lakes region or Jean’s Playhouse in mountainous Lincoln, NH, among many more. One dynamo of an arts center is the historic Portsmouth Music Hall, where fans can see full-scale musicals and solo performers, comedy, writers on stage, children’s performances, and choice films. In summer, outdoor stages at the city’s riverside Prescott Park are the scene of non-stop plays, music, and children’s events. Theaters and music clubs are scattered throughout the state, like Tupelo Music Hall in Londonderry, NH, the Capitol Center for the Arts in Concord, NH, and the Franklin and Derry, NH opera houses. (It’s inspiring to see the many old playhouses and theaters that have been restored after years of disuse). For a deep dip into New Hampshire culture, there’s nothing better than an evening with the Frost Heaves Players in Peterborough, NH, led by Fred Marple and described as “a variety show of Yankee music, comedy, and nonsense from ‘the most under-appreciated town in New Hampshire."