Broward Center for the Performing Arts

Broadway, opera and ballet on the Riverwalk

⏱ 2-3 hours👤 All ages$$$

The centre opened on 26 February 1991 with the national tour of The Phantom of the Opera and became the cultural anchor of downtown's revival along the New River. Its programming is broader than most visitors expect: touring Broadway for the headline weeks, resident and visiting opera and dance companies, comedy tours, and community and education programmes that keep the building busy most nights. Two halls matter to visitors: the Au-Rene Theater, with roughly 2,650 seats, takes the Broadway tours, opera and big concerts, while the 584-seat Amaturo Theater handles chamber music, cabaret, smaller plays and comedy. The building was designed by Benjamin Thompson and Associates and is governed by the Performing Arts Center Authority, a public board created by the state legislature in 1984. The organisation also runs the Parker Playhouse, with about 1,150 seats, near Holiday Park, and partners with the Miniaci Performing Arts Center on the Nova Southeastern University campus in Davie, so check which hall your show is in before you book a hotel.

Making a night of it: arrive by Water Taxi if you are staying on the beach or the Intracoastal, which sidesteps garage queues; have dinner on the Riverwalk or in the Himmarshee bar district; and leave time for a riverside stroll at intermission or after the show, when the downtown towers light the water. Parking in nearby garages fills on sell-out nights, so pre-pay where the venue offers it. In the Au-Rene, mid-orchestra and front mezzanine seats give the best balance of sightline and sound for musicals; the upper balcony is steep but good value for spectacle-heavy shows, and the Amaturo is small enough that nearly every seat is close.

Who it suits: couples looking for a dressed-up evening, families with a Disney musical on the calendar, and anyone whose beach week has been interrupted by a tropical downpour. Check the calendar as soon as your dates are set, because the biggest Broadway titles sell their best seats months ahead.