CURTAIN CALL

Performing-arts venues offer opportunities for actors and audiences

Performing- arts venues offer opportunities for actors and audiences

Alawyer transforms into a wicked witch during a community-theater performance. A child sits in the front row to watch a Shakespearean classic for the first time. Families spend an evening watching a Broadway favorite.

There are many ways to enjoy performances in Arkansas, and those who have been bitten by the theater bug can find plenty of places to perform. Here are a few organizations working to expand The Natural State’s cultural landscape through performing arts.

CHILDREN’S THEATRE

Located at the Arkansas Arts Center in Little Rock, the Children’s Theatre works to provide a nurturing environment where young actors and audience members can fall in love with performance. The theater translates children’s literature into stage productions and offers a variety of classes, workshops and volunteer activities, including the Junior Arts Academy and the Summer Theatre Academy.

“Children’s Theatre truly thrives on the challenge and creativity that go into taking a classic story and breathing modernity into it, sparking a dynamic energy and new life on the stage,” said Bradley D. Anderson, artistic director. Learn more at arkansasartscenter.org/childrenstheatre.

ROBINSON CENTER

After closing for two years for renovation and expansion, the Robinson Center in Little Rock opened for its second act in 2016. Since it first opened in 1939, the center has shined a spotlight on famous performers such as Elvis Presley and Ella Fitzgerald. The center has also featured well-known productions such as Oklahoma! and Beauty and the Beast.

The center continues its tradition by hosting a wide variety of Broadway shows, musical acts and comedy tours. For more information about the facility’s renovation and upcoming events, visit robinsoncentersecondact.com.

ARKANSAS SHAKESPEARE THEATRE

Although it is not a venue, the Arkansas Shakespeare Theatre helps distinguish the performing-arts scene in central Arkansas. Based in Reynolds Performance Hall at the University of Central Arkansas in Conway, the organization is a force for arts education, producing a yearly lineup of Shakespeare’s work to engage audiences and teach the public about the legendary playwright.

In addition to scheduled productions at Reynolds Performance Hall, the theater participates in a number of community events and offers the AST Groundlings Scholarship. For more information about the upcoming season, visit arkshakes.com.

WALTON ARTS CENTER

The Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville works to bring diverse professional programming to Northwest Arkansas, produce arts-related events and incubate developing performance companies in the region. In addition to its original campus, which opened in 1992 and completed a renovation in 2016, the center operates the Nadine Baum Studios in Fayetteville and the Walmart Arkansas Music Pavilion in Rogers.

The center is also home to two theater companies — TheatreSquared and Trike Theatre for Youth — as well as the Symphony of Northwest Arkansas and the Community Creative Center art studio. Learn more at waltonartscenter.org.

ARTS AND SCIENCE CENTER FOR SOUTHEAST ARKANSAS

People of all ages can awaken their creativity at the Arts and Science Center for Southeast Arkansas in Pine Bluff, which works to provide the area with programming in visual arts, performing arts and sciences by

offering exhibits, classes and performances.

The center works to provide educational resources to schools and families. In addition to theatrical productions, the center offers classes, special events, live music and an art gallery. The center also boasts summercamp programs, including a theater camp for kids ages 7 to 17 that ends with a junior production. For more information, visit asc701.org.

ARTS CENTER OF THE OZARKS

Performing artists, as well as visual artists and musicians, can find a home at the Arts Center of the Ozarks in Springdale, which works to unite community members of all ages and backgrounds through arts and performance. The center features plays, musicals and unique productions, such as audio plays organized by the Northwest Arkansas Audio Theater and the Little Trike Series for children ages 2 to 5.

The center also offers resources for talented locals, including classes, auditions, volunteer opportunities and artistic-development programs. Learn more about the Art Center of the Ozarks by visiting acozarks.org.

ALMA PERFORMING ARTS CENTER

Run by the Alma Education and Arts Foundation, the Alma Performing Arts Center works to educate and entertain River Valley residents by offering a lineup of professional touring productions, as well as bonus shows featuring local talent and educational shows for students.

The center offers both a full-stage theater and a black-box theater, as well as an art gallery with rotating exhibits, a preprofessional theater work program, a scholarship program and an annual awards banquet for seniors at Alma High School. To learn about opportunities at the center, visit almapac.org.