Philadelphia Activities: Theater and music

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• Walnut Street Theatre, 825 Walnut St, ☎ +1 215 574-3550, www.walnutstreettheatre.org. America's oldest theatre celebrated its 200th anniversary season in 2009. Shows regularly sell out, and travelers are advised to buy in advance. The theater is a self-producing, non-profit regional theater.
• The Philadelphia Orchestra, www.philorch.org. Founded in 1900, the Philadelphia Orchestra is one of the most famous and widely traveled orchestras in the world. Performs in Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center for the Performing Arts.
• Kimmel Center, 260 S Broad St, ☎ +1 215 893-1999, www.kimmelcenter.org. Showcases a variety of performing arts from chamber music, dance, drama, orchestral, jazz & pop.
• The Mask and Wig Club, 310 S Quince St, www.maskandwig.com. Mask and Wig has presented comedy, music, and dancing to the University of Pennsylvania, to Philadelphia and to audiences across the country since 1889 and is a legend amongst Philadelphia theatre-goers. Each spring, Mask and Wig performs a full-length musical comedy at its historic Clubhouse.
• The Khyber, 56 S 2nd St, www.thekhyber.com. A storied home of many Philadelphia indie acts, The Khyber is an Old City attraction that can't be missed by music enthusiasts.
• The Barbary, Frankford and Delaware Ave. Varied DJ nights all week. Hipster night spot.
• Tower Theatre, 69th St in Upper Darby, cc.com/main.html. The Tower Theater is located just across from the last stop on the westbound Market-Frankford Line. Originally a Great Depression-era movie theater, the venue is now home to some of the biggest names in music and showbusiness each year.
• The Trocadero, 1003 Arch St, www.thetroc.com. Typically features indie/alternative acts and local acts.
• The Fillmore at the TLA (formally Theater of Living Arts), On South St between 3rd and 4th Sts. The TLA is a smaller, more intimate venue that often features a good mix of national acts and local musicians.
• The Electric Factory, 421 N 7th St, electricfactory.com. The Electric Factory is one of the leading indoor music venues and is Philadelphia's most celebrated location for live music.
• Academy of Music, At Broad and Locust Sts, www.academyofmusic.org. The Academy is the oldest grand opera house in the United States still being used for its original purpose. The Academy also provides the Philadelphia area with interesting and popular concerts, ballets, Broadway shows, and other events. Tours of the Academy, focusing on its inspiring history and current renovations, are available by contacting the manager's office.
• The World Cafe Live, 3025 Walnut St, worldcafelive.com. Offers an eclectic offering of concerts, from jazz to rock, from locally and nationally-renowned artists.
• R5 Productions, www.r5productions.com/shows.html. Shows are at several venues.
• Wanamaker Organ, At the Macy's Center City store downtown, www.wanamakerorgan.com. The largest operational musical instrument in the world is played twice a day in the store, six days each week.
• Walking Fish Theatre, 2509 Frankford Ave (Fishtown), ☎ 215.427.WALK, info@bsomeday.org. This theater offers acting classes, workshops, shows, and hires interns from local performing arts high schools. The website for the Walking Fish has a calendar of events, a donation link, as well as a link for renting out the venue.

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