Benedum Center Events

From ballet acts and game shows to music legends and comedic geniuses, people from around the world come together to watch world-class entertainment at the Benedum Center. Owned and operated by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust, the restored 2,800-seat theater is located on the corner of Liberty and Seventh Street, otherwise known as the Cultural District of Pittsburgh. With a vibrant location, quality sound system, and cutting edge lighting, it’s obvious why this venue has been dubbed the “Number One Auditorium in the U.S.” by Billboard (more than once!).

This site is not an official ticket seller of Ticketmaster. This site links to resale tickets for events at the Benedum Center.

Latest schedule of events for the Benedum Center . View listings and purchase tickets for the upcoming events.

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: The Nutcracker

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre

Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre: The Nutcracker

Events at the Benedum Center for the Performing Arts

The Benedum Center has earned its reputation as one of America’s most beautiful and actively used theaters, hosting over 200 performances annually. This venue serves as the permanent home for the city’s most prestigious performing arts institutions while welcoming touring productions from around the world.

Resident Company Performances

The Benedum Center’s identity and year-round vitality stem from its three world-class resident performing arts companies, each bringing decades of artistic excellence and tradition to the historic stage. 

• Pittsburgh Opera presents a balanced repertoire of classic works and contemporary pieces throughout the season, from timeless favorites like “La Bohème” and “Carmen” to innovative modern operas. Productions typically run multiple performances over several weeks, offering audiences numerous opportunities to experience world-class opera.

• Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre brings athleticism and artistry to the stage year-round. The company’s beloved holiday tradition, “The Nutcracker,” draws thousands of families each year, while spring and fall productions showcase classical ballets and cutting-edge contemporary works by renowned choreographers.

• Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera (CLO) delivers the spectacle and energy of Broadway musicals with professional polish year-round, offering the full Broadway experience without leaving Pittsburgh. The CLO produces classic musicals and contemporary hits alike.

Broadway Touring Productions

The Benedum Center serves as Pittsburgh’s premier venue for touring Broadway productions, bringing the glitz, glamour, and artistry of New York’s Theater District directly to Pennsylvania audiences. The prestigious PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh series has established the city as a major stop on national touring circuits, ensuring that local theater lovers don’t have to travel to New York to experience Broadway’s biggest hits.

From Tony Award-winning musicals to long-running Broadway favorites, the touring productions that grace the Benedum stage feature the same elaborate sets, stunning costumes, professional orchestras, and talented performers that made these shows sensations in their original Broadway runs. The PNC Broadway in Pittsburgh series typically presents multiple shows each season, with performances running for one to three weeks depending on demand and popularity. 

Concert Events

The venue serves as a premier concert hall, hosting legendary musicians across multiple genres and attracting performers who appreciate its exceptional acoustics and historic ambiance. Classical music concerts featuring renowned soloists, chamber ensembles, and visiting orchestras benefit from the hall’s natural sound projection and architectural design optimized for unamplified performance.

Contemporary pop performances, rock shows, jazz artists, and country musicians all take advantage of the theater’s superior acoustics and intimate atmosphere, which creates a connection between performers and audiences. Unlike massive arena concerts where thousands of fans feel distant from the stage, the Benedum Center’s 2,800-seat capacity maintains an intimacy that allows concertgoers to genuinely see and hear performers in an environment designed specifically for live music.

The venue’s flexibility and state-of-the-art technical capabilities allow it to accommodate acoustic performances that rely on the hall’s natural sound qualities and amplified contemporary concerts that require sophisticated sound reinforcement systems. 

Comedy and Special Events

Stand-up comedy shows featuring nationally recognized comedians regularly appear on the Benedum Center calendar, transforming the elegant theater into an unexpectedly perfect setting for laughter and entertainment. While comedy clubs typically offer intimate settings, the Benedum Center’s superior acoustics ensure that every joke, timing nuance, and audience reaction carries throughout the auditorium, allowing comedians to connect with larger audiences without sacrificing the immediacy and spontaneity that make live comedy special.

Touring comedians from cable specials, late-night television, and streaming platforms bring their acts to Pittsburgh audiences, offering everything from observational humor and storytelling to character work and musical comedy.

The theater has also hosted notable television productions and unique events that showcase its versatility beyond traditional performing arts, including PBS doo-wop concert specials that celebrated the golden age of vocal harmony groups and two weeks of Wheel of Fortune tapings during the show’s 16th season in 1998. 

Family-Friendly Programming

Family-friendly shows provide opportunities to introduce young people to the performing arts in an accessible, engaging environment that sparks imagination and cultivates lifelong appreciation for live theater. These productions are specifically designed or selected to appeal to children and families, with age-appropriate content, manageable running times, and interactive elements that keep younger audience members engaged throughout the performance.

Holiday classics like “The Nutcracker” and seasonal productions become annual family traditions, creating cherished memories and establishing the Benedum Center as a special destination in children’s minds. Educational productions often incorporate curriculum-aligned content, making them valuable supplements to classroom learning while demonstrating that education can be entertaining. The Benedum Center proves that theater can teach important lessons about history, literature, science, and social issues in an engaging setting.

Pittsburgh Cultural Events

As a proud honoree of the National Register of Historic Places, the Benedum Center is the home of the Pittsburgh Opera, Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre, and Pittsburgh Civic Light Opera. But, classical is not the only genre to get a standing ovation from guests as the venue has seen a long line of megastars. From country legend Dolly Parton and multi-platinum rockstars Kansas to the rap god 2Chainz and “All I Want For Christmas Is You” powerhouse Mariah Carey, the venue is always hosting the biggest acts in the entertainment industry!

But don’t just take our word for it, here’s the list of upcoming events at Benedum Center complete with links to purchase your tickets. Make sure to keep an eye on this schedule, and don’t forget to bookmark this page for real-time updates. To pick your seats, simply click the “Get Tickets” button above to secure your place today!

This site is not an official ticket seller of Live Nation. This site links to resale tickets for events at the Benedum Center.